
Ahead of his appearance at the 4th annual Leimert Park Jazz Festival — co-hosted by KCRW’s very own resident Jazzcat, LeRoy Downs — pianist, composer, and band leader Gerald Clayton is rolling through KCRW HQ. As a bonus, he’s brought the Jazzcat himself along for a chat.
The longtime friends break down Clayton’s piano prowess, and how he strives to honor the work of his renowned bass player/composer father — John Clayton — through his own original compositions. They also revel in the power of community, and give us a taste of what Clayton brings to the stage with “Celia (Live)” from the 2020 album Happening: Live at The Village Vanguard. We also put Clayton on the spot to share his ultimate boogie down cut, and he comes correct with The Cannonball Adderley Quintet’s “Rumplestiltskin.” “If you wait long enough,” Clayton proclaims, “it gets so funky. Get in there to experience it for yourself.
Peanut Butter Wolf goes deep into a lifetime of collecting, pulling from more than 50,000 records alongside a digital archive packed with unreleased music and overlooked discoveries. The founder of Stones Throw Records favors the underdog, moving through hip-hop, funk, soul, electronic music, oddball records, rarities, and sounds that resist easy categorization. Inspired by generations of adventurous DJs and selectors, the show treats digging as an art form and the unexpected find as the ultimate reward. Tune in every third Sunday of the month from 8 to 10pm.
A mix of all kinds, from all over and all time. Henry Rollins treats the radio as a place for serious musical exploration, bringing punk, experimental music, jazz, global sounds, independent releases, archival discoveries, and whatever else demands to be heard into the same restless orbit. The selections can travel across decades and continents in minutes, driven less by genre than an insatiable appetite for records and discovery. It’s radio for listeners willing to follow the music wherever it goes. Tune in Mondays from 10pm to midnight and Fridays from 8 to 10pm.