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Gregory Hutchinson

Ever since his professional debut as a teen-aged sideman for trumpeter Red Rodney, Greg Hutchinson has offered eloquent testimony that youth must have its say. Today he is still a young man, and still thick with the freshness of invention that was evident from the start. However, his youth is balanced with a maturity gained from valuable associations with the likes of Betty Carter and Joe Henderson.

Born June 16th, 1970 in Brooklyn, New York, Hutchinson grew up on a rich diet of '70s soul-which is undoubtedly the source of that homeboy fire he blends into his swing. He was musically inspired early by both of his parents. His percussionist father recruited a young Greg into a reggae band he led called the Triadics. From his mother, Greg inherited a vast record collection which had been in her family for at least two generations. Listening to artists that span jazz, soul and funk, Hutchinson developed his conception early. "Among my primary influences is 'Philly' Joe Jones," he admits, "because he's a streetwise cat who incorporated all the elements of his life into his music. He was very, very slick. Another inspiration is Charlie Parker," Hutchinson continues," I want to sing on the drums the way he sings on his horn."

Hutchinson's own analysis of the styles of personal idols was enhanced by private studies at the Manhatten School of Music under Justin Diccicio, as well as lessons with Marvin 'Smitty' Smith and Kenny Washington. "Hutch's playing proves he's one of very few young drummers who's learning the insides of the drums and the music," remarked Washington."Unlike many drummers of his generation,"Washington adds,"he listens, and is more interested in being a team player that just banging the drums."

While still in school, Hutchinson toured the U.S. and abroad with Rodney before pianist Stephen Scott recommended him to one of jazzdom's legendary ensemble leaders - Betty Carter. The young drummer rose to prominence during his two-year stint with Carter and, according to him, "cultivated a strong sense of coloring, dynamics and control. I could literally take a dinner break in between some of those beats Betty laid down," he quips..

After his work in the Betty Carter Trio, Hutchinson began a successful association with the Roy Hargrove Quintet, which continues to this day. The drummer has sparked Hargrove's band on two records and numerous concert performances. During his time with the firebrand young trumpeter, Hutchinson continues to perform and record with more experienced artists, most notably tenor great Joe Henderson.

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Radio & Podcasts

Gregory Hutchinson: It’s All About Feel

Read "Gregory Hutchinson: It’s All About Feel" reviewed by Leo Sidran


Gregory Hutchinson--or “Hutch" as he is known--is one of the most highly regarded and highly recorded jazz drummers on the planet. Part of what makes him so special is that he sits at the crossroads of the old school and the new school. He was mentored by old jazz masters like Red Rodney, Ray Brown and Betty Carter. He worked extensively with Joshua Redman and Roy Hargrove, among many other innovative jazz musicians of his generation.He has also ...

2
Album Review

JD Walter: What the World Needs Now

Read "What the World Needs Now" reviewed by Pierre Giroux


JD Walter beckons listeners into a soulful and captivating journey through modern jazz interpretations of non-jazz material. With his unique vocal stylings and innovative arrangements, he brings a fresh perspective to familiar popular tunes, and several jazz standards, while delivering thought-provoking original compositions. From the very first track--Stevie Wonder's “Golden Lady"--it is evident that Walter's vocal prowess is a force to be reckoned with. He dashes along in full flight and then effortlessly shifts into intricate ...

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Album Review

Kurt Rosenwinkel: Undercover: Live At The Village Vanguard

Read "Undercover: Live At The Village Vanguard" reviewed by Chris May


Kurt Rosenwinkel records in a variety of situations, either from inclination or to keep himself and his audience fresh or both. In 2022 alone, he released three unusually diverse albums: Plays Piano, a solo outing on which he plays piano only; The Chopin Project, a co-led disc with pianist Jean-Paul Brodbeck exploring the work of Frederic Chopin; and Berlin Baritone, another solo album, this time playing a baritone guitar. Undercover: Live At The Village Vanguard is back ...

