Scott Hamilton discusses his musical style

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Scott Hamilton discusses 'jazz cliques' in high school

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Scott Hamilton discusses his early playing

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Q: “Admittedly, you would have to say to somebody that you’re a bit of a throwback. Your music comes out of the swing era; your age bracket should put you into post-Coltrane so to speak, as a stylist. The obvious question – why do you play the way you do?”

A: “Well, I never played. I never really got into any of the free jazz or even the mortal thing. I just never was very interested in it. I listen to guys like that. I listened to Coltrane when I was ... I still listen to Coltrane once in a while, but the guys that got to me were mostly Paul Gonzalez with Duke Ellington's Band and Eleanor Gicat [ph] and Gene Ammons and those are the guys that I listened to and to me they seem contemporary at that time, you know, and they still do. I didn't really think of myself as playing something that was that out of date. I just seem like I pick tunes that I like the chord changes and I like a swing beat behind me and it feels comfortable and like I don't feel very comfortable playing without some kind of time, you know.”