Ed. note: On Tuesday evening, Oct. 10, 2023, Gordon Goodwin and the Big Phat Band played KSDS's Jazz Live; it had been 10 years since they'd last performed live in San Diego. With Gordon's sudden passing earlier this week (Dec. 8, 2025), I realized that this 2023 concert, memorable in and of itself, had taken on new meaning: It marked the the Big Phat Band's final San Diego performance under Gordon's leadership. The dynamic between Gordon and the Saville Theatre audience was a unique one; for as internationally renowned as Gordon was, the audience (largely composed of KSDS members and regular listeners) knew him primarily as the host of "Phat Tracks," his weekly radio show on KSDS that aired on Saturday afternoons from 1 to 3 p.m. Most, of course, knew how accomplished Gordon was as a musician, but his side-gig as a KSDS on-air personality created an additional connection that lent the room a certain je ne sais quoi. Familiarity. Intimacy. Goodwill. Bonhomie. Gordon wasn't a big star from L.A. shooting down for a one-nighter in the provinces (I mean, he was, but it didn't at all feel like that); he was a Jazz88er, one of us. Below you'll find my review of that evening's atmosphere and music. May it serve as a comforting memory for those in need of one right now. MS, Dec. 10, 2025.
Originally published in Oct. 2023. I'd known for several weeks that Gordon Goodwin and his Big Phat Band (BPB) would be bringing their celebrated stage show to City College's Saville Theatre as part of our just-recently-rebooted signature concert series, Jazz Live. And I knew they'd pack a punch; you don’t become one of the world’s preeminent large jazz ensembles without blowing the doors off a few concert halls. Still, I didn't quite understand fully what I was in for until the musicians hit it, and their sound hit me.
