Justin G. Jones was born and raised in Santa Fe, NM. After some experiments on drumset and kitchenware percussion, at age 15 he began studying and performing with the West African drum and dance ensembles of Eric Gent and Jim Goulden.
At age 16 Justin moved to central California and studied congas and Afro-Latin music. A lifelong fascination with jazz began upon hearing Dizzy Gillespie’s original recording of “A Night in Tunisia†with a full Cuban rhythm section.
Justin earned a B.A. in percussion performance from California Polytechnic State University, where he studied with LA studio veteran Kenny Watson and played drumset, congas, vibraphone, timpani, and percussion in numerous bands and ensembles both in and out of school. During this time he had the opportunity to perform with Louis Bellson, Clark Terry, and other jazz greats.
After graduating, Justin moved to Los Angeles with the traditional blues band Brickyard Jones, performing around southern California and appearing with blues artists such as James Harman, Kirk Fletcher (T-Birds), and Lynwood Slim. His jazz studies continued in LA with former Ray Charles drummer Paul Kreibich.
In 2002, Justin joined Billy Bacon and the Forbidden Pigs, the notorious Tex-Mex-blues-a-billy band from San Diego, and spent the next five years on the road playing as many as 200 dates a year, across the US and in Europe.
Justin now resides in Lincoln, NE where he is co-leader of Son del Llano, a Cuban son conjunto; performs with a wide variety of musical groups; and works as a private drum instructor.He currently tours with Dave Gonzalez and the Stone River Boys from Austin, TX.
Justin has performed in venues from coast to coast, and in Australia (Sydney Opera House), New Zealand, Germany, Switzerland (Montreaux Jazz Festival), Holland, Belgium, France, Poland, and Finland. Contact him at [email protected].
