Pioneer of San Jose jazz scene dies at 70
Kelly Enos
Issue date: 9/16/08 Section: News
In the mid-1980s, Sammy Cohen walked into San Jose's Metro newspaper office, pitched the column "Jazz Notes" to then owners David Cohen and Dan Pulcrano and came away with a phone line to promote what became the San Jose Jazz Society.
The Society's first concert occurred about a year later in a dark, damp, cold room at the Mountain Winery in Saratoga. Sammy Cohen and four other board members sat around a table and founded the society.
Each member pitched in $100, David Cohen said, and Sammy ran with it, helping to produce 19 San Jose Jazz Festivals.
He will not be around for the next one.
Sammy Cohen died Aug. 30 from complications of Hepatitis C. He was 70 years old. He is survived by his three children, Zoe, Jean and Max Cohen. An established jazz drummer, Sammy Cohen was an alumnus of SJSU and graduated with a degree in music performance.
"Sammy was not only a working musician, but he was a living advocate for music in the Bay Area," said Perry Thoorsell, a Bay Area bassist who knew Cohen.
"His legacy is the love and commitment he put into security for working musicians with his position as the president of the Musicians Union and his development for the San Jose jazz scene with the success of the San Jose Jazz Society."
Cohen was born in Chicago on May 18, 1938, to Jean and Harry Cohen, and by the time he was 13, he was playing in Chicago clubs. He kept time for legendary jazz singer and bandleader Cab Calloway.
Sammy became an established musician in New York City and New Orleans in the late '60s.
In 1970, Cohen moved to California and started to become an energetic force in the San Jose community.
Another close friend and colleague of Cohen's, Bruce Labadie, gave him a room at the Mountain Winery to hold events. The first event held was a performance by a jazz duo named Tuck and Patti.
David Cohen, who is not related to Sammy, described the room as cold and damp, and he said the Jazz Society's Board of Directors charged $10 for admission and barely broke even to create the society's newsletter.
The Society's first concert occurred about a year later in a dark, damp, cold room at the Mountain Winery in Saratoga. Sammy Cohen and four other board members sat around a table and founded the society.
Each member pitched in $100, David Cohen said, and Sammy ran with it, helping to produce 19 San Jose Jazz Festivals.
He will not be around for the next one.
Sammy Cohen died Aug. 30 from complications of Hepatitis C. He was 70 years old. He is survived by his three children, Zoe, Jean and Max Cohen. An established jazz drummer, Sammy Cohen was an alumnus of SJSU and graduated with a degree in music performance.
"Sammy was not only a working musician, but he was a living advocate for music in the Bay Area," said Perry Thoorsell, a Bay Area bassist who knew Cohen.
"His legacy is the love and commitment he put into security for working musicians with his position as the president of the Musicians Union and his development for the San Jose jazz scene with the success of the San Jose Jazz Society."
Cohen was born in Chicago on May 18, 1938, to Jean and Harry Cohen, and by the time he was 13, he was playing in Chicago clubs. He kept time for legendary jazz singer and bandleader Cab Calloway.
Sammy became an established musician in New York City and New Orleans in the late '60s.
In 1970, Cohen moved to California and started to become an energetic force in the San Jose community.
Another close friend and colleague of Cohen's, Bruce Labadie, gave him a room at the Mountain Winery to hold events. The first event held was a performance by a jazz duo named Tuck and Patti.
David Cohen, who is not related to Sammy, described the room as cold and damp, and he said the Jazz Society's Board of Directors charged $10 for admission and barely broke even to create the society's newsletter.
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