Jazz is all about trust. It is an expression of an unadulterated love of the music, coupled with the intimate interaction between the musicians. It is both an artistic and emotional transition that cannot be completed without each musician's complete confidence in each other's judgment and abilities.
   December 27, 1999 will go down as the date that Will Calhoun made his debut as a Jazz leader. Recorded during two sets at the Blue Note, this music is testimony to Will's love of Jazz, and to the deep bonds of respect and trust between the five musicians that guided the music on that night. Eye contact was made, wide smiles of appreciation were shared, and music was created, with all the rhythmic intensity and cultural diversity inherent in Calhoun's own musical personality.
   Wll Calhoun is, of course, best known for his tenure in the ground breaking group Living Colour. That band is often classified as a "Rock" band, a term which is misleading. Anyone fortunate enough to have witnessed their explosive live shows can vividly recall the intense moments of spontaneous interaction that regularly fueled the group. Likewise, a listen to any of the group's recordings turns up African and Caribbean rhythmic patterns nestled along-side influences that run the full gamut of American music, from Rock to Blues to Jazz. 
   There is a simple reason for the plethora of rhythmic devices that informed Living Colour's music. Will Calhoun is both a world traveler, who soaks up musical styles from around the globe., and a drummer who studied Jazz since his formative days in the Bronx. What Will Calhoun is, is an open-minded musician. Who else would embellish a straight-ahead Jazz date with "Dawn Of The Great Eastern Sun", an original composition performed on the electronic wave drum? plugged into a host of distortions, delays and a wah-wah pedal. Calhoun performs the piece live, simultaneously creating looped bass notes and chords to accompany his insistent rhythms. "It's a drum-and-bass, ambient vibe," he explains. "It frees me from the drum kit, and puts me into the sphere of improvisation usually reserved for guitarists and saxophone players".
   On the other side of the spectrum is "Drum Hymn For Ana Marie Shorter", a short, emotive composition, it is dedicated to the late wife of Wayne Shorter. She had fantastic energy and for this piece, I wanted to draw upon that energy, using the drums to play the melody. "Part of playing music is attracting people with a sonic foundation that allows you to pull them in. That's what Miles Davis tapped into. He saw things that attracted people, and made them part of his own thing. I have a deep love and respect for jazz and I want to spread the live and bring my own flavors into it".