Don Was and the Pan-Detroit Ensemble 'Groove In The Face of Adversity' (Listening Party)

Summary

Podcast Summary:

All Of It – Don Was and the Pan-Detroit Ensemble 'Groove In The Face of Adversity' (Listening Party)

Host: Alison Stewart (WNYC)
Guest: Don Was (Blue Note Records President, Producer, Musician)
Date: January 9, 2026

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Episode Overview

This episode is a listening party and interview with Don Was, legendary musician, Grammy-winning producer, and president of Blue Note Records. Don Was discusses finally releasing his first solo album, Groove in the Face of Adversity, along with members of the Pan Detroit Ensemble—fellow Detroit musicians. Through vibrant conversation and curated musical excerpts, Don and Alison explore the essence of Detroit's musical language, the album's personal and communal inspirations, and the healing power of groove in turbulent times.

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Key Themes & Discussion Points

1. Don Was: Why Now for a Solo Album?

• Don Was’s Reluctance Until Now:
  • Despite a decades-long, award-winning career, Don explains this is the first album under his own name.
  • Quote: "I just didn't get around to it. ... I guess I've had the confidence or the ... fearlessness, maybe, to just put my name on something and be myself." (03:03)
• Embracing Individuality:
  • Don shares he long advised other artists to pursue their distinctiveness; with this project, he finally applies that lesson to himself.
  • Quote: "All the great music comes from people who change the pace of everything by being who they were." (03:22)

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2. The Pan Detroit Ensemble: Sharing Detroit’s Musical Code

• Homegrown Chemistry:
  • The ensemble is comprised of Detroit musicians, sharing roots in the city's rich, diverse musical tradition.
  • Detroit’s “raw, honest, unpretentious sound” unites genres—rock, R&B, jazz—and generations.
  • Quote:
    "We speak this common musical language of Detroit ... a great groove that characterizes Detroit music. So we're just trying to promulgate the indigenous sounds of our hometown." (04:23)
• Icons and Influence:
  • Calls out icons shaping Detroit’s musical identity: John Lee Hooker, Motown artists, MC5, White Stripes, J Dilla, Donald Byrd, and more.

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3. Musical Upbringing: Detroit’s Scene in the ‘60s and ‘70s

• Legendary Local Spots:
  • Remembers Detroit’s underground stations (ABX, WDET) and revered venues (Baker’s Keyboard Lounge, the Grande Ballroom).
  • Quote:
    "I remember going to a Sunday matinee ... seeing Martha and the Vandellas and the Temptations and Marvin Gaye playing for about 200 people. It's pretty wild." (06:08)

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4. Listening Party: “Groove in the Face of Adversity”

• “Midnight Marauders” (02:06)
  • Album’s opening track, previewed at episode’s start.
• “Nubian Lady” (06:39)
  • Penned by jazz legend Kenny Barron, first recorded with Yusef Lateef.
  • Features flutist Dave McMurray, a decades-long friend and collaborator.
  • Quote:
    "He's a master musician." (08:02)
• “This Is My Country”—Curtis Mayfield Cover (12:14)
  • Don calls Mayfield’s lyrics “as relevant today, if not more relevant, than it was back then.” (11:13)
  • “If they're frustrated and stressed out in these times, they're not alone ... there's a commonality among all people.” (11:34)

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5. Album Title & Guiding Philosophy

• Backstory:
  • At age 14, Don heard a Joe Henderson jazz record on the radio while sulking in his mom’s car; the music matched his feelings, but then a groove “changed 180 degrees” his mood and outlook.
  • Quote:
    "I thought that Joe Henderson was speaking to me and saying, Don, you got to do like I'm doing and groove in the face of adversity." (09:16)
  • That concept has remained a life mantra, illustrating music’s power to transform and soothe.
  • Quote:
    "Ultimately, that's what I wanted to do with my life, is be involved in making that kind of music for people, to bring them some comfort and understanding in times of chaos and confusion." (10:29)

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6. Live Show at the Blue Note & Community

• Upcoming Performance:
  • Don Was and the Pan Detroit Ensemble play the Blue Note on January 12; full album performed over two sets.
  • Honoring the Grateful Dead’s Blues for Allah 50th anniversary: “... over the two sets, we'll play that whole album as well.” (13:00)
• Surprise Guests Possible:
  • Don teases “we're talking to a few folks” about guest appearances. (13:24)
• Blue Note as Home:
  • For Don, the venue represents a special homecoming, now as a performer instead of just an executive or audience member.
  • Quote:
    "It's a special place and it means a lot to folks and it means a lot to me to actually be on the stage instead of in the audience." (13:34)

