“UMass Trombone Man Part 2” by Seven Sisters Swing continues the story first told in UMass Trombone Man, following UMass Amherst jazz trombone professor Ben Barnett as his journey widens from the campus band room to a second Grammy nomination. While Part 1 introduced the man, the horn, and the roots of his sound, Part 2 steps into the broader lineage of Latin jazz, honoring the Dizzy Gillespie and Chano Pozo collaboration that shaped the music Barnett now helps carry forward. Recorded in a big band swing style with deep Afro Latin influence, this chapter focuses less on arrival and more on continuity, humility, and the daily work of keeping a living tradition loud, human, and very much alive.

“UMass Trombone Man Part 2” by Seven Sisters Swing continues the story of UMass jazz trombone professor Ben Barnett, following his second Grammy nomination and the living Latin jazz tradition behind it. @UMassAmherst
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Verse 1
Town Hall lights in New York glow
Eighteen players lined up slow
Dizzy's ghost in the brass and air
Chano's rhythm everywhere
Slide trombone cuts clean and wide
History walking side by side
Seventy six years still alive
In every note they testify

Verse 2
Second time they called his name
Gold letters, same old game
Feels unreal but nothing's changed
Morning trains and practice rooms remain
He says listen, that's the proof
No speeches needed, just the truth
A record pressed from sweat and time
A living line from then to now

Chorus
UMass Trombone Man
Standing where the rhythms ran
From Havana to bebop land
With a horn and a working plan
UMass Trombone Man
Not chasing lights or shaking hands
Just blowing life through brass and breath
Making history sound like now

Verse 3
Started young, not by design
Uncle's choice, a marching line
Long arms reached, the slide went far
Teacher saw what others missed
Played it loud, louder still
Trying out the sound of will
Parents smiling from the crowd
Asking only was I loud

Verse 4
Birdland nights and Vanguard rooms
Smalls till closing, sweeping floors
Manager by day, player by night
Learning how the music works
Now he leads the choir home
Rows of slides in perfect tone
Students finding their own sound
In western hills where brass rings out

Chorus
UMass Trombone Man
From the band room to the stand
Latin swing in steady hands
Built on roots that understand
UMass Trombone Man
Knows the work is where you stand
Grammy nod or none at all
The music always makes the call

Bridge
February, LA lights
Black suit pressed just right
Maybe one seat in the hall
Maybe none, but still he'll play tomorrow
Wife's dress ready, hope held light
No regrets, just forward sight
Every note already won
Long before the night is done

Final Chorus
UMass Trombone Man
Carrying the bigger plan
Past and future in one span
Through the slide and through the band
UMass Trombone Man
Still asking can you hear me then
And the answer keeps on coming back
Yes, loud and clear, again and again

UMass Trombone Man (part 2)

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UMass Trombone Man (part 2)

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