Doc Jones
Scottsdale, Arizona
April 2023
By Mary Andrews
Doc Jones has been instrumental in promoting jazz music in the United States for many decades. He was the only one in his family serving as a musician and that interest did not begin until after he first got married. There were many gangs in Chicago in 1971 that were forming in the neighborhoods. Jones’ wife suggested he enroll in the community college, Loop Junior College. In turn, the college counselors suggested Jones enroll in tap-dance and piano classes. The rest as they say is history. for Jones.
Jazz is an American institution and it has deep roots in Arizona. Renowned bass player and pianist, Charles Mingus, was born in Nogales, Arizona. Because of the impact jazz has had in Arizona, jazz remains an important part of not only the state culture but the culture of the United States. It’s been over two years since we have reported on the Jazz movement locally and around the world. We spoke with Jones recently about his increasing success of the Scottsdale, Arizona Jazz Festival this year and here is what we learned.
Jones spoke, “We were able to get a coalition of three mayors from the surrounding cities of Scottsdale: Mayor David Ortega (Scottsdale), Jerry Bien-Willner (Paradise Valley), and Corey Woods (Tempe). April is Jazz appreciation month worldwide.” Doc knows the secret of how to get three mayors in the same room promoting another mayor’s city. And they say, “Anything for you, Doc.”
In addition to gaining support for local festivities, Jones has been getting the state to support Herbie Hancock’s UNESCO mission of International Jazz month and International Jazz Day. Jones got the Arizona Office of Tourism involved with this mission spearheaded by Debbie Johnson. Johnson saw the immense value of this international jazz event to bring attention to tourism coming back to the state of Arizona and did a public service announcement. Simply put, they want jazz lovers to travel here.”
Arizona governor, Doug Ducey, did a public service announcement promoting Jazz appreciation month for the third year in a row. I believe that that had a lot to do with the success that we had. I had a lady that was working with me who was able to get the press release in over 400 outlets nationwide. We had people who bought tickets from all over the US, Canada, and Mexico. The show was a sellout with nearly 2000 people. The Scottsdale Center for the Arts was still under construction. So the area we had could only hold a certain amount of people. We had to stop selling tickets.
I have to give credit to Andrew Birgensmith for the the organizational structure as he co-produced the Festival. Andrew along with other people co-ordinated the affair.
I would like to expand our reach. We are partnering with several different organizations to insure next year will be a two day event.The days will be April 28, 29, and 30, on a weekend. My kick off of Jazz month will always be early in April.
On April 8, 2023, we will be at the Tempe Center for the Arts hosting Jazz Appreciation month. The International; Jazz Foundation mission is to encourage events to happen all over the state during that time. We shouldn’t be worried about competition. We shouldn’t be worried about people not coming to our events. We should be encouraging smaller events. It should be a time bringing attention to this art form during jazz appreciation month and especially on Jazz Appreciation Day.
I don’t want to put too much emphasis on the artist lineup for 2023 yet, but Ronnie Laws wants to perform. Nayo Jones (His daughter) is knocking them out up here. It blows my mind when her name goes public, they start buying tickets. She is making a name for herself all over the world. At the New Orleans Jazz Fest this year, she got three standing ovations. I thought, ‘This stuff is real. In 2021, she opened up for Mark Whitfield, the guitar player. George Benson was there. The people said, “You just need to put Nayo on stage and put a bigger band around her and just let that girl go.” She just wowed everybody. I didn’t want to bring her on too much because she opened up for the Tempe Center for the Arts and it sold out. For the Scottsdale Festival, they started buying tickets as soon as it was announced. Any time she is performing, they don’t care what the price is. Nayo Jones will be coming back.
In January we will announce other artists that will be performing. They are ready for me to book George Benson. This could be the year. We have the resources to do it now. We have the sponsorship to do it. Scottsdale and Paradise Valley would love to have one of their own to headline. And for Benson, this is the last place he will call home. As a headliner on the Scottsdale Jazz Festival, he would bring people from all over the world. The festival in the past had to grow and that’s okay. Even the New Orleans Jazz Festival, 50 years ago, just started out with three hundred people. I didn’t realize, over the last ten years, how much work I have put in to this festival. That’s organizing a movement. It’s not just about the jazz festival, it’s about organizing a movement and that movement is about Herbie Hancock and the United Nations.
If you go on the global site at www.jazzday.com, you are going to see the history. They keep me on that website for what we do here in Arizona. We are a roadmap and example of what they had expected when they formed International Jazz Day in 2012. Hancock spoke about how ‘Every city should be doing what you are doing. You’ve got corporate America, the musicians, and the politicians. Our vision is that one day International Jazz Day will be in Scottsdale or in Arizona.’ It might be in Tempe. Tempe is very receptive to what we are doing as well.
Under artists, we can talk about the artists that have already been here: Azar Lawrence, Donald Harrison, and Emmett Cohen. All of these great artists have helped me build the festival. The cities that have participated in the past are Mesa, Tempe, Scottsdale and Phoenix. The last five years, I have included Alamos, Mexico and Sonora, Mexico. Our Jazz Festival is growing by leaps and bounds. I’m consistent and people see what we do. As a result, they are supporting it. I’m humbled by it all.
This year was amazing by proving we could put on a World Class Festival. I attribute a lot of that success to people who have supported us over the years. Alfredo Molina is the festival chairman and title sponsor. We have a tremendous advisory board. Alvin Jackson, from Atlanta, a former vice-president of marketing for Chrysler for over 40 years will be the project director. He has produced big events for Chrysler around the world. William Billy Atkins, another former Chrysler executive, is the board executive.
We’re doing five events in 2023 for the Arizona Winter Jazz Series. It starts on January15 when we will be doing the second annual Jazz Tribute to Martin Luther King. If you go to 1964MLKProject.com, it will show you what we did this year, The purpose of the event is to bring back attention to the contributions that jazz musicians have made to the civil rights movement. Artists like Nina Simone, Aretha Franklin, Stevie Wonder, and Ray Charles. The Civil Rights Movement did events all over the country.
In February, the honorary counselor of Czechoslovakia is co- sponsoring with our organization for an artist coming here whose name is Emile Viklicky. He is a phenomenal piano player who is well known worldwide. He will be here for our Super Bowl jazz concerts at the Arizona State University Care Center on Feb 10. It will be a phenomenal show.
On April 8, we are kicking off The Second Annual Jazz Appreciation month with Nayo Jones at the Temple Center for the Arts. We realize that the kick off is just as important as the festivities done at the end of the month.
The third Wednesday of the month we will have the 6th Annual Jazz at Lunchtime Concert at the state capital in Phoenix. The house of representatives passed that bill for me, ACR 2017 House Concurrent Resolution, that declares April Jazz Appreciation month for the state. April 30 is International Jazz Day.
The third annual Scottsdale Jazz Festival will be the weekend of April 28, 29, & 30th. On the 28th of April, we will have the second annual Kierland Jazz Day reception (Kierland After Dark reception) at the Westin Kierland Resort in Scottsdale, Arizona. That is sold out.
The entire series is called the 2023 Arizona Winter Jazz Festival Series. The mission or objective is to encourage people to join us in Arizona to enjoy this beautiful weather during the winter. This art form was created here in America. Yet, we barely have three percent that is played on the radio. We’re not going to stop. There are several styles of jazz. People sometimes say that jazz is for old people. Ya’ll don’t know, but the young folks are loving it, too! They are eating it up and they create their own styles of jazz.” There is room for everybody in jazz.
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