The Hoods Bio

JESSICA NEIGHBOR & THE HOODS DELIVERS THE GOODS!
Jessica Neighbor & The Hoods add spunk and style to club dates, concerts, street fairs, festivals and private events. These versatile artists perform an eclectic mix of sophisticated jazz standards, down-home blues tunes, powerhouse R&B and soul favorites, and festive Latin and funk jams. The ensemble draws from a wealth of collective and individual talent to create their unique sound.

The Hoods
Woodwinds performer Tom Griesser has been a mainstay in the Bay Area music scene for several years. His clarinet, flute, alto, tenor and baritone saxophones can be heard in many of San Francisco’s top jazz and avant-garde ensembles, including the Marcus Shelby Jazz Orchestra, Brass Monkey and The New Morty Show, among others.

Dan Zemelman is an accomplished pianist featured throughout the Bay Area. After studying with Richard Davis at the University of Wisconsin, Dan performed and composed for a range of theatrical, radio, and live concert projects, and toured Southeast Asia an a Jazz Ambassador for the US Department of State. Dan currently performs with Plum Crazy and Blues for You, and can be heard on John Lee Hooker’s last album, “Face to Face.”

Pianist Pete Sutherland adds extraordinary harmonic insight to Jessica Neighbor & The Hoods. He has been featured in bands such as Indigo Swing and funk troupe Groove Unit.

Bassist Lorenzo Farrell, a graduate of Berkeley High School and UC Berkeley, regularly performs with many top West Coast jazz and swing musicians. His upright bass can be heard backing Steve Lucky and the Rum Bum Bums, Lavay Smith and her Red Hot Skillet Lickers, Collective Amnesia, and the Contemporary Jazz Orchestra.

Aaron Germain has been a versatile bassist in many of the Bay Area’s top ensembles. He has performed, or currently performs, with arists and bands including Blowout, Reorchestra, Rio Brasil, The United Brassworkers Front, Telepathy, Gubbish, Bitches Brew, Montuno Groove, Bolero y Mas, Son Libre, The Post Junk Trio, Shotgun Wedding, Hannibal, Realistic, the Supplicants, The Scott Hill Group, Pankind, The Buddy Craig Band, and others. He has performed with Yusef Lateef, Stanley Jordan, Bonnie Raitt, Joe Craven, Andy Narell, Gordon Stone, and Calvin Keyes.

Drummer Brian Bowman, a graduate of Berklee College of Music, shares interest in percussion along with piano, composition, and music from North India, Bulgaria and Macedonia. His trap-set skills can be heard frequently around the Bay Area with avant-garde ensembles Collective Amenesia and Trio Mopmu, as well as with renowned jazz saxophonist Anton Schwartz and former Miles Davis guitarist Dave Creamer.