RESIDENT ARTISTIC DIRECTOR HOWARD WILEY: PLAYING FOR THE PEOPLE

Sustaining a career as a jazz musician in the Bay Area is hard. But Howard Wiley has been doing it for a long time — nearly 30 years. The club scene has dwindled since he started out, yet the tenor saxophonist, 44, is somehow always at it, generating gigs, creating some new scene in some unlikely venue — probably because he carries the scene inside him. An ex-prodigy who recorded his first album at age 15, he is a commanding and soulful improviser with an engaging (and often hilarious) stage presence. He connects. He plays “for the people,” as he likes to say.

Wiley, who grew up in Oakland and still calls it home, is one of five new Resident Artistic Directors at SFJAZZ, and his 2024 residency at the SFJAZZ Center is about to begin. On Feb. 3 and 4, in the club-like Joe Henderson Lab, he will present a program titled “Saturday Night to Sunday Morning,” emphasizing the connection between jazz and the Black church. Wiley, who came up playing in church, has put together a quartet featuring pianist (and organist and singer) Damien Sneed, an old friend and a force in the gospel world, whose collaborators have ranged from Aretha Franklin to Wynton Marsalis. The music, Wiley says, will be “based around this thing: the soulful side of the swing, and the jazzy part of the church.”

On March 23 in 700-seat Miner Auditorium, Wiley will augment his core quartet (featuring powerhouse organist L.J. Holoman) with vocalists (China Moses and Martin Luther McCoy), instrumentalists (trombonist Robin Eubanks and trumpeter Sean Jones, formerly of the SFJAZZ Collective), an emcee (Kev Choice, who’s also a keyboardist) — and a comedian (Chris Riggins), the evening’s host. Wiley wants it to be a show with a vibe, he says. He predicts the swing will be thick: “Remember those days when you could just fall into a jazz club, and you’d know it was going to be good because it was jazz? That’s what I’m talking about."

He’s given the March 23 show a title: “California Love.” It refers to the gratitude he feels for the regional jazz sound that formed him as a young musician, and that continues to inform his playing.

The way he plays reflects the way he speaks, which is both erudite and earthy. During an hour-plus conversation, his humor and passion for the music — and his fly-trap memory — shine through. Wiley seems to know everything about pop culture and jazz, and, possibly more than anything else, enjoys discoursing on the history of jazz in the Bay Area. He relishes talking about the master players who took him under wing, like saxophonists Bill Stewart and Jules Broussard and pianists John Turk and Ed Kelly. During our time on the phone, he could have told stories about performing with Lauryn Hill and other national acts. Instead he spoke about his musical beginnings and how lucky he feels to have played with legendary jazz drummers like Donald Bailey, Eddie Marshall, and Billy Higgins.

He feels a debt: “I’m just trying to be like the cats who gave me a chance, the cats who showed me the way,” he says. “It’s what the OGs taught me. You gotta do it. You gotta find the quality, the connection. If your product is good, somebody out there will be like, `Oh, I like that!’”

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Q: How’d you feel when you were selected as a Resident Artistic Director for the next two seasons?

A: Wonderful. These are people I’ve been working with for years, and to have my art and music highlighted like this — I was elated.

Q: What’s driving your residency? Is there a theme you’ll try to put across to the audience?

A: Certainly. In the last 20 years, we’ve lost our regional sound, and I was one of the last to go through the regional school. Because back in the day, cats from Detroit sounded like they came from Detroit. Cats from Philly sounded like they came from Philly. Cats from Chicago — same thing. And California in its day was like that, too. Herbie Hancock, when he came out here and started the Headhunters — that’s a Bay Area band. (Bassist Paul Jackson, drummer Mike Clark, and percussionist Bill Summers all lived here.) There’s a lot of juice here — that’s the message I’m trying to put across.

I want the people to know about that thing that brought Herbie out here; that thing that brought George Cables out here; that thing that brought Tony Williams out here. And there are so many others: Bobby Hutcherson. It’s what brought Betty Davis out here to record. We’re known as the creative ones, and we’re not as far from the Southern roots as our East Coast brethren.

Q: Tell me about going through what you call “the regional school.”

A: I didn’t go to the Berklee School of Music. I was right here. I got a different kind of schooling: I spent my formative time with Bill Stewart and Jules Broussard and Bishop Norman Williams and going to see the people — like John Turk and Ed Kelly, my mentor. And when you’re talking about Ed Kelly, you’re talking about someone who played with Sonny Stitt, someone who played with Pharoah Sanders.

