Bennett Wood found music while dancing to records in his parents' living room. Now releasing his debut album, he's preserved that same free spirit. Space in Time draws from the stories of Negro League baseball heroes like Josh Gibson, Oscar Charleston, and Satchel Paige, creating music about memory, time, and recognition.

Grammy-nominated trombonist Alan Ferber joins Wood on the album, alongside Kansas City pianist Andrew Ouellette, bassist Bob DeBoo, and drummer Joseph Winstein-Hibbs. The compositions range from Latin-modal pieces to Monk-inspired wit, ending with Wood's reimagining of the standard "For All We Know."

Lawrence Peryer: What is your first memory of music?

Bennett Wood: Dancing to records in my parent's living room.

Lawrence: You want someone to understand you. What song or album do you give them?

Bennett: The Randy Newman Songbook, Vol. 1

Lawrence: What instrument(s) can you play?

Bennett: Saxophones, clarinet, and flute very proficiently. I have limited chops on piano, and I own drums and a bass. :)

Lawrence: What is a skill you wish you possessed?

Bennett: Patience.

Lawrence:  What song, album, or artist never gets old for you?

Bennett: Ray Charles.

Lawrence: What music do you and your significant other disagree about?

Bennett: My wife is very tolerant of all of my music. I am sometimes less tolerant of the Kidz Bop songs my kids want to listen to in the car.

Lawrence: What creative work or artist do you love or admire outside music?

Bennett: I love the fiction of Terry Pratchett. His books are incredibly popular and decidedly not high-brow, but his characters are absolutely fantastic. Included in those books are some wonderfully philosophical themes. Everyone should read Terry Pratchett.

Lawrence: What was your first concert?

Bennett: Listening to my older sister practice piano in our living room.

Lawrence: What instrument do you wish you could play?

Bennett: I wish I could REALLY play piano. I have very limited technique on the keyboard, but I love the way it places all of the options out in front of you.

Lawrence: What person, dead or alive, would you like to share a meal with (and which meal of the day)?

Bennett: My mom. Breakfast/brunch.

Lawrence: Chess or checkers?

Bennett: Chess.

Lawrence: There's a band playing in Heaven tonight. Who is in it?

Bennett: Eh, heaven is what we make it. Heaven can be playing music in the moment with like-minded individuals. Heaven can be listening to the wind in the trees. I'm in it. You're in it, too, if you choose to be.

Lawrence: Who is your musical hero?

Bennett: My mom.

Lawrence: What was your first paycheck related to music?

Bennett: My first paid gig was with the late Ben Bumbry, a jazz drummer based in Quincy, IL, near where I grew up. I used to sit in with his group at a weekly gig all the time. Eventually, the saxophone player in the group had a conflict, and I got the call.

Lawrence: When you were 15, your favorite artist, song, or album was:

Bennett: Art Pepper.

Lawrence: Who is the biggest influence on your musical life?

Bennett: I've had several incredible mentors, but Jazz pianist and educator Reggie Thomas has to be at the top of the list.

Lawrence: What are some of the places you have saved on your phone's weather app?

Bennett: Seattle, WA; Livingston, MT; Austin, TX; Memphis, TN; Saratoga Springs, NY; Portree, Isle of Skye, UK.

Lawrence: You are programming a music festival. What artists, dead or alive, headline Friday, Saturday, and Sunday night?

Bennett: Cannonball Adderley Quintet on Friday, Duke Ellington's Orchestra on Saturday night, J.S. Bach on Sunday.

Lawrence:  What artist is the most underrated or misunderstood?

Bennett: Charlie Parker.

Lawrence: What was the last concert you saw?

Bennett: Chucho Valdes and Paquito D'Rivera, Together Again!

Bennet Wood's debut as a leader, Space in Time, is out now. Read about it on The Tonearm.

Bennett Wood Steps Up to the Plate

Saxophonist and composer Bennett Wood is set to take a swing as a bandleader with his debut album, Space In Time, dropping November 8th, 2024.

The TonearmLawrence Peryer