Hanksgiving: A Tribute to Hank Roberts [Mondo Jazz Ep. 94]

Traditions are traditions... For this year's Hanksgiving episode we celebrate the work of a truly original artist, Hank Roberts. The Indiana-born, upstate New York-based, cellist, jazzaphone fiddler and vocalist, is one of those rare musicians whose name on the front or the back of an album should make any one purchase that record without questions asked, run home and play it immediately.

This week we try to squeeze into a couple of hours a discography that spans over three decades and illustrates the artistic trajectory of a key figure in the famed New York downtown scene that continues to be at the forefront of creative music.

In this first part, we focus in particular on some of his projects as a leader and on his ongoing collaboration with Bill Frisell. In the second part we focus on a number of other projects he is the leader of, including yet unreleased material of his current sextet. This segment also spotlights his work as a member of 858 Strings, the string section he shares with Jenny Scheinmann and Eyvind Kang featured on a number of projects by Bill Frisell, as well as his Italian adventures with Pipe Dream and trombonist Filippo Vignato.

To complete this overview of Robert's discography during this segment we also feature a number of projects he has recorded with Tim Berne as well as with other luminaries of the New York scene like Marty Ehrlich or Ralph Alessi as well as collaborations with singers.

Hank in there! It must be a very nice Hanksgiving then!

Detailed playlist at https://spinitron.com/RFB/pl/9867097/Mondo-Jazz

Photo credit: Christopher DelCollo.