Spike Wilner Trio

Emperor Wu asked the great teacher Bodhidharma, “What is the first principle of the holy teaching?” <br>Bodhidharma said, “Vast emptiness, nothing holy.” <br>“Who are you, standing here in front of me?” asked the Emperor. <br>“I don’t know,” said Bodhidharma. <br /><br />Bassist Paul Gill is veteran of the New York jazz scene and is recognized for his buoyant, swinging bass lines and virtuosic arco solos. When Gill arrived in New York in the mid 1990's he was described by Jazz Times magazine as "surely one of the brightest of the up-and-coming bassists”. He has appeared as a sideman on over 60 recordings. <br>Born in Baltimore, MD, Paul had established himself as a local mainstay in the Balto-DC area from 1984-1994 by both working with fellow hometown musician Gary Bartz, and backing artists that came to town such as Benny Golson, Rosemary Clooney, Stanley Turrentine, and Sonny Fortune. <br>Immediately upon moving to New York, Gill began working with legendary vocalist Jon Hendricks. In 1999 he left Hendricks to embark on a year long world tour with singer Diana Krall. Following Diana Krall in 2001 he joined the Toshiko Akiyoshi Jazz Orchestra. The second half of the 2000’s found Paul touring with either vocalist Elvis Costello or guitarist Pat Martino. <br>Gill has worked in every major jazz club in New York City and has performed or recorded with artists such as Hank Jones, Joe Henderson, Wynton Marsalis, Lou Donaldson, Bill Charlap, Jimmy Cobb, Al Foster, The Vanguard Orchestra, George Coleman, Eric Alexander, Lew Tabackin, Jim Snidero, Steve Wilson, Eddie Henderson, Kurt Elling, Kenny Rankin, and John Pizzarelli. <br>He is currently spending his time working in a trio setting with pianist Toshiko Akiyoshi as well as touring with vocalist Hilary Kole. <br>Weblinks: <br>pgbass60@gmail.com <br /><br />Aaron Kimmel, originally from Pennsylvania, has resided in New York City for nearly two decades where he works as a freelance drummer. He holds a bachelor of music degree from The Juilliard School, where he studied with Kenny Washington and Billy Drummond. He frequently appears at Smalls and Dizzy's Club, and many venues around the world. You can see him performing as a sideman with Aaron Diehl, the Benny Green trio, Ben Wolfe, among others. He has also played with such jazz luminaries as Harry Allen, Ken Peplowski, Eric Alexander, Joe Magnarelli, Grant Stewart, Terell Stafford, Ryan Kisor, Toshiko Akiyoshi, Mary Stallings, and Jon Faddis.