Louis Ford

Derrick Shezbie: The Ghost of Buddy Bolden

by Jim Trageser
May 8, 2020

Derrick Shezbie's sophomore release as leader--a mere 26 years after his highly acclaimed debut, Spodie's Back (Warner Bros., 1994)--finds the New Orleans trumpeter in much the same territory as a quarter-century ago: traditional jazz played with an assured combination of virtuosity and energy. But this should be no surprise. He came of age musically as a member of the neotraditionalist Rebirth Brass Band before Quincy Jones' Qwest Records signed him in the early '90s--and he's continued to play ...