Eric Schneider Quartet with special guest vocalist Kimberly Gordon

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Kimberly Gordon - vocalist

Eric Schneider - sax, clarinet

Pete Benson - piano

Aaron Zachary - bass

Mike Schlick - drums

Eric Schneider’s musical adventures began early. Born and raised in the Chicago area, he was able to play melodies on the piano at age three. His formal studies started on piano at six. By age eight, his tendency to try to “improve” the music inspired his teacher to give him a boogie-woogie book, which resulted in his earliest experiments in composition and improvisation.

Clarinet lessons started a couple years later and by age fifteen he’d taken up the sax. Hearing Charlie Parker turned his musical life completely around, and he heeded the call. He dropped piano lessons, neglected the clarinet and started a passionate relationship with the alto saxophone.

After graduating from the University of Illinois with a degree in Advertising, he returned to Chicago and joined Jim Beebe’s Chicago Jazz Band. Earl Fatha’ Hines, who knew a thing or two about good, young saxophone players (and had hired Charlie Parker some thirty years earlier) heard about Eric and requested an audition tape. This resulted in a four-year stay, touring all over the world, as well as the LP, Eric and Earl (Hines insisted on second billing).

With Hines’ blessing Eric accepted Count Basie’s offer to join the Basie Orchestra and subsequently occupied the “hot” tenor chair for two years, following in the footsteps of his other main musical influence, Lester Young, who held the chair from 1936 to 1940. During his tenure with Basie, Schneider recorded three albums, including the Grammy Award-winning 88 Basie Street. These six years of nonstop touring brought him into the company of some of America’s greatest artists, including Ella Fitzgerald, Dizzy Gillespie, Benny Goodman, Sarah Vaughan, Tony Bennett, Clark Terry, Mel Tormé, Sammy Davis, Jr., Joe Williams, Ray McKinley, Rosemary Clooney and Billy Eckstine.

He’s also worked with former Charlie Parker employers, Jay McShann and Sir Charles Thompson, with whom he recorded two CDs.Abandoning the nomadic life and returning to Chicago, Schneider embarked on a richly diverse career that blends studio work, concert performances and jazz festivals, and featured positions alongside visiting jazz heavyweights.

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The many calls for his services on clarinet rekindled his love affair with the instrument, and he is now in constant demand on clarinet and saxophone, alto and tenor, by both small groups and big bands that need a soloist possessing both erudition and passion. Offers for extended travel are given special consideration if golf or skiing can be incorporated in the tour.

Schneider represents the true spirit of jazz: walking in the footsteps of the giants while expressing a vision that is entirely his own. His career and music represent a multitude of facets––constantly growing and responding to the challenge of remaining true to the great traditions of the genre while continuing to evolve as an artist.

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”Kimberly Gordon is the real deal, the ultimate swing-lovers singer. Don't walk, run and find her wherever she is!" 

--  Kurt Elling 

Fourth generation Chicagoan and critically lauded vocalist Kimberly Gordon is sought after by the elite jazz listener. Kimberly's grandfather was a dancer at the historic Chêz Pareé nightclub and her Nana was a camera girl there, a position aquired by childhood friend and mobster Sam Giancana.  These stories and personal ties to Chicago nightclub history laid the foundation for Kimberly's love of early 20th century music.  With a deep understanding of the American Songbook it has led her on a path that celebrates composers, lyricists, and jazz masters alike.

In New York City, Kimberly was the first woman to hold a residency at the now historic Smalls Jazz Club in Manhattan. Kimberly's years in N.Y.C allowed her to perform with jazz greats such as Roy Hargrove, Betty Carter, Wynton Marsalis, Harry "Sweets" Edison, and John Hicks, just to name a handful.

Kimberly's sound reflects the old school style of delivering standards, deeply rooted in the ways of the masters, always true to the melody as written; this separates her from the rest.

When she is not touring Europe or hiding from a pandemic you can find Kimberly at Winter’s Jazz club in historic downtown Chicago weaving her way through the American songbook.

From Hawai’i to Paris Kimberly is the singer's singer, the musician's singer, and the jazz lover's singer...