Nelson Riveros – guitar
Jay Anderson – bass
Peter O’Brien – drums
Nelson Riveros is a New York City/International Jazz guitarist, composer and vocalist with an earned Masters Degree in Jazz Performance from the New Jersey City University, NJCU. He is part of an emerging force of a new generation of Contemporary Latin-Jazz artists. His latest hit recording ‘The Latin Side of Wes Montgomery” on ZOHO Music has spent 20 weeks on JazzWeek reaching to #2 for two weeks and 8 weeks in the Top 10. Nelson took several of the guitarists’ compositions and arranged them in different Latin and Caribbean rhythms creating a new fresh sound on Wes’ music.
Nelson has shared the stage and studio with great musicians in Jazz and Latin music like Hector Martignon, John Benitez, Mark Walker, Pat Bianchi, Craig Handy, Samuel Torres. Luis Bonilla, Alfredo De La Fe, Jeremy Wall of Spyro Gyra Billy Drewes, Scott Wentholt, Jim Seeley, John Mosca, Ivan Renta, Vince Cherico. His group has performed at The Iridium, Zinc Bar, 55 Bar, Jazz Forum, Maureen’s Jazz Cellar, La Lanterna/Bar Next Door, Minton’s, Bean Runner, Jazz On Main in Mt. Kisco, Miami and festivals through out the try state area as well as a tour of Colombia.
Nelson is also a dedicated educator who has taught at the acclaimed 92nd Street Y School of Music, and as a music teacher for Bergenfield School District. This July 2023 Nelson will be teaching and performing at the Summer Jazz School in Grožnjan, Croatia
His debut recording titled ‘Camino Al Barrio’ peaked at #8 on the Jazz Week World Music Chart. He was nominated among his peers as ‘Next Best Generation Artist’ and ‘Best Latin Jazz Guitar’ for the 2010 Latin Jazz Corner Best of The Year Awards.
Bassist/composer Jay Anderson is among the most versatile and respected jazz artists performing today. Born in Southern California, Anderson began playing acoustic bass at the age of twelve. Throughout junior high, high school, and college, Anderson won numerous awards for excellence in both jazz and classical music. One week after receiving a Bachelor’s Degree in Performance from California State University at Long Beach, Anderson was asked to join the Woody Herman Orchestra. After touring with the “Herd” for a year, he was called by Carmen McRae and performed with the legendary singer for the next two years.
In 1982 Anderson made the decision to move to New York City. Since moving East, he has continued to perform and record with some of the most important names in jazz. Anderson has been a regular member in the bands of Red Rodney & Ira Sullivan, Michael Brecker, Toots Thielemans, Maria Schneider, Vic Juris, Bob Mintzer, Michael Franks, Eliane Elias, Bennie Wallace, Lew Tabackin, Steve Khan, Lynne Arriale, Stanley Cowell, and was with Joe Sample from 1992 to 2006.
Anderson takes pride in his versatility and openness to different types of music. He has been featured on over 400 recordings, including work with Paul Bley, Randy Brecker, Bob Berg, Mike Stern, Jim McNeely, John Scofield, Seamus Blake, Oz Noy, Adam Nussbaum, John Abercrombie, Donald Byrd, Clark Terry, Bob Brookmeyer, Phil Woods, Terumasa Hino, Joe Lovano, Dave Liebman, Tony Lakatos, Tim Hagans, Harold Danko, Jamie Baum, Dave Pietro, Mark Soskin, Frank Wess, Lee Konitz, Donny McCaslin, Anat Cohen, Warren Bernhardt, Frank Kimbrough, Gary Versace, Dave Stryker, Armen Donelian, Steve Slagle, Garry Dial, Dick Oatts, Andy LaVerne, Walt Weiskopf, Phil Markowitz, Steve Wilson, Joe Locke, Joey Calderazzo, Scott Robinson, Bob Sheppard, Dave Pike, Blue Mitchell, Harold Land, Tiger Okoshi, George Cables, Russ Kassoff, Ivan Lins, Jay Clayton, Darmon Meader, Sheila Jordan, Lalah Hathaway, Judy Niemack, Houston Person, Rich Perry, David Witham, Charles Blenzig, Jeremy Monteiro, Yosuke Yamashita, Mark Isaacs, and many others. He has performed with the big bands of Kenny Wheeler, Bob Mintzer, Bob Belden, Vanguard Jazz Orchestra, Toshiko Akiyoshi, George Gruntz Concert Jazz Band, WDR Köln (guest performer), HR Frankfurt Radio (guest performer), Ryan Truesdell’s Gil Evans Project (winner of a 2012 Grammy for Best Instrumental Arrangement (Gil Evans) and the Jazz Journalists Association 2013 awards for Record of the Year and Large Ensemble of the Year) and the critically acclaimed Maria Schneider Orchestra whose 2004 release “Concert In The Garden” won the Grammy Award for Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album. He also performed on Maria’s 2007 release “Sky Blue” that won a Grammy for Best Instrumental Composition, “Cerulean Skies” (Maria Schneider). More recently Jay was featured on Maria’s 2015 release “The Thompson Fields” that won a Grammy for Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album, and on David Bowie’s “Sue (Or In A Season Of Change)” that won a Grammy for Best Arrangement (Maria Schneider). In 2021 Maria’s groundbreaking work “Data Lords” won the Grammy for Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album and Maria won in the Best Instrumental Composition category for “Sputnik”.
