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Known as one of the finest pianists of the past 60 years, Eddie Palmieri is a bandleader, arranger and composer of salsa and Latin jazz.

His playing skillfully fuses the rhythm of his Puerto Rican heritage with the complexity of his jazz influences: Thelonious Monk, Herbie Hancock, McCoy Tyner as well as his older brother, Charlie Palmieri.

Palmieri’s parents emigrated from Ponce, Puerto Rico to New York City in 1926. Born in Spanish Harlem and raised in the Bronx, Palmieri learned to play the piano at an early age, and at 13, he joined his uncle’s orchestra, playing timbales.

Palmieri’s professional career as a pianist took off with various bands in the early 1950s including Eddie Forrester, Johnny Segui’s, and the popular Tito Rodriguez Orchestra. In 1961, Palmieri formed his own band, La Perfecta, which featured an unconventional front line of trombones rather than the trumpets customary in Latin orchestras. This created an innovative sound that mixed American jazz into Afro-Caribbean rhythms, surprising critics and fans alike. Palmieri disbanded La Perfecta in 1968 to pursue different musical endeavors, though he would return to the band’s music in the 2000s.

Join us for another edition of Dorthaan’s Place, the legendary jazz brunch series curated by Newark’s First Lady of Jazz, Dorthaan Kirk.

Kick back with a mimosa, NICO’s mouth-watering brunch menu and the Vanessa Rubin Trio. Revered as both a torchbearer and a storyteller, Vanessa’s voice exudes crystalline clarity, hearth-like warmth and playful lioness sass. The Cleveland native brings a wealth of diverse influences to the microphone, including the Trinidadian/Caribbean roots of her mother, traditional jazz by way of her Louisiana-born father, and her love of the Motown Sound…especially girl groups like the Supremes.

There are two brunch seatings to choose from: 11am (performance begins at 11:30 am) or 1pm (performance begins at 1:30 pm). Dorthaan’s Place will sell out! Purchase your ticket now!

Join us for another edition of Dorthaan’s Place, the legendary jazz brunch series curated by Newark’s First Lady of Jazz, Dorthaan Kirk.

Kick back with a mimosa, NICO’s mouth-watering brunch menu and the Vanessa Rubin Trio. Revered as both a torchbearer and a storyteller, Vanessa’s voice exudes crystalline clarity, hearth-like warmth and playful lioness sass. The Cleveland native brings a wealth of diverse influences to the microphone, including the Trinidadian/Caribbean roots of her mother, traditional jazz by way of her Louisiana-born father, and her love of the Motown Sound…especially girl groups like the Supremes.

There are two brunch seatings to choose from: 11am (performance begins at 11:30 am) or 1pm (performance begins at 1:30 pm). Dorthaan’s Place will sell out! Purchase your ticket now!

On the August 30 WBGO Journal, we continue our "Voices of Wellness" series and learn more about Urban League of Essex County's programs

On the December 13 one-hour special edition of the WBGO Journal, we hear from Dave McMurray, Wycliffe Gordon and the creators of 'We Sing'

Long before 4/20 became a global code, marijuana already had a place in jazz culture — and few figures embodied that connection more than Mezz Mezzrow. The Chicago-born clarinetist became a legendary supplier in Harlem, so closely associated with cannabis that for a time, marijuana itself was nicknamed “Mezz.”

To mark what would have been Miles Davis's 100th birthday, The Third Story with Leo Sidran revisits a rare 1986 conversation between Miles and Ben Sidran, recorded on the terrace of Miles’s Malibu home.

Freddy Cole died on Saturday at his home in Atlanta. With his charming, easeful baritone and a crisp, efficient touch at the piano, Cole carved out a professional career of more than 65 years.

GRAMMY-nominated musicians Gretchen Parlato and Lionel Loueke discuss their brand-new, long-awaited album, as well as their mutual mentor Herbie Hancock in celebration of the 50th anniversary of his groundbreaking funk-meets-jazz album, Head Hunters.

On this episode of The Art of the Story, the legendary announcer Michael Bourne chats with jazz guitarist Russell Malone in 2004 on WBGO. Malone died Friday at the age of 60.