Jack Wilkins

Good morning.

Today we’re listening to Jack Wilkins, an American jazz guitarist from New York. Born in 1944, he picked up guitar at age 13, inspired by Django Reinhardt and Johnny Smith.

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His first solo album, Windows, came out in 1973 and was reissued by Mainstream Records in 2018. It showcases Wilkins’ “stoned, leisurely playing,” as Passion of the Weiss put it, and performs compositions by Chick Corea, Wayne Shorter, and Freddie Hubbard.

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You may recognize “Ray Clay” from A Tribe Called Quest’s sample. We’re also playing Merge from 1977, a collection of longer jazz numbers, which features Al Foster on drums and Michael Brecker on saxophone. Wilkins passed away last Friday at age 78.

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Windows - Jack Wilkins (30m, no vocals)
Spotify / Apple Music / YouTube Music / Amazon Music / Bandcamp / Tidal

Merge - Jack Wilkins (80m, no vocals)
Spotify / Apple Music / YouTube Music / Amazon Music / Tidal

Have a really nice Wednesday.

1. Wikipedia

2. Passion of the Weiss’s fantastic interview with Wilkins from 2018

3. We Want Sound