Jon McBride is a veteran saxophone player and dynamic performer. He cut his teeth in cruise ship bands before moving to California to play and record with the popular contemporary swing band the Sugar Daddy Swing Kings. His lifelong love of New Orleans music and culture led to ten years of touring and recording as a founding member of The Gumbo Brothers and the Mudbug Brass Band - bringing infectious, booty-movin' bayou grooves to swamp-funk and brass band fans throughout California and beyond.

 

Jon has played clubs and festivals up and down the West Coast, including the Elbo Room, Boom Boom Room, Cafe Du Noord, Brown Derby, House of Blues, The Lighthouse, Crystal Bay Casino, Moe’s Alley, Belly Up Tavern, Live Oak Music Festival, Elysium Festival, Santa Monica Pier Concerts, and the Hollywood & Highland Summer Concert Series. Now living in Burlington, Vermont, he plays throughout New England and New York, highlighted by performances at the Burlington Discover Jazz Festival, The Vermont Burlesque Festival, and a popular weekly residency at The 126. He regularly plays at the Radio Bean, the Light Club Lamp Shop, Foam Brewers, American Flatbread, and Red Square.

 

Jon is a skilled practitioner in the lost art of instrumental feel-good music. Whether he’s playing hard-driving, soul jazz fueled by the blues, funk, and second-line street beats or bringing a seasoned and fiery edge to a repertoire of American roots music (including traditional jazz, ragtime, acoustic blues, and gospel), Jon’s big sound, high energy spontaneity, and relentless search for the perfect groove keep audiences large and small on the edge of their seat or the middle of the dance floor.

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Credits include:

 

Producer, saxophone, and keyboard player on “The Gumbo Family Holiday Album,” a 14-song CD featuring 25 different musicians/singers. Proceeds benefit Students Run LA.

 

“From the very first song on, it's readily apparent this is genre-busting stuff. The "Sugar Plum Fairy" kicks off the album, which itself is a bit more than bold, as how many rockers really cover Tchaikovsky? But when they add that New Orleans Second Line, that's when it becomes the kind of carol I'd go shopping on Black Friday to hear.” – The Argonaut.

 

Producer, saxophone, and keyboard player “Funky Freedom,” a 13-song CD from The Gumbo Brothers.

 

"This collection of swampy funk is deep in the pocket, right where it should be. The grooves are thick, the vocals are sparse and always add texture to the interplay between the musicians, and the vibes never get bogged down...The Gumbo Brothers say they're 'going to hit you with some ass-shakin' funk!' They got that right. Prepare yourself." – Cdbaby.

 

“The jazz is smooth, the vocals are gritty, the funk is thick and syrupy. If you can’t dance to this album, you just can’t dance.” – buddyhollywood.com

 

Producer, saxophone, and keyboard player “On Fire,” a 9-song Mardi Gras CD from The Gumbo Brothers.

 

"Hailing from Venice Beach, the New Orleans-style quartet makes the kind of saxy, wah-wah, keyboard-driven funk that was popular before most of today’s music buyers were born, but it doesn’t sound outdated. It’s dance music, sho’ ‘nuff, and the band’s new album never slows down"  - Berkeley Place.