Eli Yamin

This week's special guest is Eli Yamin. When Eli Yamin heard Thelonious Monk he decided to become a jazz musician. With a strong spiritual foundation generously bestowed upon him by Bach, Elizabeth Cotten, and Sweet Honey in the Rock mixed with blues by Hendrix, Taj Mahal and B.B. King, Eli started his quest. He was nurtured in the Black community of Newark, New Jersey, where he played many of his first gigs, worked at radio station WBGO, and, at the home of his mentors Amiri and Amina Baraka, became immersed in the Black Arts aesthetic combining music, theatre, dance and spoken word. Drummer Walter Perkins took him under his wing and introduced him to the Black music scene of Queens, where they played blues every night. At 24 he was the musical director for the 10th Anniversary Tour of Duke Ellington’s Sophisticated Ladies directed by Duke’s granddaughter Mercedes Ellington, who became a lifelong friend and collaborator. Later, he worked in Illinois Jacquet’s Big Band, recorded and toured, studied with Barry Harris, another lifelong mentor, then made five records with baritone saxophonist Claire Daly, whose album Swing Low is on display in the William J. Clinton Presidential Library. 10 tours as a jazz and blues ambassador allowed Yamin to see the world and experience how jazz and blues unites east and west. More recordings were forthcoming, You Can’t Buy Swing, named for a saying by his dear mentor Perkins, I Feel So Glad, after a Texas blues song, Louie’s Dream, after an obscure Louis Armstrong track, and his most recent, Squeeze In Tight, jazz and blues for solidarity, honoring his blues roots and offering music that encourages people to stay connected even in difficult times.

In 2026, Yamin was named a Jazz Hero by the Jazz Journalists Association, and the non-profit he created and continues to run, Jazz Power Initiative, celebrated 22 years of bringing jazz to communities who need it most through performance and education. He’s published three jazz musicals for youth performers, taught over 10,000 kids including Charlie Puth, and 1000 teachers, and authored the book, So You Want to Sing the Blues: A Guide For Performers. Gordon Parks once remarked “He’s the most imaginative pianist I’ve heard in years,” and with a doctorate in music from Stony Brook University, he’s taken on the title, “Dr. E.” A proud member of the Dramatists Guild, Dr. E plays the Steinway piano whenever possible and lives in NYC with his wife Lorraine of 30+ years, and daughter Manika.

Your host, Dion Parson, is an educator, composer, Grammy Award-winning performer, and bandleader. He currently resides on the island of St. Thomas and serves as the Chair of the Communication and Performing Arts Department at the University of the Virgin Islands. He is also the President of the United Jazz Foundation, which is a music education organization that mentors underprivileged kids to become musicians. His musical career has allowed him to tour internationally for over 30 years, and he has been recorded on over 110 recordings.

This week's special guest is Eli Yamin. When Eli Yamin heard Thelonious Monk he decided to become a jazz musician. With a strong spiritual foundation generously bestowed upon him by Bach, Elizabeth Cotten, and Sweet Honey in the Rock mixed with blues by Hendrix, Taj Mahal and B.B. King, Eli started his quest. He was nurtured in the Black community of Newark, New Jersey, where he played many of his first gigs, worked at radio station WBGO, and, at the home of his mentors Amiri and Amina Baraka, became immersed in the Black Arts aesthetic combining music, theatre, dance and spoken word. Drummer Walter Perkins took him under his wing and introduced him to the Black music scene of Queens, where they played blues every night. At 24 he was the musical director for the 10th Anniversary Tour of Duke Ellington’s Sophisticated Ladies directed by Duke’s granddaughter Mercedes Ellington, who became a lifelong friend and collaborator. Later, he worked in Illinois Jacquet’s Big Band, recorded and toured, studied with Barry Harris, another lifelong mentor, then made five records with baritone saxophonist Claire Daly, whose album Swing Low is on display in the William J. Clinton Presidential Library. 10 tours as a jazz and blues ambassador allowed Yamin to see the world and experience how jazz and blues unites east and west. More recordings were forthcoming, You Can’t Buy Swing, named for a saying by his dear mentor Perkins, I Feel So Glad, after a Texas blues song, Louie’s Dream, after an obscure Louis Armstrong track, and his most recent, Squeeze In Tight, jazz and blues for solidarity, honoring his blues roots and offering music that encourages people to stay connected even in difficult times. In 2026, Yamin was named a Jazz Hero by the Jazz Journalists Association, and the non-profit he created and continues to run, Jazz Power Initiative, celebrated 22 years of bringing jazz to communities who need it most through performance and education. He’s published three jazz musicals for youth performers, taught over 10,000 kids including Charlie Puth, and 1000 teachers, and authored the book, So You Want to Sing the Blues: A Guide For Performers. Gordon Parks once remarked “He’s the most imaginative pianist I’ve heard in years,” and with a doctorate in music from Stony Brook University, he’s taken on the title, “Dr. E.” A proud member of the Dramatists Guild, Dr. E plays the Steinway piano whenever possible and lives in NYC with his wife Lorraine of 30+ years, and daughter Manika. Your host, Dion Parson, is an educator, composer, Grammy Award-winning performer, and bandleader. He currently resides on the island of St. Thomas and serves as the Chair of the Communication and Performing Arts Department at the University of the Virgin Islands. He is also the President of the United Jazz Foundation, which is a music education organization that mentors underprivileged kids to become musicians. His musical career has allowed him to tour internationally for over 30 years, and he has been recorded on over 110 recordings.