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Album Review

Soweto Kinch: White Juju

Read "White Juju" reviewed by Chris May


Adding politically charged spoken-word lyrics to instrumental jazz needs to be done with care, because if sloganeering is tedious to listen to once, it becomes unbearable on repeated exposure. The record containing it drops off one's playlist. Counterproductive or what? The British saxophonist and rapper Soweto Kinch, however, has pulled the trick off many times. From Conversations With The Unseen (Dune, 2003) through to The Black Peril (Soweto Kinch Recordings, 2019), Kinch has made the combination work because of the ...

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Album Review

Theo Croker: Jazz at Berlin Philharmonic XII: Sketches of Miles

Read "Jazz at Berlin Philharmonic XII:  Sketches of Miles" reviewed by Mark Sullivan


Let us just cut to the chase and say this is a terrific collection of live concert interpretations and arrangements of acoustic Miles Davis music, drawing from recordings originally released between 1956 and 1968. This period arguably includes his most beloved output, with a place in the hearts of most jazz fans. The first disc in the set focuses on the Miles Davis Quintet, as played by the Theo Croker Quartet. The second disc is devoted to Davis's large ensemble ...

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Album Review

Dayna Stephens: Right Now! Live At The Village Vanguard

Read "Right Now! Live At The Village Vanguard" reviewed by John Chacona


In his 2018 book, Playing Changes, Nate Chinen argues that the fundamental jazz dialectic of the 1980s and 90s, namely tradition vs. innovation, was ultimately a false choice. Two years later, Dayna Stephens' Right Now! Live at the Village Vanguard proves the point in the most eloquent way possible. In many ways, Right Now! is a traditional undertaking, from the classic horn-and-rhythm-section formation to the set list heavy with tunes taken at a mid-stroll tempo. And nothing cements ...

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Album Review

Dayna Stephens Quartet: Right Now! Live At The Village Vanguard

Read "Right Now! Live At The Village Vanguard" reviewed by Dan McClenaghan


New York City's Village Vanguard has a history. Founded by Max Gordon in 1935 and, after his passing in 1989, operated by his wife Lorraine until her death in 2018, the venue became famous for launching jazz careers and hosting the recordings of more than a hundred jazz albums, including saxophonist Sonny Rollins' A Night At The Village Vanguard (Blue Note, 1957), pianist Bill Evans' Sunday At The Village Vanguard (Riverside, 1961) and saxophonist John Coltrane's Live At The Village ...

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Education

Music Education Monday: Drum clinics with Greg Hutchinson and Ralph Humphrey

Music Education Monday: Drum clinics with Greg Hutchinson and Ralph Humphrey

Source: St. Louis Jazz Notes by Dean Minderman

As one of the top schools for jazz, Berklee College of Music in Boston benefits from a a steady supply of working professional musicians visiting campus to augment the instruction provided by permanent faculty. For this week's Music Education Monday,  you can check out some of that extra instruction provided to Berklee percussion students, as we look in via video on drum clinics presented there by the well-known drummers Gregory Hutchinson and Ralph Humphrey. A native New Yorker, Hutchinson emerged ...

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Recording

Pianist/Composer Matt Baker Releases New CD Titled "Underground" (Featuring Gregory Hutchinson, Joe Sanders, Jeremy Pelt and Dayna Stephens)

Pianist/Composer Matt Baker Releases New CD Titled "Underground" (Featuring Gregory Hutchinson, Joe Sanders, Jeremy Pelt and Dayna Stephens)

Source: Two for the Show Media

"This Guy Can Play" —Herbie Hancock “Baker's piano is the axis around which it all resolves, with integrity and enjoyment." —Michael Foster, Canberra Times Australian / New York Jazz Pianist and Composer, Matt Baker has traveled far with his career, performing at festivals, clubs and concert halls in Australia, Europe, USA and the Pacific. He is now proud to call New York City his home, moving there in mid 2010. In March 2011, Baker recorded this new album in New ...

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Music

Recordings: As Leader | As Sideperson

What the World Needs...

Arkadia Records
2023

buy

Undercover: Live At...

Heartcore Records
2023

buy

White Juju

Soweto Kinch Recordings
2022

buy

Angels Around

Heartcore Records
2020

buy

Right Now! Live At...

Contagious Music
2020

buy

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