Podcast 866: A Conversation with Kirk Whalum

Straight No Chaser - A Jazz Show

One of the joys of listening to the music of saxophonist Kirk Whalum is diving deeper into the songs he selects and the way he performs them. I point to his series of The Gospel According to Jazz albums, where he interprets and refracts music from the church and gospel tradition through his jazz prism. If you’ve not heard them, stop now and give a listen.

So it was with great anticipation that I listened to Kirk’s second holiday-themed release, How Does Christmas Sound? I was not disappointed, since the album eschews seasonal lightweight fair like “Frosty the Snowman” or “Here Comes Santa Claus” for new and older tunes that take both an introspective and soulfully celebratory approach to music of the season. Even his choice of old chestnuts like “What Are You Doing New Year’s Eve” and “Angels We Have Heard On High” serve as jumping off points for shifting time signatures and arrangements that probe the spiritual side of the music. If, as they say, the reason for the season is the birth of Jesus, then Kirk Whalum answers his musical question with both feet firmly in that camp.

A Grammy winner (with twelve nominations), Whalum has been a fixture on the smooth jazz circuit for years. Pop fans may know him best for work with Barbra Streisand and Luther Vandross, but especially for providing the memorable saxophone solo on Whitney Houston’s “I Will Always Love You.” Jazz fans have enjoyed his collaborations with Joey DeFrancesco, Al Jarreau, Rick Braun, Dave Koz, Chuck Loeb and Norman Brown. Besides recording and touring, Whalum is a professor at Visible Music College in his hometown of Memphis, and an ordained minister with a Masters of Art in Religion.

Podcast 866 is my conversation with Kirk, as we discuss the reason for How Does Christmas Sound?, how he allows his religious devotion to shine through in his music, and the difficulties he sometimes faces in sharing those sentiments onstage. Whalum also talks about his two podcasts, “Bible in Your Ear”, in which he invites listeners to hear him read through the Bible in a year, and “Humans Being.” Musical selections from How Does Christmas Sound? Include a dramatic re-reading of "All I Want for Christmas" and “Mary Did You Know?”, the latter powered by a vocal from rising R&B star Chantae Cann.