RIJF 2023

Bill Goodwin Trio

Bill Goodwin is like a breath of fresh air blowing through jazz. From the time around 1954 when he was in Los Angelesand just learning the drums, and inspired by Shelly Manne, to today, around his 80th birthday, he has loved jazz and the musicians unconditionally. He has befriended and worked with so many of the great jazz artists that it's hard to count them. Here is a partial list: Gary Burton, Bill Evans, Dexter Gordon, Jim Hall, Bobby Hutcherson, June Christy, Joe Williams, Tony Bennett, Mose Allison, The Manhattan Transfer, Art Pepper, George Shearing, Bud Shank, and Frank Rosolino. Not to mention his 40-year association as drummer and producer for the Phil Woods Quartets and Quintets. While many if not most jazz musicians prefer a small coterie of close friends, Goodwin has developed lasting friendships and working relationships with almost all the musicians he has encountered over the years. There is a lot of jazz history from the 1960s and beyond in this interview. 

Goodwin grew up in Los Angeles, took up the drums in high school in Palm Springs where the family lived for four years, and came up at the height of the prolific and innovative Los Angeles jazz scene, playing with and learning from many of the greats from that era. From there, he moved to New York in 1969 at the behest of Gary Burton. After a year, he brought his wife and children from Los Angeles to a home in the Pocono Mountains where they have resided ever since. The Poconos to this day have had a lively jazz scene and many great players and is the locus of the famed Deerhead Inn. Goodwin also has been a producer of many recordings and live performances. In addition to his gigs in New York and internationally, he works with the musicians locally and is an active board member of the COTA (Celebration of the Arts) Festival.