Beyond the Bandstand: Jazz And Lessons From A Life In Motion

Our Milestone

Todd Coolman — Sun, 30 Aug 2026 06:01:52 GMT

I usually write my weekly Substack post on Saturday and post it on Sunday morning. I don’t believe I have failed to do so since I started over a year and a half ago.

As I write this entry, it is Saturday, August 29, 2026. It is a special date for my wife Darla and me. Today we celebrate our fiftieth wedding anniversary. At her request, we are doing so in Paris.

Us in our neighbor’s backyard, ca. August 2024

Therefore, I will exercise the option to continue my Substack posts when we return home in mid-September. Until then, we are enjoying this once-in-a-lifetime event. It is not surprising that the years have gone by too quickly, a sure sign that, for the most part, we have enjoyed our fortunate union. We are filled with gratitude.

Pianist Bill Charlap

Todd Coolman — Sun, 23 Aug 2026 12:03:24 GMT

For about a year and a half, I hosted my own podcast, "The Cool Toddcast," which featured interviews with fellow jazz musicians I believed had the highest level of expertise and were very notable in the profession. It led to an archive that I now keep privately, containing over 90 interviews with such persons. I ended the podcast simply as a choice I made regarding how I managed my time. I became more careful about how I spent my time, and a few things had to give way, so the time spent preparing and producing the podcast each week became a casualty of my new schedule. In any case, I still have the archive, and I occasionally share an episode from it with my paid subscribers as a thank-you for their patronage. But today, I decided to share this with all my readers to give them a sense of the treasure trove of oral history I'm sitting on. So I hope you enjoy this interview that I conducted with pianist Bill Charlap.

Along with esteemed pianist Dick Hyman (now 99 years young but no longer performing publicly), Bill Charlap has the most expansive and deepest understanding of, and peerless ability to perform, the Great American Songbook. I know of no other jazz musician currently performing who has the depth of understanding Bill does, so I was eager to interview him. I think you will find this interview quite engaging. He is such a thoughtful and articulate colleague that I always enjoy my conversations with him on virtually any subject.

I plan to continue releasing individual interviews from my archive over the next several months. They usually last about an hour. If something like this appeals to you, I suggest you join my 81-member-and-growing list of paid subscribers; by supporting my efforts, you may also become a “fly on the wall” as you sit in on the conversations that jazz musicians have. After all, it's a form of living jazz history, and if you're really into it, I think you would find it as fascinating as I did when I put it all together.

[Beyond the Bandstand: Jazz And Lessons From A Life In Motion is a reader-supported publication. To receive additional exclusive posts and support my work (time and effort), please consider becoming a paid subscriber or upgrading your current free subscription to a paid one.]

The Kindness of Jazz — Part Three of Three: Paying It Forward

Todd Coolman — Sun, 16 Aug 2026 12:01:19 GMT

If someone had asked me when I arrived in New York what I wanted to do with my life, my answer would have been immediate.

I wanted to play.

Teaching wasn’t on the list.

Not even close.

As a young bassist trying to establish himself in one of the most competitive musical cities in the world, I never imagined that education would eventually become one of the …

The Kindness of Jazz — Part Three of Three: Paying It Forward

Todd Coolman — Sun, 16 Aug 2026 12:01:02 GMT

If someone had asked me when I arrived in New York what I wanted to do with my life, my answer would have been immediate.

I wanted to play.

Teaching wasn’t on the list.

Not even close.

As a young bassist trying to establish myself in one of the most competitive musical cities in the world, I never imagined that education would eventually become one of the g…

The Kindness of Jazz — Part Two: Learning to Belong

Todd Coolman — Sun, 09 Aug 2026 12:02:31 GMT

In the first part of this series, I wrote about some of the jazz giants whose generosity changed my life.

But those stories tell only part of the picture.

The truth is that learning this music is only one challenge. Learning how to belong to its community is another entirely. Fortunately for me, there were people at every stage of my life who quietly show…

The Kindness of Jazz — Part Two of Three: Learning to Belong

Todd Coolman — Sun, 09 Aug 2026 12:00:39 GMT

In the first part of this series, I wrote about some of the jazz giants whose generosity changed my life.

But those stories tell only part of the picture.

The Kindness of Jazz: Part One of a Three-Part Series

Todd Coolman — Sun, 02 Aug 2026 12:16:15 GMT

People often ask me what it was like to work with jazz legends. The truth is, what I remember most isn’t how they played. It’s how they treated people.

When people ask what has meant the most to me during nearly fifty years in New York’s jazz world, or similar questions, they usually expect me to mention the concerts, the recordings, the travel, or the p…

A Small Request That Could Make a Big Difference

Todd Coolman — Wed, 29 Jul 2026 22:02:03 GMT

I’d like to ask something of you—not for today alone, but for the future of Beyond the Bandstand: Jazz and Lessons From A Life in Motion.

