Jon-Erik Kellso

Trumpeter Jon-Erik Kellso started playing professionally in and around Detroit, Michigan where he was born in 1964. Jon began early, playing in a big band at age 11, in the International Youth Symphony at age 13, and in a concert alongside cornetist Wild Bill Davison at age 17. Kellso played with a wide variety of groups there, including the J.C. Heard Orchestra. In '88 Jon-Erik joined James Dapogny's Chicago Jazz Band with whom he's made appearances throughout North America, concertized on PBS TV, and recorded extensively. Since moving to New York City in 1989 to join Vince Giordano's Nighthawks, Jon has enjoyed performing and recording with the likes of Ralph Sutton, Dan Barrett, Howard Alden, Marty Grosz, Milt Hinton, Bob Haggart, Dick Hyman, Catherine Russell, Linda Ronstadt, Leon Redbone, Levon Helm, Wynton Marsalis, Wycliffe Gordon, Ken Peplowski, Bob Wilbur, and Kenny Davern. Recent engagements include a week in Dizzy's Club Coca-Cola with Wynton Marsalis celebrating Louis Armstrong's Hot 5s and 7s; leading the EarRegulars at the Detroit Jazz Fest, the Moab (Utah) Music Fest, and the Bohem Ragtime and Jazz Fest in Hungary; various appearances on Garrison Keillor's "A Prairie Home Companion" live Public Radio International show, including a live cinecast to movie theaters everywhere with Elvis Costello; several jazz fest at sea cruises; concerts at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. with John Lithgow; tours of the U.S. and Japan with Ken Peplowski's Kingdom of Swing big band; annual appearances in jazz clubs and festivals in New Orleans; and jazz parties, festivals, and concerts all over the world. At home in New York City Kellso has been leading The EarRegulars featuring guitarist Matt Munisteri and various guest badasses at the Ear Inn on Sunday nights since 2007. On Mondays and Tuesdays Jon plays with Vince Giordano's Nighthawks at Iguana. Aside from these steadies, Jon can also be seen performing at all the great NYC venues, including Dizzy's, Mezzrow, Small's, Birdland, the Blue Note, the Jazz Standard, etc. Jon-Erik can be heard on several television and movie soundtracks, including “Ghost World,” "The Aviator," "Revolutionary Road," "Boardwalk Empire," "Bessie," and "Vinyl" with Vince Giordano's Nighthawks. He was also on screen in "Revolutionary Road" and the HBO series, "Boardwalk Empire," for which the Nighthawks won a Grammy. Jon is on well over 100 CDs, including several CDs as a leader and three with his mentor Ruby Braff. The eponymously titled CD, "The EarRegulars" was recorded in Berlin in 2014, and Jon-Erik Kellso and The EarRegulars "In the Land of Beginning Again" was recorded in New Orleans in 2015. A SAMPLING OF REVIEWS: Joe Lang wrote for the July/August '07 issue or Jersey Jazz: "Blue Roof Blues: A Love Letter to New Orleans" is an exceptional album. Conceived as a tribute to the city that suffered so much from the devastation of Katrina, it is a triumph that evinces both the pain and joy of the city....Trumpeter Jon-Erik Kellso assembled a company of outstanding musicians who are steeped in the traditional jazz sounds of the Crescent City, but who are constantly taking the music to places where it has not been before....Kellso once again proves that his is a unique and exceptional voice on trumpet....In addition, this album highlights his strength as a composer who honors the tradition, but adds a personal and contemporary sensitivity....Suffice to say that you will find that each (track) is a gem. This is an album that is ostensibly aimed at an audience inclined toward the sounds of traditional New Orleans Jazz, and, indeed, it will certainly find great favor with those devotees. Give it a listen, however, and you will hear music that defies classification. I expect that there will be many who consider themselves modernists in their taste being drawn to the music on "Blue Roof Blues." His debut album, "Chapter One" captured the attention of noted jazz critic Owen Cordle, who wrote, "Kellso has a fluent gift of melody and a knack for spicing it up with a Roy Eldridge-like rasp, a Howard McGhee-like excitability, and Rex Stewart-like tonal effects. Kellso debuts with a warm, swing-oriented session with no stray notes. The effortless, swinging mood is sustained throughout all 13 performances. Kellso is a most welcome discovery." In Scott Yanow's recently published book entitled "Swing," Kellso's "Chapter 2: The Plot Thickens" received 9 of 10 stars. He is described as being "one of the finest Mainstream and trad cornetists to emerge during the 1990s." Jon is also featured in Yanow's "Trumpet Kings" book. Jack Sohmer reviewed "Chapter 2" for the Mississippi Rag, writing, "Kellso emerges as one of today's most fulfilling mainstream trumpeters and cornetists. His poignant, rounded tone suggests a seamless combination of Buck Clayton, Bill Coleman, Cootie Williams, Frankie Newton, and Roy Eldridge, a synthesis of which anyone may be justifiably proud. From the listener's point of view, it is difficult to think of anyone, save Ruby Braff, who so successfully embodies the best traditions of the past while at the same time bringing them convincingly into the present. Kellso is telling his story in the hallowed tradition of great yarn-spinners throughout history. He entertains, informs, and keeps our interest whetted for the next installment." I play at the Ear Inn Sundays 8-11pm, 326 Spring St., NYC (among other places!).