Billy Mintz Quartet

Billy Mintz/Roberta Pickett Duo: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u33YtkrG5as

Billy Mintz/John Gross Duo: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Odv_qyLTUfg

Billy Mintz w/Hal Galper trio: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I5YWHuDI1zg

In an extraordinary career spanning nearly 40 years, drummer Billy Mintz has played with some of the biggest names in the jazz and pop worlds. Mr. Mintz was born in Queens, New York in 1947. By the age of 15 he was firmly entrenched in several of the show bands of the Catskill Mountain resorts, and as his musicianship developed he would eventually tour with jazz artists such as Lee Konitz, Eddie Daniels, Harold Danko, Mike Garson, Mose Allison, Mark Murphy, and the Kim Richmond Sextet. He also toured and recorded extensively with Bobby Shew. At the same time, his credentials grew in the pop arena, leading to tours with Juliette Prowse, James Darren, Gloria Gaynor, and a stint with the show band for the Merv Griffin Show. In 1986, Mr. Mintz toured Japan with the Los Angeles Symphonic Jazz Orchestra (having relocated to Los Angeles in 1981). In 1988 he toured Europe with saxophone great Charles Lloyd, and from 1989 to 1995 he performed with the Alan Broadbent Trio.

Mr. Mintz appears on records by the following artists, among others: Bill Perkins/James Clay Quintet; Vinny Golia; Fred Tompkins; The Cryers; Harold Danko; Eddie Daniels; Bobby Shew; Bob Magnusson; Mike Garson; Art Resnick; Walking Wounded; Kim Richmond; Clay Jenkins; Ken Filiano; John Woods; Joey Sellars; Bruce Fowler. In recent years, Mr. Mintz has taken on new roles as a bandleader and a composer, performing his own compositions with various ensembles. He also performs solo drumset concerts with increasing frequency.

“Mintz’s solo performances are a form of holy worship for many musicians and drummers. Forget what you know about the drums an solo drums. This is no boom-chakka-lakka affair. Mintz is painterly and understated in his singular approach to music.”- Willamette Week

“If you are a fan of modern jazz drumming but have not heard Billy Mintz, you have not heard it all.” – Tom Conrad, JazzTimes

“Mintz walks alone and, like Paul Motian, he’s got a great way of drifting through the waves while steering the ship.” -Village Voice

“A veteran of both the LA and New York jazz scenes, Mintz is that rare breed of jazz musician who is as comfortable playing standards in a piano trio (which he did in an eight-year stint with the Alan Broadbent Trio) as he is as he is exploring more abstract forms with icons such as Ellery Eskelin and Mark Feldman.”