MF Art Of Listening Featuring - Musicians creating a musical conversation on the spot. Getting back to the original love of what draws musicians into music. Trusting the music and musicians to guide and discover what it means to improvise much in the same way we communicate verbally. Drummer extraordinaire Marcus Finnie assembles a unique group of very special artists for this show, comprised of elite session artists or musicians on tour in the Nashville vicinity. Marcus leads the band with Jus James, David Williford and Jon Cowherd.
Marcus Finnie
As a Memphis native and Nashville resident, Marcus Finnie has toured the world with Kirk Whalum, Keb' Mo', Taj Mahal, Brett Eldredge, Kurt Elling, Charlie Hunter, Lady Antebellum, Larry Carlton, Donna Summer, India Arie, Kurt Elling, Billy Preston, Earl Klugh, Beegie Adair, Dave Koz and many others. Marcus has also recorded with Grammy and Stellar Award nominated and winning artists' Jacob Whitesides, Kent Lattimore, Ledisi, Andy Mineo, Kirk Whalum, Keb Mo & Taj Mahal, India Arie, Joss Stone, Butch Walker, Charlie Peacock, Michael McDonald, and several others.
Jus James
Jus James is a seasoned session bass player, producer, and drum programmer currently based in Nashville, TN. Originally from Phoenix, AZ, his musical journey began in his father's church, where he sang and played organ and drums. At the age of 10, he picked up the bass, which quickly became his primary instrument. Over the past 21 years, Jus James has honed his craft across various genres eventually establishing himself in the professional music industry. Throughout his career, Jus James has contributed to numerous recordings and tours, bringing passion and feel to every project. He prides himself on his dedication to his craft and versatility across musical styles and seeks to be a valuable member of any project he's apart of.
David Williford
Woodwind player and composer David Williford has been an active part of the creative music scene in Nashville for over a decade. After growing up playing blues, rock, and gospel music with his dad, David moved to middle Tennessee to study with artists like Don Aliquo and Jonathan Wires. He continues performing, recording, and writing music - as a leader and a sideman. In 2023, he released his sophomore album, Season of Smoke. In addition to his own projects, David has enjoyed performing/recording with artists such as Jesse Welles, John Mailander's Forecast, Louis Prince, Maggie Rogers, Ruston Kelly, Greg Bryant, Ryan Connors, Jess Nolan, and David Rodgers.
Jon Cowherd
The Kentucky-born, New Orleans-schooled, New York-based Cowherd is best known for his long-running partnership with drummer/bandleader Brian Blade, with whom he co-founded the Brian Blade Fellowship, whose acclaimed, influential albums showcase Cowherd's stellar keyboard work and singular compositional skills. When not recording and touring with the Fellowship, Cowherd has worked extensively with a broad array of players and singers from the jazz, pop and rock worlds. Brian Blade Fellowship Band His impressive resume aside, Mercy is the most compelling example yet of Jon Cowherd's remarkable sensitivity, inventiveness and versatility. Recorded in an inspired three-day session at New York's Avatar Studios, the sterling set is comprised of ten new Cowherd originals, with his sublime keyboard work anchoring an all-star quartet that includes Bill Frisell on acoustic and electric guitars, John Patitucci on acoustic bass and longtime collaborator Brian Blade on drums. The resulting album is a creative landmark for Cowherd, with such ambitious numbers as "The Columns," "Postlude," the three-part "Mercy Suite" and the playful departure "Recital Hour (Timmy's Theme)" demonstrating his gifts as an instrumentalist and composer. "It definitely feels like a personal milestone," Cowherd says of Mercy. "My collaboration with Brian Blade has given me the freedom to record my own pieces, but I still felt the need to make a statement under my own name. That notion was intimidating for a long time, and I never felt ready until the last couple of years. I felt that my playing had to get to another level before I released something as a leader. Studying classical piano with Jeff Goldstein from 2001-2009 really helped me gain that confidence."
A consistent dedication to honing his talents and broadening his musical horizons has been a lifelong mission for Cowherd. Growing up in Kentucky as the son of musician parents who doubled as music educators, he embraced music early in life, taking up piano, french horn and violin as well as singing. In 1988, he migrated to the musical mecca of New Orleans to attend Loyola University. There, he studied jazz piano and improvisation under Crescent City piano legend Ellis Marsalis and with noted players John Mahoney, Steve Masakowski and Michael Pellera. He also joined local bands led by Tony Dagradi and Delfeayo Marsalis, and played with the New Orleans Ballet and the New Orleans Symphony and Opera. In 1993, Cowherd moved to New York, where he earned a Masters Degree in Jazz Studies from the Manhattan School of Music. It was in New Orleans' hotbed of musical inspiration that Cowherd met fellow Loyola student Brian Blade, with whom he would form the Brian Blade Fellowship. With Blade on drums and Cowherd on piano, and both sharing compositional duties, the Brian Blade Fellowship has proven to be an enduring and rewarding creative unit, releasing the albums Brian Blade Fellowship (Blue Note, 1998), Perceptual (Blue Note, 2000) and Season of Changes (Verve, 2008).
