Johnathan Blake

When the world was in a more social way, the sight of Johnathan Blake behind the drum kit was a sign of maximum support, comfort, and taste. It still is today, as we gather around our laptops to enjoy music online. Ask any of the notable bandleaders who’ve brought Blake onstage over the years, Pharoah Sanders, Tom Harrell, Ravi Coltrane, Kenny Barron, Maria Schneider, Q-Tip, and Dr. Lonnie Smith among them: His balance of drive and openness—locking down a pulse free of a locked-down feel, being propulsive without the push—is one of the subtler charms on the current scene. He also offers one of the more distinctive sights in modern jazz. Other than perhaps Antonio Sánchez, do any drummers position their cymbals lower or flatter? He’s a photographer’s dream, unobstructed from the waist up.

To fans who know Blake’s heritage, and to many followers on Facebook who are learning about it through copious posts filled with childhood photos, he’s to the jazz manor born. Son of violinist John Blake, Jr., he arrived in the U.S.A.’s bicentennial year, growing up in Philadelphia’s rich musical hotbed of the ’80s and ’90s and embraced by giants, literally; among his online throwback images are preteen Johnathan hugged by the likes of Elvin Jones, Joanne Brackeen, and others. In recent years, he has stepped out as a leader, bringing forth albums on a variety of labels—The Eleventh Hour (Sunnyside, 2012), Gone, But Not Forgotten (Criss Cross, 2014), and Trion (Giant Step Arts, 2018). A new recording being readied for Giant Step, Homeward Bound, features his latest group Pentad: saxophonist Immanuel Wilkins, pianist David Virelles, vibraphonist Joel Ross, and bassist Dezron Douglas.

In 2020, the world has changed, and Blake continues to rise to the challenges of the day, staying limber, writing music, performing online as often as he can. He