Jim Rotondi - RIP

[Kevin Bresnahan]

Announced by his wife Julie on Facebook:

“Dear all, this is with immense sadness that I have to tell you all that Jim passed away last night. He was the love of my life and his music the love of many of you. Please send light his way, his wife Julie.”

 

He was only 61. I have seen Jim play live probably more than any other trumpeter. He was a good guy to chat with too. I'm going to miss seeing & hearing him up on that stage.

Edited July 9, 2024 by Kevin Bresnahan

[Dan Gould]

Stunning and very sad news. 

[HutchFan]

This is such terrible news.

61 is way too young.

 

[jlhoots]

Excellent player. R.I.P.

[soulpope]

R.I.P     ....

[Peter Friedman]

This is a shock. I just posted one of his most recent recordings earlier today prior to learning of his death.

I have long enjoyed his playing and have a large number of his albums.

R.I.P.

[felser]

RIP, so sorry to hear!

[sgcim]

RIP, that's beyond sad....

[mjzee]

Very, very sad.  Sending much love.  RIP.

[Hardbopjazz]

Very sad news. I’m the same age. RIP.  

[Rabshakeh]

This is so sad.

[Ken Dryden]

Sad news, indeed. 61 is far too young!

[mhatta]

Somehow missing from his Wikipedia entry, but I loved his Blues For Brother Ray.  Very nice tribute to Ray Charles.  Died too young.  RIP.

https://jimrotondi.bandcamp.com/album/blues-for-brother-ray

[John Tapscott]

Very sad indeed. His recent release on CellarLive, "Finesse" is very good indeed. 

[Dan Gould]

19 hours ago, Kevin Bresnahan said:

Announced by his wife Julie on Facebook:

Dear all, this is with immense sadness that I have to tell you all that Jim passed away last night. He was the love of my life and his music the love of many of you. Please send light his way, his wife Julie

 

He was only 61. I have seen Jim play live probably more than any other trumpeter. He was a good guy to chat with too. I'm going to miss seeing & hearing him up on that stage.

Almost the entire post was used for the announcement on this page:

https://londonjazznews.com/2024/07/09/rip-jim-rotondi-1962-2024/

its still up the same way even after I commented, and they published, to point out that the second paragraph was a comment on the announcement by Rotondi's wife.

Edited July 9, 2024 by Dan Gould

[rostasi]

24 minutes ago, Dan Gould said:

Almost the entire post was used for the announcement on this page:

https://londonjazznews.com/2024/07/09/rip-jim-rotondi-1962-2024/

its still up the same way even after I commented, and they published, to point out that the second paragraph was a comment on the announcement by Rotondi's wife.

Yeah, I had to read the original a few times myself - then I realized there were no quotation marks, so I can see how they might've been confused as well ... but, yes, they should edit their announcement.

[Dan Gould]

In the context of coming from his wife, its an odd statement about how he was a good guy to chat with between sets.

[Kevin Bresnahan]

3 hours ago, Dan Gould said:

Almost the entire post was used for the announcement on this page:

https://londonjazznews.com/2024/07/09/rip-jim-rotondi-1962-2024/

its still up the same way even after I commented, and they published, to point out that the second paragraph was a comment on the announcement by Rotondi's wife.

I am on vacation down in Delaware so I posted this from my cell phone and missed that I didn’t use quotes. I edited this to reflect Julie’s Facebook post. I never thought anyone would quote my post that way.

[Mark Stryker]

20 hours ago, Dan Gould said:

In the context of coming from his wife, its an odd statement about how he was a good guy to chat with between sets.

I believe his wife is French and a non-native English speaker so this may have something to do with what sounds like odd sentiment and syntax. 

[Daniel A]

I thought that part was Kevin's words - as posted in the initial post in this thread.

[Dan Gould]

15 minutes ago, Mark Stryker said:

I believe his wife is French and a non-native English speaker so this may have something to do with what sounds like odd sentiment and syntax. 

The second sentence was Kevin's comment on the news. Not from his wife though that blog I linked to took it as such.

[colinmce]

Very sad news. RIP.

[clifford_thornton]

Too bad. Too young.

[Kevin Bresnahan]

This is Jim’s wife posting on his Facebook page..,

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Dear all, I can not begin to express how touched and overwhelmed I have been by the love, energy and prayers you sent my way and all of the Rotondi family and close friends. We are all absolutely devastated and broken-hearted. I have been unable to reply to the hundreds of posts, pictures and messages you sent but rest assured I am and will be reading each and every one of them. They sure help me go through this awful and atrocely unexpected turmoil. 

Many of you are wondering how Jim passed and I feel I do owe the truth to his friends and fans. Jim collapsed in my arms in our home in France on Sunday early in the evening. He had a massive heart attack and eventually died at the hospital a few hours later. He was never alone and surrounded by love and incredibly competent and benevolent doctors.

We started our life together as people do in movies : Jim was  a traveling musician with an already well-established international career as a jazz soloist, I was a woman in my 20s born and bred in Central France fresh off college listening to rock and roll. We had nothing in common but it was love at first sight and we could never leave each other’s side. I just knew he was a precious soul from the first minute I met him. We surfed through the ocean of life together for 22 years, went through wonderful moments as well as hard losses but we were strong together and that’s all that mattered. And just like in movies, we ended our life together on this earth  saying “I love you ” in an ambulance… Jim offered me an extraordinary life, a life like they show only in movies…full of surprises, travels, I grew up with him, he introduced me to a wonderful world, filled with people and musicians extraordinaires. I owe him absolutely everything. He supported me in each and everything. 

He was a driving force, a tremendously hard-working musician, a mentor to many, a faithful friend, a stunning composer, a wonderful husband. I never heard him say anything negative about anyone,  he always focused on the positive, he was such a classy person with a sharp sense of humor. I could go on and on and on…

The only thing I will not forgive him about is that he left us way too soon and left this incredible void. Jim’s heart failed him and he left me, and many of you, with a broken heart. 

Thank you all for your love and support, they mean the world to me, Julie

[jazzbo]

Thanks for sharing that Kevin.