Cory Weeds

Cory Weeds
Born1975 (age 50–51)
Burnaby, British Columbia
InstrumentsTenor saxophone, alto saxophone

Cory Weeds (born 1973) is a Canadian jazz saxophonist and impresario. He is the founder and owner of the Cellar Music Group record label.

Weeds has performed alongside musicians including Jeff Hamtilon, Pat Bianchi, David Fathead Newman, Christian McBride, Joey DeFrancesco, Peter Bernstein (guitarist), Eric Alexander (jazz saxophonist), Mike LeDonne, and Joe Farnsworth.

Early life and education

Weeds was born and raised in Burnaby, British Columbia. His interest in jazz began in secondary school, which he then chose to pursue in his post-secondary education, attending Capilano University and University of North Texas.

Cellar Jazz Club

At the age of 26, Weeds purchased a jazz club which would become the Cellar Jazz Club. This led to the establishment of the Cellar Live/Cellar Music Group recor According to The Sage International Encyclopedia of Music and Culture, American jazz magazine DownBeat named Cory Weeds' Cellar on its list of the world's greatest jazz clubs. The Cellar Jazz Club shut down in 2014. Weeds has since continued to book musicians at Frankie's Jazz Club in Downtown Vancouver and the Shadbolt Centre for the Arts in Burnaby.

In February 2023, Cellar Music Group was awarded their first Grammy Award for Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album. The Grammy was awarded to Steven Feifke and Bijon Watson's Generation Gap Jazz Orchestra for their album Generation Gap Jazz Orchestra.

Discography

With The Night Crawlers

  • Presenting (2007)
  • Down in the Bottom (2011)
  • Volume 3 (2013)
  • Do You Know a Good Thing (2021)
  • Get Ready (2023)

References

  1. 1 2 londonjazz (2021-02-14). "Cory Weeds (with Mike LeDonne, Peter Bernstein, Joe Farnsworth, Eric Alexander) – 'O Sole Mio'". London Jazz News. Retrieved 2023-04-03.
  2. 1 2 3 "Cory Weeds books his fave players for Jazz @ the Bolt". The Georgia Straight. 2022-02-09. Retrieved 2023-04-03.
  3. ↑ "Jazz @ the 'Bolt brings North American musicians to Burnaby in 2022". Burnaby Now. 12 December 2021. Retrieved 2023-04-03.
  4. 1 2 "Bio". Cory Weeds. Retrieved 2023-04-03.
  5. ↑ "Cory Weeds's Cellar Jazz Club an unusual success story". The Georgia Straight. 2010-09-07. Retrieved 2023-04-03.
  6. ↑ Sturman, J. L. (2019). The Sage International Encyclopedia of Music and Culture.
  7. ↑ "'The end of an era': Cory Weeds's Cellar jazz club closes". CBC News. Feb 26, 2014. Retrieved Apr 2, 2023.
  8. ↑ "Cory Weeds and Coastal Jazz launch new live jazz hub in Vancouver". CBC News. October 3, 2015. Retrieved April 2, 2023.
  9. ↑ "B.C.'s Michael Bublé, Tobias Jesso Jr., Cellar Music Group and Kris Davis win Grammy Awards". vancouversun. Retrieved 2023-04-03.
  10. ↑ "Generation Gap Jazz Orchestra Discuss GRAMMY Win For Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album At The City National Bank First Look Camera | Backstage At The 2023 GRAMMYs | GRAMMY.com". www.grammy.com. Retrieved 2023-04-03.
  11. ↑ "Cory Weeds and his Little Big Band take to the stage in Burnaby". Burnaby Now. 23 November 2018. Retrieved 2023-04-03.
  12. ↑ "Cory Weeds". Cory Weeds. Retrieved 2023-04-03.