Jazz Night in America: Gary Burton

“We’ve seen so many elder statesmen of jazz go on way past the point of really being able to play even halfway decently,” says vibraphonist Gary Burton, “and no one will tell them.”

Tune in to Jazz Night in America on KUVO 89.3 FM or stream on KUVO.ORG on Saturday, June 10 at 10pm.

For a long stretch of his early performing career, Burton was always the youngest man on the bandstand. He was all of 18 when he released his debut album. This spring Burton became something else altogether: a retiree. And at 74, still in possession of his quicksilver fluidity and deep intuition, he went on a farewell tour, visiting a small handful of cities that mean something to Burton, playing material that fit the same criteria. @JazzNight caught up with the tour at Blues Alley in Washington D.C., at Birdland in New York City, and at the Jazz Kitchen in Indianapolis, the final stop on the tour.

Link to the radio episode: https://n.pr/2sXh9NL