272: Reuben Rogers is a “Super-Sideman”

Reuben Rogers

Reuben Rogers and I got connected through our mutual friend Allan Santos.

I wasn’t even sure where to begin with a player like Reuben.

I mean, he has played with Charles Lloyd, Wynton Marsalis, Joshua Redman, Roy Hargrove, Marcus Roberts, Nicholas Payton, and a long list of jazz luminaries.  He’s played on some of the best jazz albums of the past 20 years.

Where to even start?

So I reached out to Allan, and he told me:

“You’ve got to ask Reuben about the time he fell asleep on the bandstand during a set.”

That’s how we kicked it off.  It was the first of many stories like that.  In fact, I was sore from laughing so hard after we finished talking!

We dig into:

  • how to get work done at 3 am on the road
  • Reuben’s first blizzard experience living in Boston and how it nearly drove him back to the Virgin Islands
  • how Reuben’s high school music teacher Georgia Francis helped him repeatedly during his younger years
  • mistakes that derail the careers of many young musicians

…and much more!

This was a super fun conversation.  Reuben is an awesome guy, and you’ll have a great time and learn a lot from this conversation!

Links to check out:

I love this video of Reuben and his quartet jamming out on Fungi Mama from Reuben’s solo album:

Reuben even has a set of bass loops available from the Loop Loft! Here’s a clip featuring these groovy tracks.

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By Jason

An active double bass performer and teacher, Jason teaches double bass at DePaul University and served on the Board of Directors of the International Society of Bassists for many years. Jason is the current President of the Illinois chapter of the American String Teachers Association. Jason has been a member of the Elgin Symphony since 2000 and has played with the Midsummer’s Music Festival in Door County for the past decade. He is a past member of the Milwaukee Ballet and IRIS Orchestra, and has performed with the Lyric Opera of Chicago, Grant Park Symphony, and numerous other professional ensembles.