You wouldn't normally think of Pop Goes The Weasel, Old MacDonald Had a Farm, Hickory Dickory Dock, or The Mickey Mouse March as being jazz, would you? Well Wynton Marsalis, John Coltrane, Chick Webb w Ella Fitzgerald, Julie London, Bob Dorough, Cory Weeds, Anthony Newley, Medeski Martin & Wood, Jackie McLean, and Vancouver's Jennifer Scott recreate these and other children's tunes in a new way turning them into jazz. And Slim Gaillard gets into the picture too creating his own song.

Part 1 of a 2-part series on Jazzy Nursery Rhymes and Children's Songs.

Celebrating this podcast's 10th Anniversary, I play the old intro I used, and look at some of my favourite episodes from 2017 to today.--with 'today' being some random picks of the thousands of new jazz albums released in 2026. And do a bit of bragging (sorry about that) explaining how an award winning Trent Radio program got turned into a podcast. And throw in a couple quotes from some reviews.

Which reminds me....if you like this podcast, would you be willing to rate it (on itunes, apple music, or wherever you get your podcasts)? I'd love to know who is out there enjoying the podcast and hear some ideas that might make it better.

This podcast has moved from Peterborough, Ontario to Victoria, B.C., and now comes from Edmonton, Alberta.

Here is what I play on this episode:

Discovering Jazz started out as a community radio program broadcast on CFFF (Trent Community Radio) in Peterborough, Ontario in 2016. In 2017 it was selected by The National Campus and Community Radio Assocation (NCRA) as the best music program in Canada. (Since then the music categories have been divided into various genres). That's when I decided to turn it into a podcast---September of 2017.

Here it is 10 years later, having moved first to Victoria, B.C., and now Edmonton, Alberta.

For this episode I play tracks from a few albums that I selected as one of my favourites of the various years.

You'll hear music by artists ranging from Fats Waller to Poland's Wojtek Mazolewski. That also includes bob Dorough, Sons of Kemet, Kenny Washington, Jeremy Ledbetter Trio, Jane Bunnett and Maqueque, Allen Lowe & the Constant Sorrow Orchestra, Fergus McCreadie, Ellas Kapell, and Susan Alcorn.

Then next week I'll focus on some of my favourite episodes of the past 10 years.

Here's what you'll hear in this episode.

This selection of new albums---many of them featuring female vocalists--continues a theme of 'old meets new'.

The first two tracks are particularly spectacular. Starting with an avant-garde treatmen of Thelonious Monk's Round About Midnight, as performed by te Armaroli-Schiaffini 6tet with singer Giulia Cianca. In fact the whole album is quite fascinating.

I follow it with one of the most dramatic readings of Send In The Clowns, by Cecil McLorin Salvant from her incredible new album called Every Breath I Take. With breath taking orchestrations by Vancouver born Darcy James Argue.

The rest of the episode contains a variety of interesting and very listenable tracks by Immanuel Wilkins, Elina Duni & Rob Luft, the Ben Rosenblum Nebula Project (jazz accordion!), Fergus McCreadie, Catherine Russell, Gabrielle Cavassa, Emie R. Roussel Trio, and Dave Holland with the London Vocal Project.

Here is a full track list.

I'm finding that listening to many of the jazz albums released this year, I'm getting a clearer perspective on the connection between jazz's history and where we are today.

The episode starts with the new Ellas Kapell (a Swedish quartet) and their fascinating version of Rodgers and Hart's "I Didn't Know What Time It Was". I like this group partly because I can actually understand what they are doing....and I love it!

I follow it with Edmonton's most recorded jazz pianist, the amazing Chris Andrew and his first solo piano album. Here he does his rendition of a Gigi Gryce tune first recorded by The Clifford Brown Sextet in 1954.

Other old tunes given a new life in this episode include Misty....an uptempo version by Jeff Goldblum and his Mildred Snitzer Orchestra, with guest vocalist Melody Gardot. Then there's an old New Orleans tune recorded by Ernie K Doe in 1960, here performed by Charlie & The Tropicales (Charlie Halloran with New Orleans singer and guitaris Sal Baby Geloso). T'ain't It The Truth. And then there's a jazz big band arrangement of James Taylor's Fire and Rain that ends the episode.

That particular tune provides a powerful finish to the episode, where I have two similar themes providing an extreme contrast between the most out there avant garde recording and something that resembles 'smooth jazz'. Martin Kuchen's Chase The Demons Out--which feels "disturbingly current as the war aain ravages the Middle East, where rockets, aircraft, and attack drones serve the ambitions of those in power" transforms into that sweet James Taylor song that only vaguely suggests the background of sizzling temperatures and fire in some parts of the world and the torrential rain storms we've experienced in parts of Alberta and Ontario.

