Phil Haynes: Banging the Drum for Liberty Now

Today we're putting The Tonearm's needle on drummer Phil Haynes.

Since moving to New York from Oregon in 1983, Phil's played on scores of recordings with artists like Anthony Braxton and David Liebman. Phil has joined me once already, in March 2024, to discuss his memoir, Chasing the Masters: First Takes of a Modernist Drumming Artist.

Phil’s with me today to discuss his band Free Country, which takes American roots music and runs it through their particular jazz lens, using cello, guitar, bass, and drums to create something called "jazz-grass."

Their new album Liberty Now! did not set out to be political. Phil planned for the group to record original compositions, a departure from their previous work. But then the last US Presidential election happened. And then the band got word of the passing of their trumpeter, Herb Robertson, as they walked into the studio. The music and the plan changed. Phil paired the new recordings with songs from Free Country's catalog into a double album that runs from Revolutionary War tunes to "What a Wonderful World."

Phil's here to talk about grief, protest, making art when the ground shifts under you, and one of my favorite topics: the role of music in addressing contemporary political and social challenges.

(The musical excerpts heard in the interview are from Phil Haynes & Free Country's album Liberty Now! )

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Dig Deeper

• Artist and Album:

• Visit Phil Haynes at philhaynes.com and on Bandcamp
• Purchase Phil Haynes & Free Country's Liberty Now! from Corner Store Jazz or Bandcamp
• Phil Haynes' memoir: Chasing the Masters: First Takes of a Modern Drumming Artist
• Phil Haynes' March 2024 appearance on The Tonearm Podcast

• Free Country Band Members:

• Hank Roberts, cellist/vocalist
• Drew Gress, bassist
• Jim Yanda, guitarist

• Free Country Discography:

• Shenandoah (1997) - pre-1900 American music
• Way the West Was Won (2002) - early 20th century Americana
• '60/'69: My Favorite Things (2014) - music of the 1960s
• Something Beatles (2013) - live Beatles covers

• Herb Robertson:

• Herb Robertson tribute
• Phil Haynes & Herb Robertson: Ritual (2000)
• herbrobertson.com

• Influences and Mentors:

• Paul Smoker, trumpeter
• David Liebman, saxophonist
• Elvin Jones - Merry-Go-Round album