Eric Scott Reed Trio with Mike Gurrola & Marcello Carelli

Eric Reed (piano), Mike Gurrola (bass), Marcello Carelli (drums)

“I don’t view art as contemporary, modern, traditional, old or new,” says pianist-composer Eric Reed. “Nor do I endorse cliques or camps. I promulgate integrity in all things.” -Eric Reed

Through more than a quarter-century as a first-caller on the jazz scene, Reed has articulated this inclusive conception as a leader of numerous ensembles, solo performer, composer, producer, educator, and sideman with numerous artists, including extended stints with Joe Henderson, Freddie Hubbard, Buster Williams, and Wynton Marsalis. Whatever the context, whatever the style, he consistently animates the flow with fresh ideas, virtuosic chops, intellectual clarity and an unwavering will to groove.

Reed developed the core principles of his musical sensibility almost from the time he began to speak. “Before I could even reach the pedals,” he recalls, he was playing for and enhancing worship services for the congregants in the small Baptist storefront church in West Philadelphia where his father, a quartet singer, sang and preached. “My earliest experiences in the Holiness church were colored with charisma; people were moved largely by emotion,” he says of that functional setting. “Music played a major role in manipulating these emotions, even inciting people to dance. I developed my ear in an extraordinary way; if someone started to sing, I could quickly find their key and begin to accompany them.”

Noting their son’s exceptional talent, Reed’s parents signed him up for private piano lessons at age 5, which continued at South Philly’s prestigious Settlement Music School. In the meantime, his aunt and uncle scoured flea markets for records. “They found these records by Horace Silver, Art Blakey and Dave Brubeck. Additionally, in our home, all kinds of music could be heard on the stereo and the radio because my parents and older siblings were into gospel and popular forms of music.” Reed recalls. “I listened to everything.”

On a remarkable series of recent recordings, Reed illuminates his aesthetic scope, navigating diverse terrain with intense focus and sagely concision. Consider, for example, one of Reed’s most recent releases, The Adventurous Monk, a 2014 date on which he offers idiomatic yet personalized, loose yet cohesive interpretations of ten works by the genius pianist-composer Thelonious Monk. It is Reed’s third Monk project since 2009, when he made The Dancing Monk, followed in 2011 by The Baddest Monk, on which he addresses the iconic songs with just the right admixture of maverick recklessness and natural command. “I imbibed heavily on Monk’s music as I became more immersed in composition and my journey as an artist,” Reed remarks. “The rhythmic, harmonic and melodic variety in his pieces inspire, allow and compel me to embrace the challenge of trying to convey messages in a non-verbal manner.”

All shows at Sam First are 21+ (no one under the age of 21 will be permitted)

Show Times: 7:30pm & 9:30pm, and a separate ticket is required for each show.

Notice of Recording: Sam First live streams and records all concerts. By entering Sam First, you understand that your image and/or voice might be included in those recordings. Sam First reserves the right to use any photography, video or audio recording taken at this event, without the expressed written permission of those included within the photograph/video.