You may have heard the old joke: “How do you get to Carnegie Hall?” Answer: “Practice, practice, practice.” For jazz musicians, the question might actually be: “How do you get to the Village Vanguard?” In the case of pianist Jon Cowherd, that journey was certainly not direct.
After living for 30 years in New York, he moved to Colorado last year, only to find himself back in the Big Apple this week for his first ever headlining residency at the legendary club, joined by an all-star band that included saxophonist Chris Potter, bassist John Patitucci, guitarist Steve Cardenas, and Jon’s longtime friend and bandmate Brian Blade. Jon calls it The Mercy Project.
Early in their set, the band played Cowherd’s original “The Colorado Experiment.” The song’s title is a nod to his recent move west. Talking on the phone the next day, he told me, “It is kind of ironic, you know, to leave town and then get the gig I’ve wanted for a long time.”
Not that Jon Cowherd has been sitting around. He’s been an in-demand side man, collaborator and secret weapon for artists ranging from John Scofield to Rosanne Cash. Along with his friend Brian Blade, Cowherd is a co-leader of the Brian Blade Fellowship. The two met as students at Loyola University in New Orleans. That was way back in the days when Harry Connick, Sr. was still the most famous Harry Connick in town.
“One of the students in my classes was Harry Connick Jr.,” Jon says. “I used to go to parties, and he would be there. He’d sit at the piano and entertain for an hour. It was unbelievable what he could do and I just got really inspired to want to do that. I wanted to play.”
In fact, the secret to his longevity in the city may have turned out to be his willingness to work in a wide variety of situations. “I didn’t say no for 30 years,” he says. “So many different kinds of bands. It’s been great to do different things. I love all kinds of music.”
Before moving to New York, Jon even paid his dues on a riverboat cruising up and down the Mississippi. “That was a great gig,” he explains. “There was this boat called the Delta Queen. People would get on in New Orleans, go all the way up to Minneapolis on the Mississippi River.”
But while that openness is a virtue and enjoying yourself is the greatest reward, it can also be a liability in a world where artists are often asked to pick a lane and stick to it, if for no other reason than to make it easier on the audiences to understand who they are.
“I’ve wondered in the past you know is it too broad, just accepting every kind of gig,” Jon tells me. “But my theory is that you can hopefully be yourself in any situation. I think it’s about having a sound and just your sound always being there, whatever genre you’re doing.”
Maybe that’s why he seemed so proud and joyful to bring his sound to the stage at the Village Vanguard this week, playing the music from his latest album, aptly titled Pride & Joy.