Anderson has also done numerous jingles and non-jazz recordings with David Bowie, Frank Zappa, Terre Roche, Tom Waits, Chaka Khan, Michel Legrand, legendary poet Allen Ginsberg, and the Grammy Award winning 1997 Record of the Year “Falling Into You” by Celine Dion. He has performed with classical legends Van Cliburn, Sir Neville Marriner and has been a guest with the Atlanta Symphony conducted by Robert Spano (performing/recording “Oceana” by Osvaldo Golijov featuring Luciana Souza). He was a featured performer (along with Frank Kimbrough and Scott Robinson) with the Australian Chamber Orchestra featuring soprano Dawn Upshaw. Their recording of Maria Schneider’s “Winter Morning Walks” won 2014 Grammy Awards for Best Contemporary Classical Composition (Maria Schneider), Best Classical Vocal Solo (Dawn Upshaw) and Best Engineered Classical Album (David Frost, Brian Losch & Tim Martyn). He has also recorded with critically acclaimed Prism Saxophone Quartet.
In addition to being a highly sought-after sideman, Anderson is a proven voice in his own right. His original recordings “NEXT EXIT” (DMP), “LOCAL COLOR” (DMP), and “DEEPSCAPE” (Steeplechase) have received critical acclaim both in the U.S. and abroad. Jay also co-lead the critically acclaimed group BANN featuring Seamus Blake, Oz Noy and Adam Nussbaum.
Anderson has been the recipient of the NEA grant for composition and two Meet the Composer grants. More than twenty of the recordings he has been featured on have been nominated for the Grammy Award. He has conducted clinics around the world and is a Professor of Jazz Bass Studies at both the Manhattan School of Music in New York City and New Jersey City University.
Drummer Peter O’Brien has toured the US with Brother Jack McDuff and, from 1984-1985, performed all over the US and Canada with the Edgar Winter Band. The band featured the legendary singer Jerry LaCroix (original lead singer for White Trash) and is the only band to perform the jazz-inflected fusion material from Edgar’s first groundbreaking record “Entrance” (Epic), as well as his rock and blues music. During this time, Peter also performed several dates with Roy Buchanan, including a sold-out show at the Beacon Theatre with Johnny Winter, Buddy Guy and Junior Wells. From 1986-1987, Peter toured Europe with Mark McMillan (songwriter for Chaka Khan).
In early 1988, Peter moved from NYC to Woodstock, New York, and soon began working with John Hall. In 1989, Peter became a member of Hall’s band Orleans (Still The One, Dance With Me). Peter has appeared on seven CD’s (four with Orleans, three with Hall), three tours of Japan (two with Orleans, one with Hall), and countless US tours and dates (including Woodstock ‘94) and was the subject of a feature article published in Modern Drummer’s Rhythm and News (Japan). Peter toured and recorded with Orleans through 2004. Peter also freelanced throughout this period and did other major tours with Dr. Lonnie Smith (Spain 1992), Rory Block (US and Europe 1996-7) and Tracy Nelson (US 1998).
2014-15 has been a very busy time for Peter as he has returned to touring with Orleans (including dates playing with Paul Barrere and Fred Tachette fro Little Feat) as well as continued work with both John Esposito (quintet recording featuring Greg Glassman, Stacy Dillard, and Ira Coleman) and Christine Spero (Spero plays Nyro project revisiting Laura Nyro’s music to much critical acclaim from both live performances at Mountain Jam, The Cutting Room(nyc) & others and new CD) and many others.
In addition to his busy performance schedule, Peter teaches at home and at Bard College and freelances as a studio session player. He has played on national jingles for Continental Airlines, AT&T, Macy’s and Burger King. He has also worked as a clinician at Bard College, SUNY New Paltz, and Western Connecticut University.
