Northside Neighbors: Knocking on the Door of Roger Humphries

Photo: YouTube

Pittsburgh’s Northside is made up of eighteen different neighborhoods, and just as each of these vibrant neighborhoods is unique, so are its residents. Artists, journalists, and activists are just a few kinds of people who call this part of the city home, and Sampsonia Way is knocking on their doors for its new video series, Northside Neighbors. So if you live in this area, look out, because we might be knocking on your door next!

For our second installment, Sampsonia Way knocked on the door of Roger Humphries, Pittsburgh’s legendary jazz drummer, in March 2013. Humphries, who grew up on the same Northside street where he now lives, started playing drums when he was four, and since then has played with Ray Charles, Dizzy Gillespie, and the Isley Brothers, to name a few. Currently Humphries hosts The Roger Humphries Jazz Jam Session at CJ’s in the Strip and performs at the James Street Gastropub and Speakeasy in East Allegheny. Humphries talked to Sampsonia Way about Pittsburgh’s long history with jazz, how he feels about being called a living legend, and his work with young musicians.