Zanesville, OH—state capitol from 1810-1812, home of the Zanesville Y-Bridge and birthplace of Greg Loughman. Greg picked up the upright bass while at Capital University in Columbus, studying with bassist Doug Richeson, who at the time was touring with Tony Bennett. Upon graduation, Greg found what so few guitarists do: work. He has been a professional bassist ever since and a stalwart of the Boston music scene for some 17 years performing in a wide variety of styles including country/pop with Patti Page, modern jazz with Curtis Fuller, Klezmer & Arabic music (Klezwoods), Balkan music (Roving Soul, Plamen Karadonev), Indian music (John Funkhouser, Natraj), Latin jazz, and more.
Our friend Jason Anick gets the assist by bringing Greg into the Gypsy jazz family. This ain’t that; but it’s them, and it’s fun:
Jason’s main Gypsy jazz gig is with one of the premier North American ensembles performing this music, Rhythm Future Quartet. That group also features Max O’Rourke, Olli Soikkeli … and Greg Loughman providing the firm foundation for all the fast furiosity of which this gang is capable. Here they are at Scullers Jazz Club playing Django’s, “Minor Blues.” Greg’s solo is right after Max’s, around the 2:30 mark.
Greg has taught at Django in June before and—in the post-event feedback I invite—he inspired some of the highest praise of any bass instructor we’ve ever had. He had to take a break from teaching here for a time ’cause he was a busy guy both gigging and working on a Master of Music degree from the Berklee Global Jazz Institute, which he now has in pocket. Even more recently he founded New England Jazz Connections, an organization that empowers jazz musicians to stage concerts to raise funds for worthy causes. Here’s a bit of text from their website:
The COVID-19 pandemic has been devastating; millions infected, hundreds of thousands dead in the US alone. And it has caused large parts of society to shut down completely, including the live music industry.
But musicians didn’t stop playing, composing, and creating; we’ve been getting together on porches, in backyards, and driveways. And we also didn’t stopped fighting for the causes we believe in.
This led NEJC to the idea of staging what we’ve termed ‘micro concerts’. Small, outdoor, socially distanced gatherings where musicians play a set of music to raise money for a cause they believe in.
If you feel inspired to participate in that project, please do. And if you’re a bassist inspired to make music with us this summer, Greg’s on it.