Jazz Spotlite News: African-American Classical Music/Jazz
- Place of Publication: New York City, NY
- Language: English
- Date of Publication: 1979-1981
- Periodicity: Semiannual
- Editor: Jim Harrison
- Publishers: Jazz Spotlite Productions
- Lacunae: vol. 1 no. 1-2.
- Type: Full Text
As well summarized by Willard Jenkins, “Jazz Spotlite News was a lively tabloid chuck-full of articles on the musicians and the music from an unabashedly Black perspective.”1 Published and edited in New York by Jim Harrison, a total of 10 newspaper-tabloid issues were published, each one longer than the previous. Harrison, who came from the jazz publicity world, noted that the inspiration for the News was a concert by saxophonist Jackie McLean and subsequent review by Jon Saunders in the Amsterdam News which captured the essence of the concert and McLean’s art. To foster Black voices in jazz journalism, unrepresented in the mainstream jazz press, Harrison decided to publish Jazz Spotlite News with a subtitle suggested by Larry Ridley: African-American Classical Music/Jazz.2
Much of the content focused on artist profiles, concert reviews, perspective pieces, mostly focused on New York. Regular writers included Jon Saunders, Frank Foster, James McAfee, Clarence Atkins, Steve Cannon, Hilly Saunders, Samir Id-Deen, Willard Jenkins, Billy Banks, Carl Jennings, Nat White, Rubye Richards, Benny Powell, Cliff Lauder, Morgan Harris, Sabu Adeyola; in total, some 150 different authors contributed, including correspondents from other cities. Much of the content focused on musicians playing in greater New York at the time, such as Dexter Gordon, Reggie Workman, Clifford Jordan, Jackie McLean, Leroy Jenkins, and many others. Many women are also profiled: Patti Brown, Dee Myers, Terri Lyne Carrington, Stella Mars, Shirley Scott, Vea Williams, Tina Pratt, and others.
1 Willard Jenkins, ed. Ain't But a Few of Us: Black Music Writers Tell Their Story (Duke University Press, 2022): 94.
2 Ibid., 93-97.