Ken Bruce will be the presenter of a four-part Saturday night series through September on Jazz FM looking at the role of the jazz drummer. The series, Ken Bruce on Drums, will look into the job of the jazz drummer over the life of the genre, from the pioneers in hardbop and bebop (in an episode called Bop Masters) and the likes of Buddy Rich, Gene Kruper, and Mel Lewis (in an episode called The Greatest Hitters), plus funk, fusion and today’s new generation of British players.
In each episode, Simple Minds drummer – and a jazz fusion drummer himself – Mel Gaynor will join Ken to give him a drum lesson looking at the various styles and genres with live examples at the drum kit.
The series will feature archive audio from Buddy Rich, Max Roach, Art Blakey Geoff Hayden, Moses Boyd, Steve Gadd, Cindy Blackman Santana, and many more, plus examples of jazz drummers on record from across the decades. Ken Bruce’s Drum Series on Jazz FM will delve deep into a lot of aspects of jazz drumming and its nuances.
Ken says:
“You have no idea how excited I am at moving studios at Bauer Media to work with the team at Jazz FM on this series. As a fan of jazz and a (questionable) drummer myself, these programs are a dream come true where I can explore these two passions with the listeners.”
“Not only am I looking forward to playing some very different music than I am used to playing on Greatest Hits Radio, but also I cannot wait to learn about the story of drumming and the various forms of it from the superb Mel Gaynor to enlighten us all and make me a better drummer!”
Jazz FM Content Director Nick Pitts said: “The conversation with Ken about creating a series for him and his passion for jazz drumming started last year and I’m pleased that between his busy schedule presenting his daily Greatest Hits Radio show and PopMaster TV, we found a time for him to get his sticks out and do this deep dive into the anthology of jazz drumming.
“I’m also really excited for the listeners to see another side of Ken Bruce, really getting passionate about an unexpected love of our genre. Welcome to Jazz FM Ken!”
Ken Bruce on Drums will air on Jazz FM from Saturday the 7th of September until the 28th of September.