Abe Beeson
New Cool & Jazz HostAbe grew up in Western Washington, a third generation Seattle/Tacoma kid. It was as a student at Pacific Lutheran University that Abe landed his first job at KNKX, editing and producing audio for news stories. It was a Christmas Day shift no one else wanted that gave Abe his first on-air experience which led to overnights, then Saturday afternoons, and started hosting Evening Jazz in 1998.
At the end of 2015, just as the campaign to save 88.5 began, Abe debuted his modern jazz show The New Cool. Saturday afternoons from 3 to 5 p.m., you can hear 21st-century jazz inspired and informed by the sounds of today: hip-hop, & funk, Electronic music and punk rock — the future of jazz has arrived.
His most memorable KNKX radio moments include introducing Dave Brubeck, Ray Charles, Oscar Peterson, and other greats; attending jazz festivals in Spain and Argentina with groups of KNKX jazz fans; and locking himself out of the station on a particularly cold winter night.
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With a unique, muscular sound on his tenor sax, Billy Harper broke into the 1970s New York jazz scene, launching a long and adventurous career.
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Louis Hayes is regarded as one of the great hard bop drummers in jazz. He recorded on key records in the '50s and '60s and led his own bands for most of the next 50 years.
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The Roosevelt High School jazz band, under the direction of Hannah Mowry, brought an all-star quintet to play a session at KNKX.
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Jazz Overhaul, featuring saxophonist Cliff Colón, pianist Jake Sele, bassist Osama Afifi and drummer D'Vonne Lewis, reimagines Seattle grunge classics from a jazz perspective.
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A member of the supergroup The Cookers, Billy Hart's drumming spans many decades and genres, from swinging hard bop to funky grooves and beyond.
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Seattle soul sensations the True Loves, with guitarist Jimmy James and saxophonist Skerik, performed an exclusive session in the KNKX studios.
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Ephraim Sewall, baritone saxophone-playing senior with the Snohomish High School jazz band, shares his favorite jazz on KNKX.
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The Wood Brothers, bassist Chris Wood and guitarist Oliver Wood, celebrate their latest album Heart is the Hero in a KNKX studio session.
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Kamasi Washington announces his new album Fearless Movement with upcoming tour dates.
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Featuring current students and recent grads of Seattle's Eckstein Middle School, all-fem combo Hot Mess brought infectious enthusiasm to a studio session honoring Women's History Month.