He did jail time on Rikers Island, played the requisite dances with record labels and pioneered the bass-drum saxophone accompaniment known as strolling.

Two "smooth jazz" superstars have teamed up for a new album that goes hand-in-hand with a little rest and relaxation. VOA's Doug Levine tells us about R n R, featuring the long-awaited collaboration between trumpeter Rick Braun and tenor saxophonist Richard Elliot.

One of the world's longest-running jazz festivals celebrates a milestone anniversary this month (9/21-9/23) with a lineup of jazz stars that's likely to draw a record-breaking attendance.

Saxophonist and composer Randy Scott began his career with some of today's top jazz stars, including Nancy Wilson, Ronnie Laws and the group Hiroshima. But, as VOA's Doug Levine tells us, it was the music of the late sax great Grover Washington, Jr, and Scott's close friendship with Grover that he remembers most.

Abbey Lincoln has one of the most distinctive voices in jazz. She is also one of today's most respected songwriters. As VOA's Doug Levine tells us, Ms. Lincoln combines her two greatest gifts on her first album in four years, Abbey Sings Abbey.

Jazz singer Curtis Stigers describes himself as "a storyteller." With his latest album Real Emotional, Stigers tells not only his own stories, but also those of Bob Dylan, Paul Simon, Randy Newman and others. As we hear from VOA's Doug Levine, Stigers is in peak form on a new collection of songs that mix jazz with pop, rock and even country music.

It's been more than 15 years since saxophonist Joshua Redman won first prize at the Thelonious Monk International Jazz Competition. That honor proved to be a worthwhile stepping stone, as he went on to record more than 10 solo albums, including his latest, titled "Back East." Redman returns to his acoustic roots while paying tribute to some of his longtime sax heroes.

Only his health prevented Oscar Peterson from traveling from his home near Toronto to attend the tribute concert featuring Wynton Marsalis and other jazz stars at Carnegie Hall - where the legendary jazz pianist started his international career nearly 60 years ago.