Billy Mintz
Rosina, by trombonist Samuel Blaser, has pianist Russ Lossing, bassist Masa Kamaguchi, and drummer Billy Mintz. Parasol, by Russ Lossing, due in January, has Russ Johnson on trumpet, Adam Kolker on bass clarinet and tenor sax, the aforementioned ‘bone man Blaser, Mark Helias on bass and Billy Mintz on drums.
Mintz, 79, who lives in Teaneck, first started drumming at 15 with bands in the Catskill mountains of New York State. In his twenties, he played in the bands of saxophonist Lee Konitz [1927-2020], clarinetist Eddie Daniels and Newark singer Gloria “I Will Survive” Gaynor.
When he moved to Los Angeles in 1981, he played in The Mike Garson Trio with Stanley Clarke of Return To Forever, backed up the legendary Mose Allison [1927-2016] and was in the Merv Griffin Show band. After touring Europe in 1988 with sax man Charles Lloyd, he became an educator and author, writing two books, and conducting drum clinics at the Berklee School of Music, New York University, California Institute of the Arts, North Texas State, Arizona State and various other institutions of higher learning in Europe, Israel and Australia.
He oftentimes performs solo drum concerts and leads his own group, The Two Bass Big Band, and has recorded three albums under his own name as leader, the latest of which is Ugly Beautiful on 13th Note Records. Tom Conrad of Jazz Times, once wrote, “if you are a fan of modern jazz drumming but have not heard Billy Mintz, you have not heard it all.”