Podcast 980: A Conversation with Conrad Herwig, Part One

Straight No Chaser - A Jazz Show

The Latin Side of McCoy Tyner is the latest installment in a critically-acclaimed series that started in 1996 with The Latin Side of John Coltrane. It's the work of Conrad Herwig, a musically gifted, bilingual artist, a master trombonist who grew up admiring jazz's greatest practitioners but, at the same time, cutting his Latin Jazz teeth with legends such as Mario Bauza, Tito Puente, Paquito D'Rivera and the great pianist and composer, Eddie Palmieri.

Herwig called McCoy Tyner his boss for a number of years, so bringing his reimagination skills to the legendary pianist’s music is a natural step for the trombonist. He has assembled a group of musicians he calls his closest friends and long-time collaborators for the album, including Craig Handy (tenor & baritone saxophone), Alex Norris (trumpet & flugelhorn), Bill O'Connell (piano), Ruben Rodriguez (bass), Robby Ameen (drums), and Camilo Molina congas & bata), Luques Curtis and Eddie Palmieri sit in on a track each.

Beyond his “Latin Side” series (including the music of John Coltrane, Miles Davis, Charles Mingus, Joe Henderson, Herbie Hanock, and Wayne Shorter), Herwig is well-known as an anchor of the Mingus Big Band and a first-call session musician. Among his more notable credits include Joe Lovano’s 52nd Street Themes, Al Di Meola’s Orange and Blue, and Miles Davis’s final large-scale performance released as Live at Montreux. He’s released more than twenty-five albums as a leader.

Podcast 980 is the first of my two part conversation with Conrad, who spoke to me by telephone while sitting a in a park near his home. The bird calls you hear in the background add a wonderful ambience to our talk. In this first part, we discuss jhow the Latin Side series began, and how he chooses his material, He discusses the contribution of his fellow musicians to the recordings, and you’ll hear the The Latin Side of McCoy Tyner’s take on “Seach for Peace.” Part Two of our conversation appears later this week.