Jazzism 19.1 - The Country Preacher

About this episode

This episode explores the legacy of Rev. Jesse Louis Jackson and the influence of jazz on cultural movements.

Back again with the good news from on high... The Country Preacher has spread the gospel, a gospel of liberation, and gospel of power, econmoic power, red, black and green... know what I mean! He preached a gospel born of exclusion demanding a seat at the table not for just him and his but for all regardless of gender, race or creed. Shouting let freedom ring!! The Rev. Jesse Louis Jackson transcended this earthly plane on February 17th 2026 and when he was a young freedom fighter in Chicago - planning, organizing and fighting for a better day, he inspired a young Jazz pianist named Josef Zawinul (who happened to be in a quintet led by the great Cannonball Adderley) to compose a song in his honor. He named the tune "Country Preacher". Josef Zawinul was an Austrian immigrant who came to NYC with his parents and fell in love with Jazz Culture. He got his start playing soulful jazz with Cannonball Adderley in the 1960's and later went on to become one of the greatest electronic keyboardist of the 20th century. He was instrumental in developing Jazz Fusion alongside saxophonist Wayne Shorter with the creation of the group Weather Report in the early 1970's. You can't get more Jazz…

People in this episode

Host: Brian Phoenix

Topics covered

• gospel
• jazz history
• civil rights
• musical legacy
• cultural influence

Keywords

• jazz
• gospel
• Rev. Jesse Jackson
• Josef Zawinul
• Country Preacher
• Cannonball Adderley
• Weather Report
• civil rights
• music history

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Weather Report

Books & works: Country Preacher

More episodes of Jazzism (a katzpheno mix)

• Jazzism 19.3 - MPH · May 8, 2026 · 2h 22m
• Jazzism 19.2 - All Trane · April 10, 2026 · 1h 41m
• Jazzism 18.7 - Life Goes On · January 1, 2026 · 1h 47m
• Jazzism 18.6 - Exotic Isles · November 16, 2025 · 1h 18m
• Jazzism 18.5 - All Or Nothing At All · October 7, 2025 · 1h 26m
• Jazzism 18.4 - Wang, Dang, Doodle · July 8, 2025 · 1h 28m