Detroit’s rich music history is getting its due from a couple of new online initiatives.
The just-launched website detroitjazzhistory.com is administered by a trio of local researchers — Ann Arbor-based Lars Bjorn, a University of Michigan-Dearborn professor and author who’s also president of the Southeastern Michigan Jazz Association; veteran broadcaster Ferndale’s Jim Gallert, who’s worked with the Detroit Jazz Festival since its inception; and Rod Arroyo, a photographer and urban planner who last year published a book about Detroit’s Paradise Valley, Black Bottom and Sugar Hill neighborhoods.
The site is designed to be “a focal point for original research and storytelling about a jazz tradition that stretches back more than a century,” documenting musicians, historic performance venues and recording studios, upcoming shows and more. Its initial offering includes stories about United Sound Studios, pianist Teddy Harris’ work with Motown, saxophonist Phil Lasley, pianist Alma Smith, the Dome Lounge and Club El Sino, among others.
Detroit will also be the focus for the first season of “Living For the City,” a new documentary podcast series produced by Live Nation Entertainment and Magnet Originals. Premiering May 13 and hosted by Hanif Abdurraquib, a MacArthur Fellow author, poet and cultural critic, the eight, 25-minute episodes will explore the metro-area’s musical contributions from Motown and rock to jazz and rap, stopping at sites such as the Hitsville U.S.A., Fillmore Detroit and Third Man Records Cass Corridor and including commentary from Motown founder Berry Gordy Jr., Carl Craig and Mary Ramirez of the Detroit Cobras.
A trailer for the episode can be watched at youtube.com/@LivingfortheCityPod, where the series will also reside.
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