Gordon begins a new series on the influence of jazz structures on rock music in the 1960s. By the late 1950s, the emergence of free jazz isolated much of the public and began to fall out of favor as rock music began winning the hearts of listeners worldwide. During that time, musicians in England began experimenting not only with the blues, but also with elements of jazz.

Although Jamal is not necessarily a household name, he is considered by many to be one of the most important figures in jazz music in the last 50 years and has been cited by many major figures including Miles Davis who recorded many of Jamal’s arrangements. In the first segment, Dr. Vernick takes time to look at some of the players who influenced Jamal and helped Ahmad cultivate his original playing style. Part 2 begins a more intense look at Jamal’s solo work with his legendary trio which included Israel Crosby on bass and Vernel Fornier on drums. This look at the life and work of Ahmad Jamal concludes in part 3 by looking at the arrangements and tunes borrowed by Miles Davis from the mid to late-1950s.

Gordon continues his look at how jazz works by showing the evolution of popular jazz styles throughout the decades. Like last week, Gordon welcomes in some of his Georgia State colleagues including Justin Varnes on drums and Robert Dickson on bass and shows how a melody as simple as Just a Closer Walk with Thee can be given a different mood based on style and rhythm.

Gordon presents another edition of “How Jazz Works,” this time taking a look at the role of the drummer and bassist that provide the foundation and roots for jazz bands.  Joining Dr. Vernick for this episode are Justin Varnes, a professor of jazz drumming at Georgia State University and bass instructor Robert Dickson. Aside from simply taking a look at the role of these instruments, both Varnes and Dickson take a look at the history and evolution of the respective instruments.

Gordon takes a look at Duke Ellington’s fascination with trains. From his earliest recordings in the mid-1920s. Ellington’s obsession with trains worked it way into his music. Throughout his career, Ellington would write tunes that tried to emulate the sounds and feel of the classic coal-powered train. As a way of mixing his passion for visual arts with his music, Duke used his brass section to emulate train horns, the drums to convey the rhythm of the wheels on a track and his woodwinds to emulate the melodies from a train’s whistle.

Gordon takes a look at the evolution of the trombone in jazz music. Part 1 of the series begins looking at some of the earliest pioneers of the trombone in jazz including the well-known Kid Ory out of New Orleans and the not-so-well-know Miff Mole out of New York City. In the second segment, Jimmy Harrison and Charlie Green are the featured players. While both players played with Jelly Roll Morton, Charlie Green has the distinction of being Bessie Smith’s favorite horn player (even above Louis Armstrong) and is immortalized in the song Trombone Cholly. In the third and final segment, Gordon concludes his look at the trombone in 1920s jazz by focusing on perhaps the biggest and most influential of that time period, Jack Teagarden.