Word Jazz

Ken Nordine was an American voice-over and recording artist, best known for his series of word jazz albums. His deep, resonant voice has also been featured in many commercial advertisements and movie trailers.

In 1990, Nordine was approached by Jerry Garcia of The Grateful Dead to be the anchor for their New Year’s Eve radio broadcast from Oakland, California. For the broadcast he recorded some improvisations with Garcia, drummer Mickey Hart and Egyptian musician Hamza El-Din.[13] This subsequently led to an album Devout Catalyst, released on the Grateful Dead’s own label in 1991 and Upper Limbo in 1993 and an appearance with the band live at a show at Rosemont, Illinois, in March 1993.