This week’s guest is Ed Fast. The acclaimed Latin jazz ensemble Ed Fast & Congabop delivers a high-energy performance featuring some of the most celebrated names in the Northeast jazz scene. Blending the rhythms of Afro-Caribbean traditions with straight-ahead jazz improvisation, Congabop promises a powerful and joyful performance not to be missed. Drummer, composer, and founder Ed Fast leads the ensemble with a driving sense of rhythm and purpose. A veteran of symphonic, Broadway, and jazz stages, Fast formed Congabop to explore the crossroads of Latin percussion and hard bop jazz. His original compositions and arrangements have earned acclaim for their spirit, sophistication, and irresistible groove.

Happy Birthday!

Happy birthday to Justin Faulkner! Philadelphia native, drummer, educator, and philanthropist Justin Faulkner has cultivated a sound that invites, entertains, informs, and heals.

Throughout his career, Faulkner has shared the stage with musical luminaries like Kenny Barron, Dr. Lonnie Smith, Peter Nero, Jimmy Heath, Orrin Evans, Ornette Coleman, Sean Jones, Tim Warfield, Bernard Purdie, Pharoah Saunders, Terence Blanchard, Mingus Big Band/Dynasty/Orchestra, Bootsie Barnes, Jacky Terrasson, Terrence Howard, Bilal, Christian McBride and continues to be the drummer of choice for numerous others.

Justin's training began at the Girard Academic High School Music Program (GAMP). At seven years old, his formal education included studying classical percussion with Susan Jones and jazz drums and percussion with Samuel Ruttenberg. Jazz Ensemble, Chamber Ensemble, and Choral Ensemble education at the Kimmel Center created a new understanding of community and the creative ecosystem. The Clef Club of Jazz and the Performing Arts provided freedom of expression for a young musician to find his way. Principal Timpanist of the Philadelphia Orchestra, Don Liuzzi, cultivated the detail-oriented nature necessary to craft the full musical experiences Faulkner presents.

As a child prodigy, Justin entered the jazz scene at the tender age of 13, playing his first professional gig with bassist Jamaaladeen Tacuma of Ornette Coleman's band Primetime. In the coming years, his apprenticeships with Orrin Evans, J.D. Walter, Boris Kozlov, Bootsie Barnes, Denise King, Michelle Beckham, and The Charles Mingus Big Band would shape the still teenager into a gentleman entering the scene elegantly and with a presence.

On March 19, 2009, his 18th birthday, Faulkner started his tenure with the Branford Marsalis Quartet. Since then, Faulkner has toured the world extensively for the last 11 years. The musical expedition has included performances at the Philadelphia Museum of Art, The Michener Museum (Doylestown, PA), The Kennedy Center (Washington D.C.), Jazz at Lincoln Center( New York City), The Sydney Opera House (Sydney, Australia), The Blue Note Jazz Club (Tokyo, Japan), Royal Opera House (Muscat, Oman), Vienna Konzerthaus (Vienna, Austria), and Concertgebouw (Amsterdam, Netherlands), to name a few.

Happy Birthday to Dr. Pei-Ching Wu! Pei-Ching, internationally renowned marimbist, obtained her master's degree in Percussion Performance from Northern Illinois University in 1994. With dissertation entitled Extended Multiple Mallet Performance in Keyboard Percussion, which illustrates six-mallet techniques through two Taiwanese compositions, Wu earned her doctorate from West Virginia University in 2005. Her teachers include Ju, Tzong-Ching, Keiko Abe, Robert Chappell, Richard Holly and Tim Peterman.

Dr. Wu is a renowned percussionist, celebrated for her unique six-mallet grip technique, which has expanded the technical possibilities of marimba performance. A founding member and senior percussionist of the Ju Percussion Group, she has helped shape the ensemble's growth and success since its inception. Wu’s innovative approach to the six-mallet marimba playing allows for greater harmonic and melodic complexity, making her a leading figure in contemporary percussion.

She has performed as a soloist with prestigious orchestras such as the National Taiwan Symphony Orchestra, Taipei Symphony Orchestra, Portland Symphony Orchestra, and the Lithuanian Symphony Orchestra. Her international engagements include performances at major festivals like Quartier d'Été in Paris, the Budapest Spring Festival, Percussion Ukmergė Festival, and Croatia International Percussion Education Week.

