The Rick McLaughlin Trio is a recently re-launched group, currently featuring the incredible musical contributions of Sheryl Bailey on guitar and Yoron Israel on drums.

Band Bio:

“Their musical chemistry is off the charts.” – Tyler J.
“The bass player was totally amazing, the drummer was also totally amazing, and the guitarist was also totally amazing!” – Madalena K.

Whether performing for audiences the world over, collaborating with other musicians, or working with students, the members of the Rick McLaughlin Trio have made a positive impact on the world around.  Sheryl Bailey, guitar, is a central part of the music scenes in New York and Boston, and is celebrated for her exceptional work as a band leader and a band member (Anat Cohen Tentet, Richard Bona, David Krakauer’s Ancestral Groove).  Drummer, Yoron Israel, has performed with a literal “who’s who” of music, having accompanied everyone from Abbey Lincoln to Tony Bennett, and Jimmy Heath to Pharoah Sanders.  Bassist Rick McLaughlin has shared the stage with musicians of all kinds: Ethiopian music legends Mulatu Astatke and Mahmoud Ahmed, jazz icons Steve Lacy and Either/Orchestra, and rock innovators such as Willie “Loco” Alexander and Morphine.  Each member of the band is a composer, arranger and producer, and each has worked with countless numbers of students, notably at Berklee College of Music where Bailey is Assistant Chair of the Guitar department, Israel is Chair of the Percussion department, and McLaughlin is Associate Professor in the Harmony and Jazz Composition department.  

Musically, the Trio brings together their many interests, combining the sub-genres of jazz with r&b, gospel, classical, rock, and blues, and creating an open set of musical possibilities inviting the band AND the listeners to experience the music as it evolves, moment to moment.  Originals composed by each member of the group draw from Brazilian music, Latin jazz, gospel music, and the harmonic explorations of John Coltrane.  Reaching beyond their original music, arrangements focus on a wide range of influences, from Stevie Wonder to John Scofield, Jim Hall to Duke Ellington and the mid-20th century American opera composer Carlisle Floyd.  The result is music which is in the moment, of the time, incorporates music history, and connects deeply with audiences.

The trio “…is making some really great, fresh and refreshing music.” – Kenny K.
“I can’t wait to catch them again somewhere soon!” – Steve B.