In fall 2023, three veteran jazz journalists, Bill Milkowski, Rick Mitchell, and Howard Mandel, sat down for a wide-ranging conversation, a portion of which is collected here to remind us all why we fell in love with music in the first place.

From first album purchases to legendary festival moments, they share the records and live performances that impacted them. Whether it's Howard's early attraction to Bill Evans, Rick's reverence for Jimi Hendrix, or Bill's memories of Blind Faith, these are the musical origin stories behind three respected voices in jazz journalism.

This episode captures what happens when writers stop analyzing and start remembering. It is all about the the music that made them who they are, and why. Yes, it's still all about the music.

Check out our playlist of the music mentioned and excerpted in this episode. 

And here are the two episodes making up the discussion this episode is excerpted from:

Part I: Jazz Journalism, Then and Now, with Veteran Writer Bill Milkowski and host Rick Mitchell

Part II: Bill Milkowski with Rick Mitchell and Howard Mandel, reminiscing

The Jazz Omnibus is on sale now at 25% off. This 600-page anthology features 21st-century photos and writings by JJA members. Details at: bit.ly/jja25

If you're a media-maker working in jazz, the JJA is offering first-time members a special rate of $50. Join a community of colleagues telling all the stories of jazz. Sign up at members.jazzjournalists.org/join

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For more from the Jazz Journalists Association, go to JJANews.org.