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Willie Jones III

Born in Los Angeles, California on June 8, 1968, Jones' earliest exposure to music was through his father, Willie Jones II, an accomplished and notable jazz pianist, who offered guidance and inspiration to his gifted son. Dedicated to the further development of his skills, the younger Jones spent the next few years working diligently with acclaimed drummers and music instructors and began performing with distinguished musicians by the time he was in his teens. He completed his academic training after receiving a full scholarship to the California Institute of the Arts where he studied under the tutelage of the legendary Albert "Tootie" Heath. Before he was a semifinalist in the 1992 Thelonious Monk Jazz Drum Competition, Jones co-founded jazz band Black Note. Influenced by the rich soulful energy of the West Coast bop movement, Black Note's hard-swing sound propelled them to first place in the prestigious John Coltrane Young Artist Competition in 1991. Jones contributed his skillfulness as both musician and producer on all four Black Note recordings: 43rd & Degnan and L.A. Underground (World Stage Records), Jungle Music (Columbia) and Nothin' But the Swing (Impulse!). By 1994, the band had toured Europe and across the U.S. and was the opening act for Wynton Marsalis.

Near the end of 1994, while Jones was reaching for a higher level of drumming dexterity, he gained the privilege of playing sideman to the renowned vibist Milt Jackson, where Jones learned the importance of pacing and sensitivity. Meanwhile, his musical career continued to unfold. From 1995 through 1998, he was a member of Arturo Sandoval's band and is featured on Sandoval's GRAMMY® award winning release Hot House (N2K). Subsequently, Jones recorded with Horace Silver on Jazz Has a Sense of Humor (Impulse!).

From 1998-2005, Jones was a member of Roy Hargrove's Quintet and is featured on Roy Hargrove's CD releases on Verve: Moment To Moment, Hard Groove, Nothing Serious and RH Factor's Distractions. Jones can be heard on a host of recordings including Kurt Elling's GRAMMY® nominated Night Moves (Concord) and Eric Reed's Here (Max Jazz). Jones has worked with Sonny Rollins, Ernestine Anderson, Bobby Hutcherson, Wynton Marsalis, Cedar Walton, Frank Wess, the Dizzy Gillespie All-Star Big Band, Houston Person, Billy Childs, Eric Reed, Ryan Kisor, Eric Alexander, Bill Charlap, Michael Brecker, Herbie Hancock and Hank Jones. In 2000, Jones' released his debut CD, Vol 1...Straight Swingin' on his own label, WJ3 Records. He continues to reveal his proficiency as a composer as well as a producer on Vol II...Don't Knock The Swing (2002); Volume III (2007); WE 2 (2008), a trombone and piano recording featuring Wycliffe Gordon and Eric Reed; and Jones' latest release The Next Phase (2010).

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Album Review

Roberta Gambarini: Easy To Love

Read "Easy To Love" reviewed by Richard J Salvucci


In 2007, All About Jazz reviewer Michael Caratti wrote: “This debut outing from Roberta Gambarini sees the Italian-born jazz vocalist pair up with two star-studded rhythm sections and legendary tenor saxophonist James Moody, to present what has to be one of the best vocal jazz albums of the decade. Opening with Cole Porter's classic title track Gambarini's exquisite tone and masterful rhythmic phrasing are immediately on display in the first a capella section. The gradual addition of bass and brushes ...

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Liner Notes

Ryan Kisor: Awakening

Read "Ryan Kisor: Awakening" reviewed by C. Andrew Hovan


A man of few words, Ryan Kisor chooses to let his horn do the speaking and obviously it has said volumes over the years when you consider that the trumpeter is one of a select few musicians who has managed to sustain a viable career past the heydays of the jazz renaissance of the '80s and early '90s. Even when given the opportunity to elaborate on his most recent musical endeavors, Kisor states quite simply, “I'm pretty much just doing ...

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Album Review

Sam Taylor: Let Go

Read "Let Go" reviewed by Edward Blanco


Presenting his third offering from the Cellar Live record label, Harlem-based and Philadelphia native, saxophonist Sam Taylor unleashes an exciting bop-filled package of contemporary jazz covers, making a superb job of interpreting the music of composers such as Benny Golson, Hank Jones, Jule Styne and Jimmy Van Heusen and laying down sturdy new treatments of oft-recorded and ageless classics. The goal of this project is best described by the saxophonist himself in the liner notes when he states: “Fill the ...

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Liner Notes

Peter Beets: New York Trio Page Two

Read "Peter Beets: New York Trio Page Two" reviewed by C. Andrew Hovan


In its relatively short history, American jazz music has established a language that while having some ties to the European tradition is more fully rooted in the rhythms and folk melodies of the African slaves. What is even more significant is the profound impact that the music and musicians have had in breaking social boundaries such as race, culture, and ethnicity. Way before there were even the thoughts of equal opportunities for all individuals in the American South, Benny Goodman ...

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Album Review

Jason Marshall: New Beginnings

Read "New Beginnings" reviewed by Pierre Giroux


Impresario extraordinaire and multi-talented saxophonist Cory Weeds has picked up the challenge to acknowledge the contribution of black musicians to jazz music in these uncertain times. Working with trumpeter and producer Jeremy Pelt, this album New Beginnings by baritone saxophonist Jason Marshall, would be the fifth release led by a black artist for The Cellar Music Group. Although his discography may be on the slim side, Marshall's bona fides are first-rate, having studied with top-notch players ...

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Album Review

Jason Marshall: New Beginnings

Read "New Beginnings" reviewed by Jack Bowers


Anyone who appreciates the thunderous sound of an assertive baritone sax should love New Beginnings, an emphatic quartet date that shines a light on Jason Marshall's muscular horn and keeps it there from start to finish. While his teammates (Marc Cary, piano; Gerald Cannon, bass; Willie Jones III, drums) converse eloquently on every one of the album's eight numbers, Marshall affixes a decisive exclamation mark on every sentence. He does so with exceptional technique and a seemingly ...

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Album Review

Sam Taylor: Let Go

Read "Let Go" reviewed by Pierre Giroux


Tenor saxophonist Sam Taylor is a man with a purpose. He is committed to sharing the joy music brings him with like-minded listeners. For this album, he brought together a number of his heroes including trumpeter Terell Stafford, pianist Jeb Patton, bassist Neal Miner and drummer Willie Jones III at one of jazz's most iconic recording studios, the Van Gelder Studios at Englewood Cliffs NJ, on January 31, 2022, under the guidance of engineer Maureen Sickler. ...

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Music

Recordings: As Leader | As Sideperson

Let Go

Cellar Music Group
2022

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New Beginnings

Cellar Records
2022

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Live in Paris

HighNote Records
2021

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Renaissance In Blue

Prime Productions
2021

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