Duke Ellington. Lionel Hampton. Dinah Washington. Max Roach. Sun Ra. Herbie Hancock. What do these jazz luminaries have in common? They all chose to work with Seattle jazz trombonist and composer Julian Priester, whose innovative musical vision was formative to the modern jazz sound we recognize today.
What’s more, as a bandleader, longtime instructor at Cornish College of the Arts, and Artist-in-Residence at Seattle Jazz Fellowship, Priester has beenunendingly generous to the Seattle jazz community with his knowledge, experience, and spirit.
His response when asked how he wants to be remembered, during a talk he gave last year at the Seattle Jazz Fellowship, says it all: “I love you,” he answered.
On Sept. 25 at Dimitriou’s Jazz Alley, Priester's friends and former students are coming together to present a benefit show in his honor, in hopes they can return some of the love he’s given. Emceed by Grammy-winning bassist Christian McBride and featuring performances of Priester’s original music from the Seattle Jazz Fellowship Ceptet and Priester’s Cue, the show’s ticket proceeds will benefit the 88-year-old musician and educator as he recovers from a heart attack he suffered in July.
“To have all these musicians paying tribute, I hope that it lets him know how valuable he is to us and how much we care about him,” said Seattle trumpeter Thomas Marriott, who is co-organizing and playing in the benefit show. “And we want to raise a lot of money for him so that he doesn't have to worry at 88 years old.”
Born in Chicago in 1935, Priester got his start in music as a teen, playing with blues greats like Muddy Waters and Bo Diddley. In the 1950’s, Priester made his foray into jazz, recording several albums with Sun Ra’s Arkestra, touring with Lionel Hampton and Dinah Washington, and eventually joining the band of legendary drummer, Max Roach, in 1959.
“Max Roach is known for all the very fast tempos in that era of music and all the very hard, odd meters in the early sixties. So, to have somebody playing such a difficult instrument at such a high level that is a feat in and of itself,” Marriott said.
From the 1960s on, Priester continued to work with jazz’s brightest lights, appearing as a sideman on albums like John Coltrane’s Africa/Brass, Freddie Hubbard’s Hub Cap and Red Garland’s Strike Up the Band. He enjoyed stints in groundbreaking bands like the Duke Ellington Orchestra, Herbie Hancock’s experimental sextet Mwandishi, and later, Dave Holland’s quintet. Since 1960, Priester has also released ten highly-regarded albums as a bandleader.
Priester moved to Seattle in 1979 to join the staff at Cornish College of the Arts. Until his retirement in 2011, Priester worked tirelessly to connect Cornish students with the jazz history he lived and the progenitors of the music who were his bandmates and friends. Even in his retirement years, Priester remained involved, nourishing the local scene as Seattle Jazz Fellowship’s Artist-in-Residence.
“He's really the elder of Seattle jazz,” said Ken Steiner, founding member of Seattle Jazz Fellowship, co-organizer of the benefit concert, and longtime friend. “He’s someone that everyone looks up to. He's just had a huge impact.”
Priester enriched local jazz by recruiting musicians, like three-time Latin Grammy nominee Jovino Santos Neto, to work at Cornish. He's helped shape students who’ve gone on to make waves, including pianist/vocalist/composer Dawn Clement and trombonist/pianist/composer Steve Moore, who will both perform at the benefit.
“He is everything to my career and the way I am as a musician and a person. He created a space for me to allow my voice to develop and build,” said Clement, who was Priester’s student at Cornish from 1996 until 2000, and who worked with him for over a decade in the band Priester’s Cue.
“It's just us, it's just the jazz community. That's why we got to step up.”
Priester will be in attendance at the show, but not performing. A reconfigured version of Priester’s Cue, featuring Clement, drummer Byron Vannoy, and bassist Geoff Harper, with special guests Steve Moore and vocalist Johnaye Kendrick, will perform at the benefit.
Also performing is The Fellowship Ceptet, featuring Clement (piano), Trevor Ford (bass), Jay Thomas (tenor), Hans Teuber (alto), Beserat Tafesse (trombone), Xavier Lecouturier (drums), and Thomas Marriott (trumpet). All ticket proceeds, except the ticket service fees, will go directly to Priester and his care.
“I think it's nothing for us to have a night of music for him to try to give back some of what he's given us,” Marriott said. He added that there are few safety nets or local aid organizations for professional jazz musicians.
“It's just us, it's just the jazz community. That's why we got to step up,” Marriott said.
Tickets to the benefit can be purchased on the Dimitriou’s Jazz Alley website. If you can’t make the show but would still like to donate, there's an active GoFundMe fundraiser for Julian Priester.
