Radio Show ‘Riverwalk Jazz’ Comes To An End After 25 Years

December 28th, 2015

For 25 years, trumpeter Jim Cullum has been the band leader on the radio program “Riverwalk Jazz.”

Jamie Karutz

“Riverwalk Jazz” has graced the airwaves of public radio stations for 25 years. This week, the show is coming to an end.

The show has focused on jazz in the first half of the 20th century. Each episode celebrates a theme or person, such as Hollywood jazz, Ma Rainey or even jazz and civil rights.

For each episode, host David Holt told stories of the time and trumpeter Jim Cullum and his band played the music.

WABE’s Lois Reitzes spoke with Cullum about putting “Riverwalk Jazz” to rest.

“We had a story to tell with ‘Riverwalk Jazz,’ with the remarkable people when the origins [of jazz] were just unfolding,” explained Cullum, “and we wanted to get some of these people down for the record.”

Fans of “Riverwalk Jazz” will be able to enjoy the show on the web. The show is being archived through Stanford University with descriptions of episodes, the players, songs and guests. Because of copyright laws, individual episodes are not available to stream, but there are two continuous channels that rotate through 400 of the best episodes of “Riverwalk Jazz.”

WABE will have a special broadcast of the show’s finale this Thursday at 9 p.m. and at its regular time on Saturday at 8 p.m.