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Notable Quotes

• On Artistic Individuality:
  • "The thing that makes you different ... is your superpower." (03:10)
• On Detroit’s Musical Identity:
  • "There's a sound ... very raw, honest, unpretentious. To me, it's best exemplified by John Lee Hooker ... he never stopped grooving." (04:04)
• On the Power of Groove:
  • "Grooving in the face of adversity—it's applicable to so many things in life." (10:17)

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Memorable Moments & Timestamps

• [03:03] Don Was explains the mindset shift that led him to finally release music under his own name.
• [05:14] Don reminisces about Detroit’s influential musical venues and radio stations.
• [06:39] Introduction to “Nubian Lady” and Dave McMurray’s contribution.
• [09:16] The powerful story behind “Groove in the Face of Adversity.”
• [11:13] Conversation about covering Curtis Mayfield’s “This Is My Country.”
• [13:00] Discussion of the Blue Note performance schedule and the Grateful Dead tribute.
• [13:34] Don reflects on what playing at Blue Note means to him.

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Musical Excerpts Featured

• [02:06] "Midnight Marauders" (Don Was & Pan Detroit Ensemble)
• [07:00] "Nubian Lady" (Kenny Barron, feat. Dave McMurray)
• [12:14] "This Is My Country" (Curtis Mayfield cover)
• [14:26] "Insane" (By Cameo, covered by Pan Detroit Ensemble)

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Conclusion

This rich, engaging episode gives listeners insight into Don Was's creative process, Detroit's enduring musical legacy, and the restorative power of groove and community in times of struggle. With anecdotes, deep musical appreciation, and thoughtful philosophy, Don invites us not just to listen, but to feel the pulse of Detroit and the meaning of "groove in the face of adversity."

Transcript

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[Alison Stewart]

This is all of it on wnyc. I'm Alison Stewart. When Blue Note Records president, multi Grammy winning producer Don Was was asked why he hadn't put out a solo record until now, he responded, quote, it sounds ridiculous, but I just didn't get around to it. Don Was has been busy winning Grammy Awards for Producer of the Year as well as being in his own band. Was not was. And in 2011 he became the president of the distinguished jazz label. But now the has come and he has a release called Groove in the Face of Adversity and he's joined by the Pan Detroit Ensemble, a band of some of the city's finest funk proprietors. Here's a track from the album called Midnight Marauders.

[Music Performer / Vocalist]

Take my eyes that I could be so blind that I could not see it was there waiting Lost and found the second time around oh take it from me now I see Would not waste a moment oh no Midnight.

[Don Was]

Marauder.

[Alison Stewart]

Don WUZ and the Panda Detroit Ensemble will perform at the Blue Note this Monday, January 12th. And Don Woas joins me now for a listening party and a preview. It is really nice to meet you.

[Don Was]

It's a gas. Alison, thanks for having me on.

[Alison Stewart]

I can't believe this is the first album you've released under your own name. How is this release different for you considering all that you have been through?

[Don Was]

Well, you know, I think what I've learned over the years is that sometimes in the music business we think that the characteristics that make an artist different from what's currently popular presents a marketing problem. But ultimately what I've come to discover is that it's your superpower, the thing that makes you different. And I've always encouraged other artists to be the best version of themselves and to dare to be different from everything else. All the great music comes from people who. Who change the pace of everything by being who they were. So this is the first time, I guess, I've had the confidence or the. Or the lack of worry, the fearlessness, maybe, to. To just put my name on something and be myself.

[Alison Stewart]

Tell me about the ensemble that you're working with.

[Don Was]

Well, it's a great group of musicians, really. Some of the finest players I've ever met in my life. But they all come from Detroit. We all grew up listening to the same radio stations, you know, playing in the same bars, playing for the same audiences. And we speak this common musical language of Detroit. And I think you can hear it in the music. There's a sound to the music that comes out of Detroit. Very raw, honest, unpretentious sound. To me, it's best exemplified by. By John Lee Hooker, who was as raw as you could get, but he never stopped grooving. And he was on the. The lyrics were very honest and were exactly who he is. And if you listen to Detroit music in all the different genres, whether it's rock and roll and you trace it through Mitch rider and the MC5 and the Stooges or the White Stripes, whether it's the R B going through Fortune Records and Motown and George Cl J Dilla, or whether it's the jazz with Donald Byrd and Joe Henderson and Elvin Jones, there's a raw energy and an unpretentiousness that. And a great groove that. That characterizes Detroit music. So we're just trying to promulgate the indigenous sounds of our hometown.

[Interviewer / Host]

Do you remember what radio stations and.

[Alison Stewart]

Bars used to visit or used to listen to?

