Deep Focus

When we were coming up, alto saxophonist Jackie McLean was one of the main cats.  He, along with friends like Sonny Rollins, Max Roach, and Art Taylor, had emerged in New York City revering Charlie Parker and Thelonious Monk, yet he discovered his own unique sound.  We hunted for his well-worn Blue Note albums (not yet reissued at the time), and waited for him to play in NYC.  And waited, and waited.   In 1968, Jackie McLean had started teaching at the Hartt School in Hartford, CT, beginning a long and influential career as an educator.  Sadly for those of us who weren't enrolled, his live performances had become much less frequent. Saxophonist Eric Person's choice of Jackie Mac as the subject for a Deep Focus is going to depend on the WKCR archives' ability to provide rare, live, unreleased recordings.   Will host Mitch Goldman and G*O*A*T* guest Eric Person find these hidden treasures?   Will the music reveal new facets of Jackie McLean's magnificent artistry? And how long can this krazy high-wire act continue?? These questions and more will be answered this Monday (8/31) from 6p to 9p NYC time on WKCR 89.9FM, WKCR-HD or wkcr.org,     Or join us when it goes up on the Deep Focus podcast on your favorite podcasting app or at https://mitchgoldman.podbean.com/.  Subscribe right now to get notifications when new episodes are posted.  It's ad-free, all free, totally non-commercial.  We won't even ask for your contact info.   Find out more about Deep Focus at https://mitchgoldman.com/about-deep-focus/ or join us on Instagram @deep_focus_podcast.     Photo credit: Jackie McLean. Photo by Francis Wolff/Mosaic.   #WKCR #DeepFocus #EricPerson #JackieMcLean #JazzRadio #JazzPodcast #JazzInterview #MitchGoldman

This Monday's (8/17) Deep Focus is on pocket trumpeter and global troubadour Don Cherry, a dear, deeply missed friend of WKCR.  Back in the Eighties, Don was a frequent guest on Mitch Goldman's show.  Don would guest DJ, talk to the audience, bring guests... It was an ongoing Eighties NYC Don Cherry party.  And if there was a blank cassette handy, Mitch would make a recording.  The tapes got tossed in a box and ended up deep in storage.    In January of 2024 and again in February of 2025, Mitch and his guest, the bandleader, trumpeter, cultural historian, and raconteur Steven Bernstein, blew the dust off a few of the tapes and took their audience on a time-travel journey beyond the imagination of PKD or William Gibson.  Cherry as a radio host was knowing, passionate, deeply curious, and remarkably generous. He was generous to his guests with his attention and generous to his audience (which is to say, us) by considering them to be part of the conversation.  It's very much the way he played music.     This Monday (8/17) from 6p to 9p NYC time on WKCR 89.9FM, WKCR-HD or wkcr.org, Mitch and Steven pull out a few more of these never-before-listened-to magnetic treasures just for you.     Or join us when it goes up on the Deep Focus podcast on your favorite podcasting app or at https://mitchgoldman.podbean.com/.  Subscribe right now to get notifications when new episodes are posted.  It's ad-free, all free, totally non-commercial.  We won't even ask for your contact info.   Find out more about Deep Focus at https://mitchgoldman.com/about-deep-focus/ or join us on Instagram @deep_focus_podcast.     Photo credit: by Mitch Goldman 2026.  All rights reserved.   #WKCR #DeepFocus #StevenBernstein #DonCherry #JazzRadio #JazzPodcast #JazzInterview #MitchGoldman

