#82: Wynton Marsalis with Christian McBride

This episode features a very special interview with jazz icon Wynton Marsalis by his old friend Christian McBride from The Jazz Cruise earlier this year.  The two have a long history going back to 1984 when Christian was a 14-year-old bassist in Philadelphia and Wynton took him under his wing. He even assured Christian’s mother that we would watch over Christian when he moved to NYC a few years later.  Given their relationship and how they both became mentors to so many musicians across multiple generations, it should come as no surprise that the theme of their conversation here was about mentorship and inspiration. Wynton discussed his unique relationship with the late jazz writer and provocateur Stanley Crouch and with Betty Carter, as well as his connection to so many greats, not only in jazz, but in Black American culture, like Ralph Ellison, August Wilson and Albert Murray.

Christian also gave Wynton a three-song Blindfold Test, featuring trumpeters.  You can guess how that went. The two also played a couple of duets.  But throughout their talk, it’s the stories about their elders that resonated.