Jazz musician Brian Culberston on Day Trip’s back-to-basics approach ahead of his Uptown show

Brian Culbertson. // photo courtesy the artist

Jazz musician Brian Culbertson released his latest (and 29th!) album, Day Trip, at the end of September today and is in the middle of an accompanying national tour with his ten piece band. It’s an impressive achievement for the 52 year-old musician, especially when you add in 40 Billboard #1 singles as part of it.

Culbertson is a keyboardist, songwriter, and producer who blends jazz, funk, R&B, pop, and more into a sound that’s ever-evolving. Thanks to Culbertson’s choice of unique collaborators from across the genre spectrum, each album is an event worth celebrating, as are the tours supporting them.

We spoke with Brian Culbertson via email ahead of his stop in Kansas City at the Uptown Theater on Wednesday, November 12.

The Pitch: You’ve frequently worked with some of the same collaborators, like Ray Parker Jr. and Kirk Whalum, to say nothing of the murderers row on this record. What draws you to those with whom you collaborate?

Brian Culbertson: As a producer, you have to understand who can do what in terms of what I’m hearing in my head on every instrument, not just the featured artists. I equate it to being the director of a movie, picking the right actors for the various roles. No one else could have played that tenor part on “In The Vines” like Kirk did, and no guitar player could have laid down the Detroit funk like RPJ!

Was it those collaborations over the years which allowed you to bring so much talent to the annual Napa Valley Jazz Getaway?

Absolutely! The whole “and friends” moniker is legit as I seriously started with a bunch of artist friends I had known for years and just kept going. Still to this day, I keep inviting many of those same artists, as well as always bringing new people in to keep it exciting for the fans.

Each of your albums refuses to be pigeonholed, genre-wise, even ones where they have “funk” in the title. Where does this eclecticism come from?

I listen to all kinds of music and draw inspiration from everywhere. I suppose that’s why I like to experiment with different sounds and vibes so much. I’d get really bored if I made the same record over and over, lol.

Which genre that you haven’t yet tackled would be your dream to give a go?

I’d love to mess around with lots of other styles and actually have several ideas marinating as I type! Bottom line, I just want to keep exploring and bringing the fans along for ride, always having my piano/melodies be the connecting thread.

With so many of your records hitting the top of the jazz charts, does that ever feel like too much pressure and, if so, how do you manage?

If you allow yourself to get caught up in the charts, it can certainly get frustrating, but at the end of the day, I just have to be happy with the music I’m creating since it comes from an authentic place. Meaning, I’m never trying to chase trends or get a #1 on the radio. I’m just trying to make music that I personally am proud of, and if others dig, that’s a bonus.

Why does every jazz musician release a Christmas album?

Why not? It’s an amazing songbook of nostalgic music and it’s fun to put your own spin on all those classics. For me, a “classic” constitutes the ability of that song to transcend genres no matter how it is reinterpreted. Clearly, Christmas songs are the ultimate classics. Now I have to work on another holiday album as it’s been 20 years since mine came out!! Haha …

Your latest album and its attendant tour feature no programming or backing tracks. What made you want to go back to basics?

I was listening to a lot of albums I grew up on from the late ’70s, jazz fusion stuff, and there were no tracks on any of those albums. Once you get into the mid-’80s, then the drum machines and sequencing took over the industry. So, I wanted to do a modern take on those amazing records that just had all the cats in the studio together making things happen on the fly. The result is a much more organic and human feeling album, I think.

How has this all-live approach worked as the tour gets underway?

It’s the best. I personally have never liked playing along with “backing tracks” like most people do these days. I’ve done it here and there, but there’s just so much more freedom you get when it’s all live, it’s a no-brainer. With that said, you have to be able to bring a larger band in order to recreate the full album sound, hence the reason I’m currently out with such a big group, eleven of us on stage! And when I pick up my trombone, the five horns on the front of the stage is quite powerful and so much fun!

What does 2026 look like for you?

I’m planning on continuing to promote the new album Day Trip by performing at many jazz festivals around the states, as well as at my own 3 events: Napa Valley, New Orleans, and Hawaii Jazz Getaways. Beyond that, I’m still live streaming on YouTube every Friday night on my show I call, “The Hang,” which is a lot of fun. It’s a great way to stay connected with all the fans, drink some amazing wine, and it keeps my chops up when not on the road!

Brian Culbertson plays the Uptown Theater on Wednesday, November 12. Details on that show here.