THE JAZZ PASSENGERS

The Jazz Passengers are an American jazz group founded in 1987 by saxophonist Roy Nathanson and trombonist Curtis Fowlkes. They are widely regarded as pioneering voices in the 1980s East Village jazz scene that centered around clubs like The Knitting Factory. Nathanson and Fowlkes met in the early 1980s while playing in the pit orchestra of the Big Apple Circus, both subsequently joining John Lurie's band The Lounge Lizards, before forming The Jazz Passengers. Other members include vibraphonist Bill Ware, bassist Brad Jones and drummer E. J. Rodriguez; the group has often featured a violinist (Rob Thomas, Jim Nolet or, recently, Sam Bardfeld), as well as guitarists Marc Ribot and David Fiuczynski. The Hal Willner-produced In Love (High Street, 1994), features contributions from Debbie Harry of Blondie, Jeff Buckley, Jimmy Scott, Bob Dorough and Mavis Staples. Harry later became a regular member of the band, appearing on a number of follow-up albums, including Individually Twisted, which includes a duet between Harry and Elvis Costello, as well as an additional Costello solo number. Fowlkes and Nathanson participated in several intergenerational projects, including Nick Hakim's 2021 release Small Things, a collaboration with Hakim and Onyx Collective. Curtis Fowlkes died from heart failure in Brooklyn, New York, on August 31, 2023, at the age of 73. "Big Large: In Memory of Curtis Fowlkes," the new album from The Jazz Passengers, will be released on May 10, 2024.