Jessica Jones

For the past fifteen years, saxophonist and pianist Jessica Jones has been performing with her Quartet, which serves as a vehicle for the progressive jazz originals composed by Jessica and fellow tenor player and husband Tony Jones.  In addition to her Quartet, Jessica plays with Joseph Jaman's Dojo Band, the Jarman-Chalfant Lifetime Visions Orchestra, and other jazz and improvisation-oriented ensembles that frequent the landscapes of such New York City venues as Barbes, Tixe, and Tonic.

Jessica has worked with such varied artists as Cab Calloway, Bo Diddley, Cecil Taylor, Steve Coleman, and Don Cherry as well as many Haitian, Calypso and African pop bands.  These influences are apparent in her music which derives from the tradition of Mingus, Ornette Coleman, and the Art Ensemble of Chicago, using structured original compositions as a framework for freer improvisation.  Combining these elements with the unique voices of band members whose experiences are equally diverse leads to music infused with the energy and creativity of new textures yet remaining firmly rooted in the jazz tradition.

The Jessica Jones Quartet has played in the Knitting Factory Festival in New York City, and the Eddie Moore Jazz Festival in Oakland, California when the group headlined with special guest Don Cherry.  The group has been featured in venues on the east and west coasts of the US, and released their first CD, Family, on Nine Winds Records to critical acclaim.

A follow up to their first album on New Artists (Nod), their second CD on the label, Word, features two versions of the Jessica Jones Quartet augmented by poets Abe Maneri and Arisa White and vocalist Candace Jones. The quartet continues to record and perform based out of Brooklyn, New York.

RELEASES ON NEW ARTISTS

Moxie NA1062
Live at the Freight NA1056
Live at the Freight NA1052
Word NA1045
Nod NA1039