The Chicago Jazz Dads
Chicago-area jazz quintet. Steeped in tradition. Always trying something new.
Playing Live Since 2022
Music
Video
More videos on our YouTube channel.
Shows
About
The Chicago Jazz Dads started the way most great bands do: completely by accident. Two dads struck up a conversation on a school playground. Turns out they both had jazz habits they'd never quite kicked.
What started as porch sessions became a residency, then a following. Not because they had grand ambitions, but because the music was too good to keep to themselves. Now a quintet, the Jazz Dads serve up standards with a twist, jazz interpretations of pop hits, and the kind of spontaneous energy that only comes from musicians who genuinely love what they're doing.
David caught the jazz bug in high school and has played seriously since, touring Europe with big bands and appearing at the Montreux, Jazzaldia, and Umbria jazz festivals, among others. When he’s not on stage, he writes and teaches at DePaul University, where his subject is neither guitar nor jazz, but political theory and economic inequality.
Dad of a 15-year-old who keeps borrowing his Gibson hollow-body.
Eric studied with Stuart Sankey at the University of Michigan and spent decades in the Bay Area, recording with artists including Tom Waits and Joanna Newsom. The pandemic brought him back to his hometown of Evanston, and he has fast become an in-demand bass player on the Chicago scene.
Dad of three teenagers, the oldest of whom recently found his way back to the Bay Area for college.
Gordon came close in the music business, fronting an East Coast rock band called Fooled By April that played SXSW and landed songs on Dawson's Creek and Party of Five. Family life and the American songbook eventually took over, and he now takes particular pleasure in introducing jazz to people who didn't know they'd love it.
Dad of two high-schoolers and a puppy, recently acquired as consolation for a soon-to-be empty nest.
Jonathan developed his versatile and creative style at the conservatory in Lyon, France, and as resident drummer at the Elephant Room, Austin's premier jazz club. Offstage he's a professor of social work at Loyola University Chicago, and his related podcast has more listeners than most bands have fans.
Dad of three teenagers: one in college, one into musicals, and one sitting on Jonathan's drum throne right now.
Leo came up in Chicago when the biggest band in the world was named after the city, and horns were the definition of cool. He spent his youth playing the city's best rock clubs, jazz rooms and festival stages, and has taken his tenor as far as the Montreux Jazz Festival.
Dad of a PhD candidate in music theory and cognition, an outcome he had nothing to do with and takes full credit for.
Press
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Booking
Bring the Jazz to Your Event
Available for festivals, private events, corporate functions, and venues. We typically play as a full quintet with vocals, but we can strip down to a quartet, trio, or instrumental-only group as the room and budget require. Wide repertoire and style to suit your event.
booking@chicagojazzdads.comQuestions?
For press, media inquiries, or anything else, drop us a line.
questions@chicagojazzdads.com