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I set some challenges for myself, as I always like to do, with complex tunes like “Conception” (George Shearing) and “Humpty Dumpty” (Chick Corea). But mostly I wanted this to be a record where we could relax and blow on a very high level.

In Italy everybody kept telling me the an Italian singer couldn’t have success singing in English and the next think I know is that one day my record company called me saying one of my songs was playing at radios. I believe that the backbone of every success is perseverance.

For a long time the internet was the bane of the music industry, and for years it struggled to find effective ways to harness it. Upcoming musicians have particularly found it difficult to raise their profile in the digital age. The chances of creating a platform from where they can try to break into the industry have become smaller as the field becomes more crowded.

If there is one thing I learned from this conversation with Tommy Campbell, it’s that nothing can prepare you for a conversation with Tommy Campbell. Just like a magnificent jazz improvisation suddenly resonates with the feelings that you didn’t even know existed, talking to Mr. Campbell makes you feel like you went on a trip to a far away planet. He’s not your guide there; he is the planet. With a personality of that scale, he certainly doesn’t fit in the narrow frame of an interview, but even a glimpse of Planet Campbell can make anyone a happier human being.

Bobby Sanabria talking about jazz is music in its own right. Think about it, even his name sounds like a drum solo: bob-by-sa-nab-ria! When he talks, there’s rhythm, there’s depth, there are nods to the greats and visions of the future, and there’s his trademark ability to expand the listener’s mind. You may not know the first thing about drums and Afro-Cuban jazz but once you watch him explain the basics, you will question the quality of life without a drum set. It’s not that only his passion for jazz is contagious; Bobby Sanabria will infect you and teach you how to pass on the virus.