A dedicated educator, Wu is a full-time professor at the Taipei National University of the Arts, where she has mentored a generation of accomplished percussionists. She is also a regular jury member at international percussion competitions and is committed to advancing the marimba repertoire through commissioning new works for six-mallet performance.

Dr. Wu’s pioneering spirit and dedication to the art of percussion continue to make a lasting impact on the global music community. She is also the host of radio show “Pei-Ching’s Percussion World”.

Happy Birthday to Quinton Robinson! Drummer Quinton Robinson's dynamic energy and impeccable sense of rhythm have made him a top choice for many musicians and producers. Yet, his expertise extends far beyond just drumming. Quinton, or "Q," is adept at running Ableton Live for performances, writing drum scores for musicals, and even taking on the role of musical director for various artists. Regardless of the task at hand, his primary focus is on ensuring the success of every project he participates in.

This commitment often sees Q stepping beyond his role as a sideman to become a central figure in any project. He seamlessly incorporates technology into his musical approach, making tools like the MacBook Pro and Roland Electronics as crucial to his setup as his drums and cymbals. As an endorser of Ableton Live, Q has mastered the software, allowing him to create and manipulate tracks with ease, whether in the studio or during live performances.

Alongside his musical and technical prowess, Q is known for his infectious positivity, love for music and people, and a strong sense of purpose. He believes that performing at a high level means enabling others to do the same, which is why his presence is often seen as indispensable in any setting—on stage, backstage, or even on the road. He is both a master and a student, blending creativity with reliability.

Q's impressive resume includes touring with notable artists such as Avery*Sunshine, Anthony David, Bobby Brown, and Peabo Bryson. Currently, he is the drummer for the North American tour of the hit Broadway musical "Hamilton."

"I've always had a passion for both music and theater, so the opportunity to combine them is thrilling," says Q. "Being part of a musical allows me to use all my talents and pursue my passions. I feel truly fortunate to work with so many talented artists, producers, and musicians, and I'm grateful for my gift of musicianship."

Happy Birthday to Steve Fidyk! Known for his versatility and musical approach, jazz drummer Steve Fidyk has earned national and international acclaim as an artist, author, composer and columnist. His third recording as a leader features an all-star band of New York’s finest — the impressive front-line of trumpet legend Joe Magnarelli and tenor titan Xavier Perez, alongside the rhythm team of pianist Peter Zak, and bassist Michael Karn. Each member is an active, contributing participant that pushes Fidyk’s hard hitting rhythmic and melodic message direct to the theatre of operations.

Steve’s father John Fidyk, who played tenor saxophone with groups throughout North Eastern Pennsylvania, began taking him on gigs as a substitute drummer at the age of eight. Encouraged by his parents, Fidyk pursued music throughout high school, and majored in music education at Wilkes University. He played drums in the big band under the direction of Bob Wilbur and eventually Tom Heinze. It was at this time that he began to immerse himself in jazz, listening to the great big bands of Count Basie, Duke Ellington, Woody Herman, Stan Kenton, and Buddy Rich. Rich was the first jazz drummer Fidyk saw perform live when he was eight years old, and that experience left a lasting impression.

In 1987, after hearing Fidyk play with the Mansfield State College big band, legendary jazz drummer Joe Morello accepted him as a student. Morello was instrumental in helping Steve with his technique, sound production, coordination, and overall approach to playing the instrument. Morello was also helpful with developing his articulate teaching skills, and Fidyk has been dedicated and committed to education ever since.

For over 21 years, Steve Fidyk was the drummer and featured soloist with the Army Blues Big Band, a premier 17- piece jazz ensemble stationed in Washington DC. During his tenure, he performed for seven US Presidents, numerous dignitaries and in 2008, traveled throughout the Middle East supporting the troops during a USO Holiday Tour. Fidyk currently leads a quartet featuring his original compositions and arrangements. He also performs throughout the US with small groups led by tenor saxophonist Walt Weiskopf and guitarist Jack Wilkins. He is a member of the Jazz Orchestra of Philadelphia, a big band led by trumpeter Terell Stafford.

As an educator, Fidyk is a member of the jazz studies faculty at Temple University, The University of the Arts in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and serves an educational consultant for Jazz at Lincoln Center's Essentially Ellington Program. He has authored several drum methods for Mel Bay and Alfred Publications, and contributes columns on a regular basis to Modern Drummer Magazine.

