Kevin Jones (musician)

Kevin Jones is an American jazz percussionist and band leader. Jones's music is influenced by that of Cuba and Congo.[1]

Kevin Jones
Koko Jones performing at Joe's Pub June 2011
Background information
Also known asBujo Kevin Jones
GenresJazz
Occupation(s)musician
Instrumentspercussion
Years active1978–present
LabelsMotéma Music
Associated actsBabatunde Lea
Websitewww.kevinjonespercussion.com

Career

Jones grew up in Englewood, New Jersey.[2] He is the brother of the musician Patrick Stanfield Jones.[3] As a teenager he studied under percussionists Babatunde Lea, Marvin "Bugalu" Smith, Congolese drummers Titos Sompa and Coster Massamba, Charli Persip and Max Roach. He began playing percussion professionally at age 13 with a group called "Spoonbread" who were signed to All Platinum Records of Englewood, NJ. In 1978, aged 18, he played in a sextet led by Charles McPherson on the album Free Bop![2][4] He studied music at the University of Massachusetts and Jazzmobile simultaneously until 1979 when his Professor, saxophonist Archie Shepp, took him on tour to Europe, where he recorded his second album. Just months later he was hired by The Isley Brothers and toured and later recorded a host of records with them.

Jones has performed with, among others, Whitney Houston, The Isley Brothers, Jermaine Jackson, Archie Shepp, Winard Harper, Ray Copeland, Talib Kibwe, Babatunde Lea, James Weidman, Clifford Adams, and Malaki Ma Congo Drum and Dance Ensemble[5]

Tenth World

Jones and the pianist Kelvin Sholar formed the band Tenth World in 1999.[6] The band members included Jamieo Brown (drums, percussion), Brian Horton (saxophone and flute), George Makinto (flute, percussion, African percussion), Kevin Louis (trumpet), and Luisito Quintero (timbales, percussion, drums).

Bill Milkowski writing in JazzTimes described Jones's first album as leader, Tenth World, produced by Babatunde Lea, as combining "the spirit of Africa with modern jazz on his impressive debut."[7] Milkowski wrote of the group's second album, Live!, "Percussionist Bujo Kevin Jones underscores this vibrant sextet with an authentic Afro-Cuban pulse".[8]

Who's That Lady?

In 2014, Jones released the album Who's That Lady? through Motéma Music under the moniker Koko Jones. The Koko Jones Band included singers Derrick Dupree and Christelle Durandy, Pianist Zen Zadravec, Drummer Jerard Snell, Guitarist Michael "Moon" Reuben and Bassist Charles Brown.

In a generally positive review, "j.poet" wrote in Drum! Magazine that "Jones has a lifetime of performing a wide range of styles with some of the top names in the field, and brings all those elements together on Who's That Lady".[9]

Discography

As support musician
  • "Free Bop!" - Charles McPherson (Xanadu Records, 1978)
  • "Attica Blues Big Band Live at Palais De Glace" - Archie Shepp (Blue Marge Records)
  • "Grand Slam" - The Isley Brothers (T-Neck Records/CBS 1980)
  • "The Isley Brothers Live"- The Isley Brothers (T-Neck Records/CBS 1980)
  • "The Beat Of Love" - Randy VanWarmer - (1982)
  • "Inside You" - The Isley Brothers (T-Neck Records/CBS 1981)
  • "The Real Deal" - The Isley Brothers (T-Neck Records/CBS 1982)
  • "Between the Sheets" - The Isley Brothers (T-Neck/CBS 1983)
  • "Broadway's Closer to Sunset Blvd" - Isley, Jasper, Isley (T-Neck/CBS 1984)
  • "Caravan of Love" - Isley, Jasper, Isley (T-Neck/CBS 1985)
  • "Different Drummer" - Isley, Jasper, Isley (T-Neck/CBS 1987)
  • "Soul-Jazz Collaboration" - Chuck McPherson (Independent 1998)
  • "Listening Room" - Clifford Adams (2000)
  • "Spiritually Speaking" Blaze (featuring Kevin Hedge/Josh Milan) (2002)
  • "Soul Pools" - Babatunde Lea (Motema Music 2003)[10]
  • "Rhythm Master" - Vincent Ector (Blues Leaf 2003)
  • "Time For The Soul" - Winard Harper Sextet (Savant records 2003)
  • "Keepers Of The Flame" - Charles Earland Tribute Band (Highnote 2003)[11]
  • "Hip Cake Walk" - Papa John DeFrancesco (Highnote 2003)[12]
  • "Be Thankful" - Omar featuring Angie Stone (2004)
  • "Suite Unseen: Summoner Of The Ghost" - Babatunde Lea (Motema Music 2005)
  • "Make It Happen" - Winard Harper Sextet (Savant Records 2006)
  • "Synthesis" - Norman Simmons (Savant Records 2002)
  • "Percussion Madness" - Luisito Quintero (Vega Records 2006)
  • "Follow the North Star – T.K. Blue (JAJA Records 2008)[13][14]
  • "Aftershower Funk" - The Fantastic Souls (Kay Dee Records 2010)
  • "Soul To The People" - The Fantastic Souls (Kay Dee Records 2010)

As band leader
  • "SunRize" - Sunrize (Boardwalk Records 1981)
  • "Land Of Eternal Tranquil Light" (Tenth World Music 2000)
  • Tenth World (Motéma Music, 2005)
  • Live! (Motéma Music, 2008)

As Koko Jones
  • Who's That Lady? - (Motéma Music, 2014)
gollark: That's why you should run potatOS instead.
gollark: "If loops" don't exist.
gollark: You want to open the microcontroller's wireless card on whatever channel you want to use, then have it listen for modem_message events and handle the associated data. On the computer side, use the `broadcast` function with that channel and whatever data.
gollark: You need a wireless card in each.
gollark: https://ocdoc.cil.li/component:modem

References
  1. "Bujo Kevin Jones & 10th World | Culture Beat". Archived from the original on 2012-04-25. Retrieved 2011-08-17.
  2. "Kevin Jones". Motéma. Retrieved 8 August 2019.
  3. "Patrick Jones". JazzTimes.
  4. Yanow, Scott (2000). Bebop. Hal Leonard Corporation. ISBN 978-0-87930-608-3.
  5. Review: "Bujo" Kevin Jones - Tenth World - Blogcritics Music
  6. "Kevin Bujo Jones & Tenth World". Cliff Bell's. 3 January 2019.
  7. Milkowski, Bill (1 November 2005). "Jazz Albums: Tenth World "Bujo" Kevin Jones". JazzTimes. Retrieved 18 November 2015.
  8. Milkowski, Bill. "Bujo Kevin Jones & Tenth World: Live!". JazzTimes.
  9. Poet, J. (October 15, 2015). "Koko Jones' Traditions And Transitions". Drum Magazine. Retrieved 18 November 2015.
  10. Varela, Jesse. "Babatunde Lea: Soul Pools". JazzTimes.
  11. Cordle, Owen. "Charles Earland Tribute Band: Keepers of the Flame". JazzTimes.
  12. Cordle, Owen. "John "Papa" DeFrancesco: Hip Cake Walk". JazzTimes.
  13. "Follow the North Star – T.K. Blue". Retrieved 1 March 2020.
  14. Sendra, Jessica Webster. "T.K. Blue: Follow the North Star". JazzTimes.
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