00:00 Introduction by Allison Miner 03:53 Kidd Jordan speaks about his musical family growing up in Crowley, LA, the heart of zydeco country. He grew up around both zydeco and jazz, he says, but made the decision to play jazz when he saw Duke Ellington play and first heard Charlie Parker. Despite his musical family, he mentions how his grandmother was against them pursuing music because one of his uncles died playing. 06:30 Jordan talks about going to Southern University to study music, but they only taught classical music. Jordan says that he got in trouble because he played jazz, which was not welcomed at the institution. Talks about moving down to New Orleans because of his friend Alvin Batiste, who he would visit and he fell in love with Batiste’s wife’s sister. 8:56 After Miner asks Jordan “What did [Batiste] teach you that you didn’t know before?” Jordan talks about how jazz is so personal that musicians get ideas from other ones, hence there is a difference between coaching and teaching. He says that at the time Batiste was playing more with jazz bands, while he was playing with rock acts, like Professor Longhair and the Hawkettes. 11:45 Jordan continues to talk about how he wouldn’t try to copy other musicians, as many people would, but rather he’d put his own spin on someone else’s ideas as a way to express himself more. Talks about the Dew Drop Inn, where lots of musicians would be hired to play. He also mentions other hiring halls and the out of town shows many people would play for a week at a time, but that he couldn’t do because he had a family. 17:13 Miner asks Jordan about the contribution Professor Longhair made to New Orleans music. Jordan calls him a rebel because he did something different from the music of the time, especially different from Fats Domino. He compares him to Huey Smith in terms of piano style and says that while his music did change, he kept a constant spirit in his music throughout the years. 21:07 Jordan talks about Ornette Coleman and how they both were similar in that they were trying to do something different from the current jazz trends. He talks more about Professor Longhair and his technique of making a ii-chord sound like a I-chord. He mentions being taught in Crowley by William Byrd, Fess’s cousin. 25:50 Jordan talks about how the Byrd family was filled with talented musicians. Jordan then talks about playing with a plethora of famous musicians like Diana Ross and Stevie Wonder. He then talks about the early days of rock ‘n’ roll and recording sessions back then. 31:23 Miner reads a list of musicians that Jordan played with. The list includes: Elvin Jones, Alvin Batiste, Ray Charles, Sun Ra. She then talks about a story about Jordan she read about his trip to Senegal where he played with a blind musician until the early morning. Jordan says that he actually couldn’t communicate with the man because of a the language barrier, but that they were connected with music. 33:51 Miner plays the song “A Song for C-Melody” from Jordan’s album No Compromise on the speakers. 36:56 Demonstration ends. Miner mentions that Jordan received the French Knightood award for arts and his roles as a jazz educator. Jordan then discusses the responsibility of passing on jazz and art heritage in New Orleans. He then talks about his piano player Joel Futterman and their musical bond. 40:16 Interview ends.
