Leon Thomas is the focus of my latest radio show. Wreck Leon Levitating 1209. It features Pharoah Sanders [who I’ve seen twice] & Leon & many others. They were 2 of my earliest entry points into jazz & I’ve always favored the spiritual end of jazz. Many 50-60s jazz musicians sought more in spirit & politics & forged an alliance with liberating spirits & liberating activists. It is still a valid pursuit. Too many lack one or the other... The desire for liberation, “peace and happiness throughout the land” is universal, simple and yet almost impossible to imagine these days but imagine we continue to do with the help of these types of revolutionaries. This is a great collection of versions for this undeservedly under-appreciated pioneer of jazz. Leon Thomas is featured in both my books about yodeling because he is a pioneering giant who is barely mentioned in most jazz books. Yodel in HiFi: http://bit.ly/2zRzJyn Yodel-Ay-Ee-Oooo: http://bit.ly/2Ays30l