And between all that?

The further evolution of the "Bluegrass Meets Jazz" first begun (as far as I know) by Tony Trischka and now evolving into the latest album by The Punch Brothers featuring mandolinist Chris Thile.

Then there's somebody you may know.....but this is the first time I've heard her and been wowed! Singer Nicole Zuraitis and her latest album called The Devil I Knew. With a delightful tenor saxopohone solo by Donny McCaslin.

One totallly new discovery and an album I've been listening to a lot is Montreal's Greenhouse Ensemble, putting together a composition they describe as "folowing the rhythm of the tides in all their unpredictability an force with the image of drifting down the St. Lawrence River toward the open sea".

Then there is bassist Avishai Cohen with a title inspired by the pronunciation of 'blues' by his Japanese fan base.

And last but not least, the fifteenth album by Vijay Iyer, Henry Threadgill, and Dafnis Prieto and a track that has been described by one reviewer as "holding a steady course between sway and swagger---like three old pros on a joyride".

I found 72 albums released this year that stirred up my interest or curiosity, then randomly selected a few that I'm playing for you.

Has jazz changed substantially over the past 60 years? I can't really answer that. But maybe hearing a track from some albums selected randomly from the over 2500 new releases from 2026 (plus a couple historical ones) might give you a clue.

My table of random numbers made these selections:

SIMON MOULLIER: CEIBA. Joshua Redman says this is one of the best modern mainstream instrumental jazz albums he has heard in years.

LIS WESSBERT WITH VERONIKA RUD: THE THE WAKE OF BLUE. The album sounds is a pleasant and interesting listening experience.

DASHA BEETS: SALUTE TO RITA. Netherlands singer Rita Reys was a great influence on her. Songbook standards.

KRIS DAVIS: LOST IN GENEVA. Canadian pianist and composer with a track from her soon to be released new album.

GORAN KAIJFES SUBTROPIC ARKESTA w. AVIN OMAR. Kurdish music from Sweden.

JUST IN TIME, BROADWAY SOUNDTRACK. With actor/singer Jonathan Groff and a salute to Bobby Darin

JUZZ: II. Jazz-rock, Features Spanish guitarist and composer Virxilio da Salva

BRYAN MURRAY: WOLF. A saxophonist, with a trio of chordless jazz

KEYVAN CHEMIRANI: TALES OF NAR. Influenced by Irainian Classical music. Probably my favourite of the lot.

COURTNEY PINE:OUT OF THE GHETTO, A MODERN DAY JAZZ STORY. from a 2 cd set that spans four decades.

JAZZ DISPENSARY-MAGIA BRASILERIA. Brazilian jazz recordings from themid 1960's to mid 70's. Cal Tjader w Charlie Byrd.

The last episode of Richard Rodgers and Jazz. This week I explore more jazz interpretations of his great tunes. I include some insightful observations from the book The Jazz Standards by Ted Gioia of some of those tunes.

Artists you'll hear include Brad Mehldau, Buddy Greco, Sarah Vaughan, Bob Dorough, The Bad Plus, Betty Carter, Frank Sinatra, Oscar Peterson, Sophie Milman, Andrew Hill, Tony Bennett, and Hank Mobley.

More great jazz recordings of Richard Rodgers tunes. And I dive a bit into his life and how he developed his songwriting skills. You'll hear great interpretations of songs such as Manhattan, Bewitched Bothered and Bewildered, People Will Say We're in Love, Blue Room, Isn't It Romantic, No Strings, I Could Write a Book, Do I Hear a Waltz (one he wrote with Stephen Sondheim), and Mountain Greenery.

Here is a link to a couple great articles about Richard Rodgers:

https://www.city-journal.org/article/richard-rodgers-enigma-variations

https://www.nytimes.com/1974/07/14/archives/the-split-personality-of-richard-rodgers-the-music-of-richard.html

Some of the artists you'll hear include Emma Smith, Peggy Lee, Betty Carter & Ray Charles, Joshua Redman, Blossom Dearie, Hazel Scott with Charles Mingus and Max Roach, Coleman Hawkins, Diana Krall, Ella Fitzgerald, Karin Plato, Miles Davis Quintet, and....you won't believe what Eugene Chadbourne does to "People Will Say We're In Love". And no doubt people will say a lot of things when they hear that. :)