Fidyk has appeared on over 100 recordings and his discography as a co-leader includes Big Kids with John DeSalme (U.S. Roots), and two recordings with The Taylor/Fidyk Big Band: A Perfect Match (Write Groove, 2003) and Live at Blues Alley (OA2, 2006). His debut as a bandleader was Heads Up! (Posi-Tone, 2014) featuring Terell Stafford and Tim Warfield. His follow-up recording, Allied Forces (Posi-Tone, 2016) featured Brian Charette, Doug Webb and Joseph Henson. Both solo recordings feature Steve's original compositions and arrangements.

Steve Fidyk attended the University of North Texas, and holds degrees from Wilkes University and The University of Maryland, College Park. He was a student of Joe Morello, Ed Soph, John Riley, Ralph Peterson, Robert Nowak and Angelo Stella.

Happy Birthday to Scott Pellegrom! Scott is known throughout the drumming community as the “mad scientist.” His playing as a soloist and band leader exudes creativity, from surprising ideas to blinding hand speed, using found objects to pulling unconventional sounds from conventional instruments. Videos of his hyper-creative playing can be seen on Drumeo, the Dream Cymbals and PDP/DW Drums social media channels, Scott’s Instagram (@scottpellegrom), and numerous other places around the web. Incorporating elements of drum and bass, jungle, and fearless improvisation into his playing, this “drummer’s drummer” defies expectation and genre, whether it’s playing jazz standards or today’s most experimental music.

Performing since the age of 5, Scott currently leads his own band, SP3, works as a chameleon-like head of percussionist and session drummer at Third Coast Recording Studios, and is an in-demand sideman for renowned artists spanning genres and styles. His reputation as an exciting, dynamic player has helped him cultivate a globetrotting career as a clinician and educator, teaching private students, masterclasses, and performing at drum festivals around the world.

With a recent Drumeo video passing 5 Million views, 32 thousand Instagram followers, a final four finish in the Guitar Center Drum-Off, and a nomination for Modern Drummer’s “Best Up-and-Coming Player,” Scott’s ability on the kit speaks for itself. As a proud endorser of Dream Cymbals (maker of the signature Scott Pellegrom RE-FX Crop Circle), Remo Drum Heads, PDP Percussion, and Prologix pads, he also travels as a brand ambassador, demonstrating products at Musikmesse, PASIC, and NAMM every year, and working closely with these companies to develop and market unique products for today’s drummers and percussionists.
A self-described “rhythmist,” Scott’s passion for honing his craft seems to spill from his personality, whether performing at a festival for thousands of spectators, leading a school assembly of young non-musicians, or delivering a presentation at a TedX event. As a professional educator, Pellegrom offers both in-person and Skype/Facetime lessons, has twice been featured as a Drumeo presenter, leads workshops, and provides vital technical and philosophical information to drummers of all ages and skill levels.

While his extensive career appearances and performances are too numerous to list, some noteworthy highlights include events like the Victoria Drum Fest, Montreal Drum Festival, PASIC, SXSW, Cape Breton International Drum Festival, Music China, Shanghai Music Mesa, and Australia’s Ultimate Drummers Weekend. He shared the stage with acts such as Karl Denson, Digital Tape Machine, Joel Cummins, Billy Strings, Federico Malaman, Seth Bernard, Theo Katzman, Bernhard Lackner, The Drifters, and many, many others - not to mention appearing at drum festivals alongside many of the greatest players in the world.

Happy Birthday to Ray Yslas! Ray is one of modern music’s most accomplished percussionists, appearing frequently on major concerts, recording sessions, music festivals, and on television. He has performed on international tours with platinum artists including Stevie Wonder, Christina Aguilera, Willie Nelson, Idina Menzel, Colbie Caillat, Patti Labelle and the Backstreet Boys, and his network TV appearances include The Grammy Awards, Saturday Night Live, Oprah, American Idol, The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, The Late Show with David Letterman, and VH-1 Storytellers. Ray is distinguished in the industry by his intuitive musicality and consummate professionalism, and through working with an astonishing spectrum of signature vocalists, he has developed a truly orchestral approach to building his percussive arrangements, by treating each song as a story. Ray developed his musical instincts in the burgeoning Latin music community of Los Angeles, and he has worked with superstars like Juan Gabriel, Luz Casal, Pepe Aguilar, Joan Sebastian and Alejandro Fernandez.

