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Muneer Nasser: Blue House Sessions

It was a pleasure to interview trumpeter Muneer Nasser for Harmonious World back in March 2023, and then to review his book in August the same year. The combination of accomplished musician and fascinating historian and writer on telling his father’s story is engaging and now Muneer has released his latest quintet album: ‘Blue House Session’.


This album takes Muneer and his trumpet around the musical world and there’s something for everyone, from originals to covers, such as Miles Davis’s All Blues and the standard Polka Dots and Moonbeams. Recorded in the summer of 2023 with a stunning band that allows the trumpeter to shine alongside the others: Elijah Easton (tenor sax), Allyn Johnson (piano), James King Jr (bass) and John Lamkin III (drums).

Alongside his trumpet, Muneer grabs the flugehorn from time to time, and he almost seems more at ease on the slightly larger and more mellow horn.

Muneer’s musical talent comes from a lot of hard work, but also, genetically, via his bass-playing father, Jamil Nasser. As I discovered when I read Upright Bass: The Musical Life and Legacy of Jamil Nasser, this is a serious legacy, Nasser senior worked with Red Garland, Thelonious Monk and Ahmad Jamal. with whom he collaborated for most of the 1960s and into the ’70s. The record of his life was a labour of love for Muneer and was based on interviews, as well as photos, flyers and news clippings.

I can highly recommend reading the book and listening to this latest album - there’s a real sense of jazz joy within both.
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Anonymous said…
What a divine inspiration
03/02/2025, 18:22

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