For Johnathan Blake, music has always been a family affair. The drummer and bandleader’s previous Blue Note album, Passage (2023), was an homage to his father and chief mentor, the late jazz violinist John Blake Jr. The album cover features a sepia-toned snapshot of father and son, taken by his godfather, Eugene Wood. On his label debut Homeward Bound (2021), Blake honored the memory of Ana Grace, daughter of his longtime friends, saxophonist Jimmy Greene and flautist Nelba Marquez-Greene, on the eponymous track, who succumbed during the Sandy Hook massacre.
Now, with My Life Matters, Blake delivers what may be his most personal effort yet. For his third Blue Note album, Blake assembled a group comprising his frequent collaborators…

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