This Monday's (8/17) Deep Focus is on pocket trumpeter and global troubadour Don Cherry, a dear, deeply missed friend of WKCR.  Back in the Eighties, Don was a frequent guest on Mitch Goldman's show.  Don would guest DJ, talk to the audience, bring guests... It was an ongoing Eighties NYC Don Cherry party.  And if there was a blank cassette handy, Mitch would make a recording.  The tapes got tossed in a box and ended up deep in storage.    In January of 2024 and again in February of 2025, Mitch and his guest, the bandleader, trumpeter, cultural historian, and raconteur Steven Bernstein, blew the dust off a few of the tapes and took their audience on a time-travel journey beyond the imagination of PKD or William Gibson.  Cherry as a radio host was knowing, passionate, deeply curious, and remarkably generous. He was generous to his guests with his attention and generous to his audience (which is to say, us) by considering them to be part of the conversation.  It's very much the way he played music.     This Monday (8/17) from 6p to 9p NYC time on WKCR 89.9FM, WKCR-HD or wkcr.org, Mitch and Steven pull out a few more of these never-before-listened-to magnetic treasures just for you.     Or join us when it goes up on the Deep Focus podcast on your favorite podcasting app or at https://mitchgoldman.podbean.com/.  Subscribe right now to get notifications when new episodes are posted.  It's ad-free, all free, totally non-commercial.  We won't even ask for your contact info.   Find out more about Deep Focus at https://mitchgoldman.com/about-deep-focus/ or join us on Instagram @deep_focus_podcast.     Photo credit: by Mitch Goldman 2026.  All rights reserved.   #WKCR #DeepFocus #StevenBernstein #DonCherry #JazzRadio #JazzPodcast #JazzInterview #MitchGoldman

This Monday's (8/17) Deep Focus is on pocket trumpeter and global troubadour Don Cherry, a dear, deeply missed friend of WKCR.  Back in the Eighties, Don was a frequent guest on Mitch Goldman's show.  Don would guest DJ, talk to the audience, bring guests... It was an ongoing Eighties NYC Don Cherry party.  And if there was a blank cassette handy, Mitch would make a recording.  The tapes got tossed in a box and ended up deep in storage.    In January of 2024 and again in February of 2025, Mitch and his guest, the bandleader, trumpeter, cultural historian, and raconteur Steven Bernstein, blew the dust off a few of the tapes and took their audience on a time-travel journey beyond the imagination of PKD or William Gibson.  Cherry as a radio host was knowing, passionate, deeply curious, and remarkably generous. He was generous to his guests with his attention and generous to his audience (which is to say, us) by considering them to be part of the conversation.  It's very much the way he played music.     This Monday (8/17) from 6p to 9p NYC time on WKCR 89.9FM, WKCR-HD or wkcr.org, Mitch and Steven pull out a few more of these never-before-listened-to magnetic treasures just for you.     Or join us when it goes up on the Deep Focus podcast on your favorite podcasting app or at https://mitchgoldman.podbean.com/.  Subscribe right now to get notifications when new episodes are posted.  It's ad-free, all free, totally non-commercial.  We won't even ask for your contact info.   Find out more about Deep Focus at https://mitchgoldman.com/about-deep-focus/ or join us on Instagram @deep_focus_podcast.     Photo credit: by Mitch Goldman 2026.  All rights reserved.   #WKCR #DeepFocus #StevenBernstein #DonCherry #JazzRadio #JazzPodcast #JazzInterview #MitchGoldman

What makes us love the musicians we love?  They do something magical that no one else had ever thought of before.  Or the magical thing they do is so outlandishly demanding that, if anyone else had thought of it, they simply would not have been able to execute it.  Allan Holdsworth was another of the handful of conjurers who deserves the title, “guitarists’ guitarist.” He passed away at 70 the month of this broadcast, and we celebrate him with a Deep Focus featuring guitarists Vernon Reid, David Gilmore and Chris Buono.  History, mystery and surprise abounding.  Mitch Goldman is your host.   Photo credit: This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.5 Generic, 2.0 Generic and 1.0 Generic license. #WKCR #DeepFocus #AllanHoldsworth #VernonReid #DavidGilmore #ChrisBuono #Fusion #JazzRockFusion #Guitar #FusionGuitar #Interview