I was so lucky. As a kid, my first jam session was going to Wellington’s where Donald Bailey held his sessions in Berkeley on University Avenue; there was a jam session every Thursday. And Ed Kelly was at Laney College (in Oakland). He had a class and after his class, he would open it up for a jam session. And he also played at the Washington Hotel in Oakland. And Ed was so soulful, and he would just let me sit in and learn. Me, this kid, playing with Ed Kelly? Are you kidding?

Q: I’ve also heard about Donald Bailey’s jam sessions at the Golden Gate Library in North Oakland. You were there, too?

A: Yes. That library was in between the two churches I grew up at — right on the same block. At one end was Star of Bethel (Missionary Baptist Church) where my paternal grandmother went, and at the other end was Triumph (the Church and Kingdom of God in Christ) where my maternal grandmother went. The music was jamming. That’s the neighborhood my family settled in, coming from the South.

Friends of the Golden Gate Library was the organization that sponsored Donald Bailey’s jam sessions. Lots of musicians were playing there. (Saxophonist) Robert Stewart would be there. I met (vocalist) Lavay Smith there and (keyboardist) Chris Siebert. Ed Kelly would be there, too, so many musicians — (vibraphonist) Yancie Taylor, who also had a day job. He sold me my first suits from the Men’s Warehouse when I started gigging.

Q: Not many of today’s young musicians receive the sort of training that you had. It was a musical training, but it went beyond that — you were immersed in a culture.

A: That’s true. We tend to miss this kind of regional stuff in the post-institutional jazz age.

Howard Wiley performing at the Grand Opening of the SFJAZZ Center, 1/21/13
(photo by Scott Chernis)

Q: How would you describe the “Bay Area sound” that you grew up with?

A: If you were in the audience, you would see the most compelling jazz. And if you played jazz in the Bay Area, you’d be playing the most compelling music. Especially at that time, it was a lot of working class — I’m talking about the people who came out to hear the music. And working class people will give you a chance, but you better monopolize on that.

I’m telling you, it was compelling. I would go see John Handy. I would go see Herbie Lewis. I’d see the Bobby Hutcherson-McCoy Tyner Quintet at Kimball’s East, because my auntie worked there and I’d see them a lot: Compelling performances!

It was swinging. I would go to see (pianist) Kito Gamble, and people’d be screaming for her piano solos. I’d see her sit in with Roy Hargrove and she’d completely steal the show. The swing was thick.

Q: I like your stories; I feel like I’m there.

A: I tell you — one of the greatest saxophonists I’ve ever heard is Julies Broussard. That’s another one of my mentors who I learned a great deal from. I had a gig at the old Black Cat in North Beach, and I played there every Monday for a couple of years and I had two bass players and two saxophone players, and it would either be Bill Stewart or Jules or sometimes all three of us. And, man, Bill’s sound or Jules’s sound — those were compelling sounds for the tourists sitting there, who don’t even listen to jazz. Bill and Jules, they’d be quieting down loud tables with the music. And it wasn’t the smooth stuff or the funk stuff. It was songs, swinging stuff.

Q: How old were you?

A: I was 20, 22.

Q: You clearly feel connected to those formative experiences.

A: I do.

Q: So here we are, all these years later. What do you hope audiences will experience at your shows?

A: First of all, having a wonderful time. I play for people. And I want the audience to have a greater sense of pride about our area. Because when you talk about jazz, people always talk about these other scenes in other places, but no! We’ve had it here and always have. It’s the reason why Arnett Cobb moved to Oakland. It’s the reason Count Basie moved to Oakland back in the day.

Q: We’re talking about the 1950s?

A: Yes. My grandfather played with Basie for two minutes — Sam Wiley. He played tenor.

There’s all this history. And that’s going to be my overarching theme for my show in Miner Auditorium (March 23): this Bay Area thing, this California thing. That’s why I’m calling it “California Love.”

There’s a strong north-south connection in this state. I met all my LA homies at the World Stage (arts and performance space), playing there in the late ‘90s, hanging out, going to Billy Higgins’ house, understanding that groove.

And historically, going back — don’t get me talking about Ornette coming to California and finding Don Cherry. Don’t get me talking about Dexter or Dolphy. It’s that real California sound.

Right here in the Bay Area, there’s this legacy of great saxophone players: Vincent Herring, Dayna Stephens, Teodross Avery, Dave Ellis, and, of course, Joshua (Redman). We have all that. We are a very special place, a very creative place.