Happy Birthday to Javier Raez! Javier is the producer of content for Congahead. Congahead: A Journey through Six Decades of Latin Percussion consists of photographs and videos of Latin, jazz, and pop musicians taken over 60 years by Martin Cohen. The photographs appear in the book Congahead: The Autobiography of Martin Cohen (2019). Javier has been on the Podcast a few of times. Here is the second time, third time and fourth time.

Happy Birthday to Everett Bradley! Perhaps the story of Everett Bradley’s unique career can be summed up in three words—“Look no further!” That’s what Shawn Pelton, the long-time Saturday Night Live drummer, always tells people whenever he recommends his old bandmate Everett for a gig as a percussionist. Shawn and Everett had been students together back at Indiana University’s Jacobs School of Music, and while Shawn knows Everett as a kick-ass percussionist with few peers, he also knows that conga drums are but one talent up the sleeve of this singer, songwriter, dancer, choreographer, multi-instrumentalist, and bandleader. The cliché “jack-of-all-trades-but-master-of-none” simply does not apply to Everett Bradley because he happens to be a master of them all. Among those who’ve heeded Pelton’s advice and have come to treasure Everett are Carly Simon, Daryl Hall and Jon Bon Jovi. On top of everything else, he has an infectious personality—a quality always on display in Holidelic, the outlandishly entertaining Christmas funk extravaganza he created and performs in. These are only some of the gifts that have brought Everett to Broadway, television, and into Bruce Springsteen’s E Street Band—and what makes his prospects so exciting.

Born in Greenwood, South Carolina, Everett grew up in Muncie, Indiana, the son of a high school principal and football coach who insisted he play football (his brother Luther played on the Detroit Lions) and tried to discourage his musical interests, and a mother who taught first grade and encouraged them behind his father’s back. This central conflict in his upbringing would teach him important lessons—“about love, compassion, generosity, not being too quick to judge people, and how not to take no for an answer if you felt very strongly about something,” as Everett explains it. He played the lead role of Jesus in a high school production of Godspell, a watershed event made even more remarkable by the fact that the Bradleys were one of three black families in the overwhelmingly white neighborhood of Halteman Village. The die was cast for a career in music when he received a scholarship to study voice at Indiana University. After graduating, Everett cut his teeth playing in a funk band called Kilo with fellow student Shawn Pelton. Weaned on Stax, Motown, Sly and the Family Stone, and the funk of Earth Wind & Fire and Parliament Funkadelic, Everett played multiple instruments including saxophone, but conga drums became his mainstay. By the time he landed in New York and got a call about a show called Stomp that had originated in the UK and was looking for “percussionists that move well,” he’d become a consummate player, and boy, had they called the right guy–the show was tailor-made for him. “It was one of those situations where the more personality you inject, the better the show becomes. I just took it and ran with it!”

Stomp became an off-Broadway phenomenon, and when the UK cast went on tour, Everett was made its musical director, after which he found himself auditioning for a Broadway show about jitterbugging called Swing! He made his Broadway debut with a song he’d written himself for the show, “Throw That Girl Around,” and contributed a hip-hop arrangement of “The Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy” that turned the production on its ear. Then came a stint with Hall & Oats, and then came 9/11. “I felt like we all needed to heal, and the way I was going to do that was by writing Christmas songs”—which led to the album Toy. “Then I got the idea to combine two of my favorite things—Christmas and funk!” The result was an audaciously entertaining P-Funk inspired version of Toy called Holidelic. From the moment Everett arrived onstage in his big furry white coat and George Clintonesque sunglasses and unwraps the big gift with the bow, opens the box, takes out the 6-inch platform shoes and puts them on, the audience went wild. Everett has been performing the show ever since, making it as beloved a holiday tradition as the Rockettes at Radio City for those who know about it. “It’s joyful but nasty–bump and grind with a warm fuzzy heart!”

With the new millennium, Everett was busier than ever, playing with Hall & Oates, Carly Simon, and performing in Bobby McFerrin’s completely improvised show Voicestra as one of the twelve singers, which blew his mind—”It was amazing to see someone create magic out of nothing every night.” In 2011 he got a mysterious call to do a gig down the Jersey shore at the Stone Pony and arrived to discover that it was a fund-raiser that Bruce Springsteen was doing. “I’d never been so nervous in my life,” Everett admits. Bruce had never played with a percussionist before, but he liked what he saw—in no time at all they were vamping, doing steps with their arms around each other. Everett was just getting ready to tour Japan with Daryl Hall when he got the invitation to join the E Street Band. “It would be fun for Bruce to have somebody up there to mess with,” he was told by Bruce’s management, but as much as Everett wanted to be messed with, he had a commitment to Daryl that he felt he couldn’t break and turned the invitation down. As it turned out, Bruce was so impressed by Everett’s loyalty to Daryl that he decided to wait for him. The result was two of the most extraordinary years of Everett’s life as he toured the world with Bruce and played on his album High Hopes.

