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About The Bridge

The Bridge features classic jazz recordings, new releases, local musicians and interviews with the people who make jazz exciting.

Joel HurdHost
Joel Hurd
:

It all started with public radio. Growing up 50 miles west of Boston I would tune in to WGBH-FM every night to hear Eric in the Evening with Eric Jackson. His voice was (and still is) amazing and the music he played gave my 12-year-old ears a thrill that exists to this day.

That was right around the time that I started playing guitar. So the Miles, Sonny Rollins, Art Blakey, Coltrane, Bill Evans and Duke Ellington that Eric was playing got mixed in my brain with Pat Metheny, John Scofield, Robben Ford, Mike Stern, Steve Morse and Scott Henderson. The result is how I hear the music today.

On The Bridge you won't hear screaming guitars or drum machines, but you will hear a program that embraces the new sounds of jazz and celebrates the classics that have shaped those sounds. We'll also play a cut or two from a classic piece of vinyl from the NCPR jazz collection and usually spend a few minutes chatting with an artist about a new release or upcoming concert.

As with all of our programs, your input is welcomed and encouraged. Please drop me an email and let me know what you think. E-mail Joel

 

The Bridge with Joel Hurd

The Bridge with Joel Hurd airs
Saturdays
from 9-10 pm.

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The Bridge (latest edition)
The best in jazz each week. Here's your place to listen to the latest edition of The Bridge, hosted by Joel Hurd, anytime you want. This edition will be available until next edition is posted. (updates Sunday at 3 am)
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 Recent Jazz Interviews on The Bridge
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The SFJAZZ Collective to make three stops in the region
The SFJAZZ Collective
The SFJAZZ Collective
(02/25/12) Jazz supergroup The SFJAZZ Collective will be playing three shows in the area next week. March 2nd at The Flynn Theatre in Burlington, March 3rd at Hosmer Hall at SUNY Potsdam, and March 4th at The Egg in Albany. The concerts will feature music of Stevie Wonder along with original compositions from the band members. The group's trombonist Robin Eubanks talked with Joel Hurd on The Bridge.

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Drummer Kevin Crabb returns to Toronto to record the new CD, Waltz for Dylan
Kevin Crabb
Kevin Crabb
(02/18/12) Kevin Crabb grew up in Toronto but has lived in Los Angeles since his college days at Pepperdine University. His debut CD, Waltz for Dylan, was recorded in his hometown and features nine original compositions. He talked about it with Joel Hurd on The Bridge

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Singer Shirley Crabbe releases her debut CD, "Home"
Shirley Crabbe's new CD, <em>Home</em>
Shirley Crabbe's new CD, Home
(02/04/12) Jazz singer Shirley Crabbe's new CD, Home is getting rave reviews and lots of national attention. She joined Joel Hurd on The Bridge (via Skype from her home near NYC) to talk about the new disc, growing up in a musical family, and a vocal cord injury that nearly ended her singing career before it ever even started.

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Singer Alan Leatherman makes a strong debut with "Detour Ahead"
(10/22/11) Alan Leatherman's new CD, Detour Ahead, is a very appealing, yet simple, celebration of songs that fit the theme, "The Blues In Love". It's Joel Hurd's favorite CD release of 2011. Alan talked about it with Joel on The Bridge.

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Potsdam native Paul Meyers releases new CD
Paul Meyers
Paul Meyers
(08/06/11) Guitarist Paul Meyers grew up in Potsdam and now lives in the New York City area. He's a fixture on the Brazilian jazz scene in the city, teaches at two colleges, and is the longtime guitarist for legendary singer Jon Hendricks. Paul's latest CD, recorded here in the North Country, is called Welcome Home. He talked about it with Joel Hurd on The Bridge.

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Guitarist Frank Vignola to play in Norwood
Frank Vignola
Frank Vignola
(07/09/11) Frank Vignola is one of the busiest guitarists on the jazz scene today. His versatility, showmanship, and blistering technique have made him a favorite around the world. Later this week he and his trio will play the Norwood Village Green Concert Series. He talked about his music with Joel Hurd on The Bridge.

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Preview: Kingston Jazz Festival
(06/23/11) The Kingston Jazz Festival takes place today through Saturday with five headlining performances and other jazz activities around the city. Recently Joel Hurd spoke with Brian McCurdy, the cultural director for the City of Kingston, Ontario, to find out more.

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Preview: Burlington Jazz Festival starts Friday
(05/31/11) The Burlington Discover Jazz Festival kicks off this Friday at various venues around Burlington, and this year features more music than ever before. Joel Hurd spoke with the festival's Managing Director Brian Mital.

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Guitarist Steve Khan's new CD, Parting Shot, is a celebration of Latin Jazz
(05/14/11) Guitarist Steve Khan has always used Latin rhythms on his CDs, but the new CD, Parting Shot, is a full-out Latin Jazz effort from this veteran jazz guitarist. he talked about the new CD and more with Joel Hurd on The Bridge.

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Guitarist Julian Lage mixes many musical styles on the new CD "Gladwell"
Julian Lage (courtesy julianlage.com)
Julian Lage (courtesy julianlage.com)
(05/07/11) At age 23 Julian Lage has just released the followup to his Grammy-nominated 2009 debut CD, "Sounding Point". Without any lyrics, "Gladwell" tells the story of an imaginary and forgotten town through music. He talked about the new CD and lots more with Joel Hurd on The Bridge.

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Joel's Jazz Links

Burlington Discover Jazz Festival
Joel's Jazz Performer Picks
At the 52nd Monterey Jazz Festival, three-quarters of the stellar fusion band Return to Forever reunited. Hear Chick Corea, Stanley Clarke and Lenny White — on piano, bass and drums, respectively — perform a highly charged acoustic set.
 
Famous for his collaborations with Miles Davis, Evans brought orchestral colors and textures to jazz, and was a pioneer of the "cool" sound.
 
The Cuban trumpeter first met Dizzy Gillespie in 1977, when the American jazzman came to Havana to play a concert. It was the start of a friendship that would last until Gillespie's death in 1993.
 
<em></em>For arranger Gil Evans' centennial, we present a concert from the 2011 Monterey Jazz Festival. Terence Blanchard plays Davis' role with commitment and emotion.
 
He's a phenomenal soloist, but his reliability is what's landed him on more than 2,000 recordings.
 
NPR Music intern Dominic Martinez listens to the legendary jazz musician's 1970 album and, thanks it its grooves, learns to love jazz fusion.
 
It's rare to have three great pianists at three pianos in one studio. But given the recent marriage of keyboard masters Charlap and Rosnes, it was a perfect opportunity to present a special trio edition of <em>Marian McPartland's Piano...
 
If classic jazz has a contemporary voice, it's that of guitarist, vocalist and bandleader John Pizzarelli. He's fashioned an ultra-cool style that's both modern and rooted in the jazz tradition. Here, the John Pizzarelli Trio swings on "Here...
 


Finding Music

You can find or special order any of the music heard on this program from local music stores, including:
Northern Music & Video, Potsdam: 315-265-8100
Strawberry Fields, Potsdam: 315-265-7700
Ampersound, Saranac Lake:
518-891-3114
Peacock Music, Plattsburgh:
518-561-0555