Howard Wiley with organist Chester "CT" Thompson at SFJAZZ, 11/26/21 (photo by Bill Evans)

Q: You’ve got a comedian — Chris Riggins, who grew up in Berkeley — hosting your show in Miner Auditorium.

A: That’s right. I want it to be a show, to have that vibe. I want that fun element; we kind of took that out of jazz. You know, you used to see Dick Gregory with Miles Davis. You’d see Arsenio with Nancy Wilson. I like to bring that element back into it — that show element.

Dude, it’s going to be a fun one. This whole residency is going to be fun.

Q: Tell me about the shows (Feb. 3-4) at the Joe Henderson Lab.

A: We’re calling it “From Saturday night to Sunday Morning,” and it’s going back to that connection — how we’d all be playing in the club on Saturday night, and Sunday morning we’d be playing in church. Because the church thing is so strong in jazz, and these guys I’m playing with — we all grew up in jazz, and we all grew up in church. You hear that same connection in Stanley Turrentine, in Arnett Cobb; it’s a thing. You hear it in Art Blakey. You hear it in Coltrane. And the people I’m bringing to these shows — man, I’m featuring Damien Sneed on piano, organ, and vocals. He’s like the opposite side of the coin from me. I’m so into the blues and jazz, but with a church background. He’s from the gospel and classical side, but with a great jazz understanding.

Oh dude, it’s gonna be ridiculous! I’ve got Darrell Green on drums. We’re all church boys. We all grew up in church, and we all grew up playing.

Q: When you were first getting into jazz, did you immediately feel a connection to the music you’d grown up with at your grandmothers’ churches?

A: Absolutely. I’m coming from church and, man, this is grooving the same way; I can hear this. It’s got the same seasoning — like the food, like Big Momma’s sweet potato pie. With jazz, it’s got the same ingredients that Big Momma put in there.

You can always tell somebody who grew up in church by the way they play.

Q: Tell me more about Damien Sneed.

A: I’ve known Damien since I was 16 or 17. We met in the GRAMMY (All-American High School Jazz) Band, and he went to Howard University and I’d go out to visit him in D.C. and we’d be playing in church. Damien is ridiculous, man. He sang with Aretha. He conducted The Abyssinian Mass for Wynton. And over the years, he’d always come out here, working with various pastors, and we’d hang out.

Q: What’s your repertory going to be like at these two shows?

A: We’ll do some originals, including some of Damien’s tunes, and some classics, too. Probably we’ll throw in some (Coleman) Hawkins, and the Leonard Cohen tune, “Hallelujah.” And we’re definitely doing a spiritual or two. You’re going to get the full scope of what it’s like to be at the club on Saturday night, swinging, playing Bird and Duke and Strayhorn, and then get up in the morning — tired, yet feeling rejuvenated, to play for the community.

Q: You’ve been at it for a long time now. What’s your mission as a musician?

A: I’m trying to meet everybody halfway. I feel that the music and us musicians — it went too far in an NPR explanation kind of way. “This new album merges sounds from Alaska with influences from the Australian…” — this and that, all this explanation.

I just feel that we got away from good music for people. I play for people. My homegirl Catherine Cusic, one of the biggest supporters of the music, she’ll come see me in the clubs, and she says, “I see what you’re doing. You’ve got all these kids dancing while you’re playing something by Coltrane.” I’m meeting people halfway. You know, when you listen to the old records, man, it’s good for everything.

We gotta hit the head, we gotta hit the soul. I feel that we forgot about the soul. I’m still hitting that intellectual thing, but we’re going to have a happy, uplifting conversation – making music from that perspective.

And if you come to these shows (at SFJAZZ), you’ll see the love for the tradition of the music. You’ll see me continually trying to push things forward and kind of wash away the quote-unquote genre lines. Because this music is from a particular period, and from a particular people who were in one place – it comes from the ‘hood, all these so called genres.

You know how McCoy Tyner played with Ike and Tina (Turner) after leaving Coltrane? That kind of sums it up; we’re gonna be all over the music.

Q: Any final thoughts on what people can expect?

A: My humor. I’m a big goofball and there’s nothing like keeping it light – it’s gonna be good times and good music. It’ll make you smile. Good music, that’s the main thing, man. Anybody off the street can come in and they’ll be saying, “That was good music. I enjoyed it.”

A staff writer at SFJAZZ, Richard Scheinin is a lifelong journalist. He was the San Jose Mercury News' classical music and jazz critic for more than a decade and has profiled scores of public figures, from Ike Turner to Tony La Russa and the Dalai Lama.