People often assume that if someone has a newsletter, they must also be spending hours every day promoting it on social media. The reality is that successful online promotion has become a full-time occupation in itself…

Reflections on Age, Experience, and the Value of Mentorship

Todd Coolman — Sun, 26 Jul 2026 12:00:17 GMT

I recently celebrated my seventy-second birthday, and I’ve noticed that birthdays have become less about marking another year and more about taking inventory. They have a way of drawing me back through time, prompting me to think about where I’ve been, the people I’ve known, and the unlikely path that has brought me here.

This year my thoughts drifted ba…

Three Jazz Communities

Todd Coolman — Sun, 19 Jul 2026 16:04:07 GMT

I am now part of the third—and perhaps final—jazz community of my career.

Over nearly fifty years in New York, I have lived within the jazz world in several different ways. Each phase has taught me something not only about music, but about people, work, ambition, disappointment, generosity, and life itself. Cannonball Adderley once said that jazz is not …

When Joe Henderson Walked Into My First Recording Session

Todd Coolman — Sun, 12 Jul 2026 12:00:39 GMT

In 1990, a Japanese record label gave me the opportunity every young jazz musician dreams of: to record my first album as a bandleader.

The album, Tomorrows, would feature a trio with two musicians I deeply admired—pianist Renee Rosnes and drummer Lewis Nash. I assembled the repertoire, we had a brief rehearsal, posed for the album photos, and prepared f…

Poinciana

Todd Coolman — Sun, 05 Jul 2026 12:02:33 GMT

There are certain records that become part of your musical DNA.

For me, At the Pershing: But Not for Me by the Ahmad Jamal Trio is one of them.

I don’t remember the first time I heard it, but I remember the effect it had on me. Like so many young jazz musicians of my generation, I found myself captivated by a performance that sounded unlike anything else …

The Music Of The Future

Todd Coolman — Sun, 28 Jun 2026 12:03:20 GMT

The other day, while driving and listening to the radio, I heard Charlie Parker’s recording of Barbados. Instantly, I was transported back more than fifty years to a formative moment in my life, when I was sixteen or seventeen years old and just beginning to discover jazz.

At the time, Chicago was hosting a street festival on Rush Street. Businesses were…

The Mentor Who Changed Everything

Todd Coolman — Sun, 21 Jun 2026 12:02:59 GMT

I have written about mentors before, and today I find myself returning to the subject.

Mentors can shape the course of a life. Sometimes they help us discover talents we didn’t know we possessed. Sometimes they open doors we didn’t even know existed. Their influence can be profound—so profound, in fact, that it can alter the entire direction of a career …

From a Substitute Gig to Carnegie Hall

Todd Coolman — Sun, 14 Jun 2026 12:01:29 GMT

One of the most important lessons I’ve learned in a lifetime of music is that you never know which opportunity will change the course of your career.

Sometime in the early 2000s, I went to hear a week-long engagement by the legendary trombonist and arranger Slide Hampton. The ensemble was what you might call a “small big band”—not quite standard instrume…

A Night Of Reckoning

Todd Coolman — Sun, 07 Jun 2026 15:29:10 GMT

For months, I have been reluctant to share the story that follows. At the time, it was deeply embarrassing, profoundly humiliating, and, for a brief period, effectively ended my career as a jazz musician.

Today, however, I see it differently. What felt like a devastating setback turned out to be one of the most important learning experiences of my life. …

Sonny Rollins: Three Encounters With a Giant

Todd Coolman — Sun, 31 May 2026 12:01:24 GMT

In the few days since the passing of the saxophone colossus, Sonny Rollins, nearly everything that can be said in praise of his music, his humanity, and his extraordinary life has already been said. Newspapers, television broadcasts, social media, YouTube tributes, and countless personal reflections have poured forth from every corner of the world. And …

Beyond The Bandstand

Todd Coolman — Sun, 24 May 2026 14:31:10 GMT

For many years, I have enjoyed reflecting on quotes from people whose intellect, creativity, and contributions to humanity I deeply admire. Today, two such quotes come to mind.

The first is something I once heard the great alto saxophonist Cannonball Adderley say: “Jazz is not a state of mind; it is a way of life.”

The Improvised Life

Todd Coolman — Sun, 17 May 2026 12:02:52 GMT

I am expanding the scope of this blog.

For the past two years, I’ve written this blog primarily as a chronicle of my life in jazz — the music, the musicians, the road stories, the triumphs, the absurdities, and the unforgettable human moments that come from spending more than four decades making music for audiences all over the world.

That part will not c…

Ron McClure

Todd Coolman — Sun, 10 May 2026 12:03:03 GMT

I first met Ron McClure sometime in the early 1980s when we were both recruited to teach at the Jamey Aebersold Summer Jazz Workshops. Of course, I already knew of Ron. In jazz circles, his reputation had long since entered the room before he did — always a dangerous sign. I had already purchased more than a few records featuring his bass playing alongs…