The years since have been equally as eventful. Everett became the musical director for Meredith Viera’s television show. He continued to work with Daryl Hall and played an integral role in the evolution of Live From Daryl’s House. In the wake of Richie Sambora’s departure, Jon Bon Jovi invited him to play in his band, which turned into a four year stint—“my longest gig by far.” But as interesting as Everett’s career has been, it’s what he’s doing now and his vision of the road ahead that gets him stoked. He’s re-imagining the music of the classic musical 42nd Street, turning it into an urban R&B/jazz score. He’s flipping the Great American Songbook into another kind of repertoire: Cole Porter’s “Night and Day” as Marvin Gaye would have done it in the 70s. He’s become passionately interested in film scoring—“I want to learn how to write for oboe and I’m actually thinking about going back to school.” And with the holidays approaching his thoughts naturally turn to Holidelic. “I can’t wait to wear a cape again! There are so many ways to go with this, so many other holidays…Halloween? St. Valentine’s Day? Independence Day??”

Gig Alerts

The Sea Hear Now Festival is happening Sept 19th and 20th in Asbury Park, NJ.

The Crossroads Guitar Festival is happening Sept 26th and 27th in Austin, TX. Friend of the show, J.J. Johnson will be performing with Gary Clark Jr. Friend of the show Tyler “Falcon” Greenwell will be performing with the Tedeschi Trucks Band.

Celine Dion is making a comeback with multiple dates in Paris, FR in Sept and Oct.

Friend of the show, Jeffrey Barudin has posted new job openings for performance and education.

Educational Spotlight

The Drum Fantasy Camp has announced all of the instructors and house band members happening in Los Angeles from Aug 1st-5th.

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The PAS Days of Percussion for the month of April have been announced.

Iconic Recording

Ed chose two songs for the iconic recordings for the week. First is “Insight” by Cal Tjader from the ‘Soña Libré’ album with Cal on vibes and Bill Fitch on congas.

The second recording is “Bye-Ya” by Thelonious Monk performed by Jerry Gonzalez and the Fort Apache Band, from the ‘Rumba Para Monk’ album with (the late) Steve Berrios on drums and (late) Jerry on congas.

Music News

The Live Nation executive messages on Slack are worse than you thought.

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A federal judge has blocked Trump’s attempts to defund NPR and PBS, calling the order “unlawful and unenforceable.”

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Lance herring has created an app called Tour Sync that connects the Master Tour app to your iCal or Google Calendar apps.

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Music manager Liz Kamlet explains step by step how she used Facebook and Instagram (Meta) ads to her benefit when trying to sell tickets to a show.

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Ed Fast Interview

The song leading into the interview is called “Do Nothing 'Til You Hear from Me” performed by Ed Fast and Conga Bop, featuring Linda Ransom from the album titled, ‘Do or Die’.

The interview starts with Damon mentioning friend of the show Robby Ameen.

Damon and Ed talk about Sift bakery and Connecticut.

Ed went to the University of Hartford and studied with Alexander Lepak.

Ed talks about the Connecticut chapter Day of Percussion clinic he have on March 29th.

Ed started on piano first then switched to percussion.

He recounts what percussion material he auditioned with.

Ed went to Old Lyme High School in CT.

Shout-out to Dwight "The Professor" Baldwin (1947–2021). He was a legendary percussionist, music teacher, and community leader from New London, Connecticut. He earned the title "The Professor" through more than 50 years of teaching rhythms and conga techniques to students of all ages and backgrounds across the globe. There is a scholarship in his name.

Shout-out to Bill Fitch. Ed found out about him through listening to Cal Tjader and learning the Vibraphone.

Rumor has it Bill Fitch turned Chick Corea on to “real” Latin piano playing at Berklee College of Music when they were students there.

Below is the photo Damon refers to with Bill Fitch playing with Chick Corea in the Milford Graves Quintet.