In the Wilderness - Sheila Jordan’s Sound of Blue - 11/04/25

American original Sheila Jordan would have turned 97 this November 18th, a milestone we’re missing by three months and one week. This hour of In the Wilderness delves into her peerless vocal performances from the 1970s and ‘80s, on vinyl she made with pianist-composer Steve Kuhn and double-bassist Harvie S. Along the way, we’ll hear some of her work with saxophonists Jane Bunnett and Norman Marnell, percussionist Bob Moses, pianists Alan Broadbent and Don Pullen, not to mention two are-you-ready-for-this encounters with sound sculptor Jeanne Lee. Neil Molloy hosts. 

See/hear:

Sheila Jordan sings on Norwegian television, 1971

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SaFA5MKI4Xw

Twenty Questions for S.J.

https://www.twentyquestionsmusic.com/blog/sheila-jordan 

ICYMI: Show archive: https://kxrw.fm/inthewilderness/

Meet your DJ:

https://buymeacoffee.com/tmolloy 

https://bsky.app/profile/parallelblue.bsky.social 

S O U N D S   B Y : 

Steve Kuhn/Sheila Jordan Band   Tomorrow’s Son (Playground, ECM)

Steve Kuhn Quartet, featuring Sheila Jordan  The City of Dallas (Last Year’s Waltz, ECM)

Steve Kuhn Quartet, featuring Sheila Jordan  The Drinking Song (Last Year’s Waltz, ECM)  

Sheila Jordan  Pearlie’s Swine, aka The Zoo (Confirmation, East Wind)

Bob Moses, featuring Jeanne Lee & Sheila Jordan  Sun Shower Panorganic (Vintage Visionary Vignettes, Ra-Kalam Records)  

Sheila Jordan & Harvie S.   Lazy Afternoon (Old Time Feeling, Palo Alto)

Sheila Jordan (w/Alan Broadbent)  Look for the Silver Lining (Heartstrings, Muse Records)

Jane Bunnett, featuring Sheila Jordan, Jeanne Lee, and Don Pullen  The Water is Wide (The Water is Wide, Evidence Music)

Marian McPartland   Jazz Waltz for a Friend (Contrasts, Concord Jazz)

Sheila Jordan & Arild Andersen  {excerpt} Song of Joy (Sheila, SteepleChase Records)