Arturo Sandoval

While still in Cuba Arturo Sandoval, was influenced by jazz legends Charlie Parker, Clifford Brown, and Dizzy Gillespie, finally meeting Dizzy later in 1977. Gillespie promptly became a mentor and colleague, playing with Arturo in concerts in Europe and Cuba and later featuring him in The United Nations Orchestra. In Cuba, Sandoval co-founded the band Irakere with Chucho Valdés and Paquito D'Rivera. They quickly became a worldwide sensation. Their appearance at the 1978 Newport Jazz Festival introduced them to American audiences and garnered them a recording contract with Columbia Records.In 2001, Arturo was featured on the album "Swingin' For The Fences" by Gordon Goodwin's Big Phat Band. He played solos in Sing, Sang, Sung and Muevos los Huesos (Move Your Bones), the latter of which let him flex his Afro Cuban jazz muscles. Today Arturo Sandoval continues to tour the world sharing his musical talents.

James "SuperHarp" Cotton

James Cotton began his professional career playing the blues harp in Howlin' Wolf's band in the early 1950s.He made his first recordings as a solo artist for the Sun Records label in Memphis, Tennessee in 1953. In 1965 he formed the Jimmy Cotton Blues Quartet, utilizing Otis Spann on piano to record between gigs with Muddy Waters' band. In the 1970s, Cotton recorded several albums with Buddah Records. Cotton played harmonica on Muddy Waters' Grammy Award winning 1977 album Hard Again, produced by Johnny Winter. Cotton appeared on the cover of Living Blues magazine in 1987 in the July/August issue (#76).[4] He was featured in the same publication's 40th anniversary issue, released in 2010 in August/September.