Javon Jackson celebrates the life of Nikki Giovanni
photo of Javon Jackson by Brett Winter Lemon
Jazz After Hours listeners are invited to this very special evening with tenor great Javon Jackson and band
Tenor saxophonist and composer Javon Jackson and his quartet with pianist Jeremy Manasia, bassist Danton Boller and drummer Willie Jones III, celebrate the life and legacy of the groundbreaking poet and activist Nikki Giovanni on Saturday, March 22 at Scullers Jazz Club in Boston. Information at scullersjazz.com.
Jackson and Giovanni released two highly acclaimed albums together: 2023’s The Gospel According to Nikki Giovanni and, in August 2024, the powerfully joyful Javon & Nikki Go to the Movies, the final project released by Giovanni before her passing on December 9, 2024. The concert is part of an East Coast tour that also includes stops in Queens, NY (March 1), Tarrytown, NY (March 14-15), and New York City (April 8-13).
Like The Gospel According to Nikki Giovanni, Javon & Nikki Go to the Movies draws on some of Giovanni’s favorite songs – in this case, standards from the Great American Songbook, many of them originally composed for Hollywood classics. But the repertoire this time out draws from a broader range of sources, including three Jackson originals and one from the pen of one of his heroes, Sonny Rollins. The title ends up referring at least as much to the friendship and mutual respect shared by Giovanni and Jackson as it does to the music they’ve chosen to create together.