
Nick Francis
Music DirectorA native of Los Angeles and graduate of UCLA, Francis began his radio career in 1983 at KLSK-FM, an eclectic-based jazz station in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Since then, he has programmed jazz radio at stations all around the country, including KKSF/San Francisco and WJZZ/Atlanta. During his seven years as Program Director at KYOT/Phoenix, he helped it become the first jazz station in America to achieve number-one status in the ratings. He joined the KNKX team in November 2005.
His most memorable KNKX radio moment was meeting and interviewing Mose Allison. He lives in North Tacoma, and is married to photographer Sharon Styer.
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Like a painter that uses the entire range of his color palette, vocalist Jose James has spent the last ten years working in a wide variety of musical arenas - jazz, soul, R&B, hip hop, pop, electronica, and experimental music. His albums have ranged from a brilliant tribute to Billie Holiday, all the way to a very personal and modern work called "Love In A Time Of Madness." One music critic has noted that his albums are like "a box of chocolates." One thing though, whatever Jose James does, he does it really well.
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Catherine Russell doesn't care where or when a song gets made; if it's got a lyric with a good story, she is all in. Russell has a knack for finding great…
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Graham Dechter is a 26-year-old jazz guitarist who is, indeed, currently living his dream. Graham was invited to join the world-famous Clayton-Hamilton…
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Bellingham jazz singer, Cheryl Jewell, was raised in Oak Harbor, Washington. When she went to college in Bellingham, she fell in love with that city. She…
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When Julian Lage was 8 years old, his skill as a guitarist was the subject of a documentary film, Jules at Eight. Before he entered his teens, he had…
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Live sessions in the KPLU Performance Studio are always fun. However, when saxophonist, Joe Lovano, stopped by with his group, Us Five, it was more than…
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http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/kplu/local-kplu-966705.mp3Imagine inventing something that enhanced a hobby that you were passionate…
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Some jazz singers excel at singing standards. Others excel at scat-singing or vocalese. Grammy award-winning vocalist Kurt Elling can do it all.
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Sad to report the passing of British jazz pianist George Shearing, who died Monday from congestive heart failure in New York. He was 91. He came to the…