The Dude Abides
Kevin Eubanks is known to millions as the chilled out, jovial bandleader on The Jay Leno Show, and previously from 1992-2009 on The Tonight Show. For the last 17 years he has been entertaining television audiences with his virtuoso guitar playing and easy going banter.
Kevin Eubanks is all Californian cool - a laid back and amiable dude who has the carefree persona of a Venice beach surf bum. His voice is a soothing laconic drawl that massages your eardrums, his manner gentle; enriched with a warm smile that mellows over his soft face. He exudes an infectious chuckle that cajoles you into laughing. You can’t help but like the guy.
Indeed, his personality is refreshing in an industry savaged by egomaniacs. But as a self-confessed British sceptic I pondered - Is this Eubanks character too good to be true? I dredged the Internet, gouging for any scandal on the beatnik string plucker. I unearthed a disturbing, dark, distressing, diabolical secret……….. Kevin Eubanks is a Jazz musician (and just for you Texan good ole boys he’s also a vegetarian).
During his youth Eubanks studied jazz guitar at Berklee College of music in Boston. He went on to play with jazz luminaries such as Art Blakely, Roy Haynes and Dave Holland, and has recorded 18 jazz albums as a bandleader. Currently, away from The Jay Leno Show, he leads his own jazz quintet that features Bill Pierce on saxophone and Marvin Smith on drums. I was perplexed. I can only recall his Tonight Show band performing a handful of jazz, or even jazz influenced, songs. But as he revealed, in an interview with The Wall Street Journal, it’s all about being professional:
Did you get to play enough jazz on “The Tonight Show”?
No, but at the same time I never expected to. I play music that supports the focus of the show. I never had a conflict of interest between what the show needed and what I wanted to do.
But he feels there could be an opportunity to incorporate jazz into the new Jay Leno Show:
You’ll be leading the band on “The Jay Leno Show.” Will you find a place for jazz on it?
When we start the new show, I’d like to bring that into focus. I want to find the right places for the creative expression. I don’t want to force it. I feel everybody has an open mind now that it’s a new show. They’re open to some new ideas.
Many struggling jazz artists are envious of Eubank’s career: His lucrative TV work provides him with publicity and financial stability, while his jazz projects satisfy his creative yearnings. No wonder he’s so chilled out and happy. Or maybe he is the long lost brother of “The Dude” from The Big Lebowski…