[Don Was]

Yeah, no, of course I do. Yeah. Well, there was. There was a great underground FM station in the 60s called ABX. There's a station called WDET, which is the NPR station. And in the 60s, that was the only station where you could hear Albert Eiler and Sun Ra and the more extreme John Coltrane records. And I'm a DJ on that. That station now every Friday night. And, you know, there were great bars. Baker's Keyboard Lounge is the oldest jazz club in the United States. There's the Grandy Ballroom, where we used to go see the MC5 and the Stoo and all the great local bands. Those were. Those are really important parts, growing up in Detroit. And, of course, don't leave out going to see the Motown review back when it was a local show. At the Fox Theater. I remember going to a Sunday matinee in the mid-60s and seeing Martin, the Vandellas and the Temptations and Marvin Gaye playing for about 200 people. It's pretty wild.

[Interviewer / Host]

Speaking of Don was about his latest album, Groove in the Face of Adversity. Let's hear some more music from it. This is a song called Nubian Lady. I got that queued up. Where does the song come from?

[Don Was]

It's written by Kenny Barron, great jazz pianist, and he recorded it with Yusef Lateef, who was one of the legends, epic legends of Detroit jazz.

[Interviewer / Host]

Let's hear Nubian Lady.

[Don Was]

I hope it's not the bus isn't too loud. Allison, is it all right?

[Alison Stewart]

I'm doing okay.

[Don Was]

Okay, good. Yeah, I'm on a tour bus, and it's a little noisy. Sam.

[Interviewer / Host]

Don, who are we hearing on the flute?

[Don Was]

That's a guy named Dave McMurray. He's a blue Note recording artist. In fact, we've been playing together for about 45 years. He's. He's. Well, I wouldn't call him a hidden treasure because he's out touring all the time. And this is third blued out album that he. That he's just released this year. He's played with Bob James, with record, with Rolling Stones and Bob Dylan. You know, he's. He's a master musician.

[Interviewer / Host]

The name of your album is Groove in the Face of Adversity. What's the story behind that piece of wisdom?

[Don Was]

Oh, sure.

[Interviewer / Host]

Can you hear me?

[Don Was]

If you just asked me a question, I missed it.

[Interviewer / Host]

Oh, yeah, no worries. The album is called Groove in the Face of Adversity. What is the story behind that piece of wisdom?

[Don Was]

Well, in 1966, I was 14 years old. I was driving around with my mom. She was making me run errands with her on a Saturday when I wanted to be hanging out with my friends. And I was being just a terror. Horrible kid. Right. So she left me. She. She. She left me in the car with the keys and just said, play with the radio. So I was messing with the dial. I didn't know there was a jazz station in Detroit, and I didn't know anything about jazz. But I landed on the Detroit jazz station just as a solo for what I later learned was a Blue Note record called Mood for Joe by Joe Henderson. Just as that came on, and he starts out making these kind of anguished cries on the sax. I'd never heard a sound like that in my life before. Right. But it matched the anguish I was going through. Being stuck driving around with my mom on a Saturday. So it drew me in immediately. But ultimately, the. The drummer, Joe Chambers, kicks in and starts grooving. And I thought. I thought that Joe Henderson was speaking to me and saying, don, you got to do like I'm doing and groove in the face of adversity. Which at that moment meant, be nice to your mom, but. And sure enough, when she got back in the car, you know, in three minutes, my mood had changed 180 degrees because of this music. And I was a nice kid for once. And really that. That notion of grooving in the face of adversity, it's applicable to so many things in life. It's just really stayed with me. So. And it was also testimony to the. To the power of this music to. To impact people's emotions. So that wasn't lost on me. And ultimately, that's what I wanted to do with my life, is be involved in making that kind of music for. For people to bring them some comfort and understanding in times of chaos and confusion.

[Interviewer / Host]

We're talking to Don was about his latest album, Groove in the Face of Adversity. He and his band, the Panda Troy Ensemble, will be at the Blue Note on Monday. Let's listen to another track. Here's the Curtis Mayfield song, this Is My Country. We'll play minute from the top. What is something that we should listen to on this track?

[Don Was]

Oh, the lyrics. It's a. It's an incredible Curtis Mayfield song from 1968 that is as relevant today, if not more relevant than it was back then, which. Which is kind of shocking to me, having been around in 1968, and it's tragic to me, actually. But I think it's important to remind people that if they're frustrated and stressed out in these times, they're not alone. And you got company and there's a commonality among all people and we got.

[Interviewer / Host]

To pull it together this is my country.

[Music Performer / Vocalist]

Some people think that we don't have the right to say it's my country before they give in they'd rather fuss and fight and say it's my country I paid 300 years or more Slave driving Sweat and wealth on my back this is my country.

[Alison Stewart]

So, dawn, you'll be at the Blue Note on Monday. Are you gonna play the whole album? What's gonna happen?

[Don Was]

We're going to play between the two sets. We'll play the whole album. And we're also honoring the Grateful Dead, and they're the 50th anniversary of their album Blues for Allah. So we'll, we'll actually, over the two sets, we'll play that whole album as well.

[Interviewer / Host]

Sometimes at the Blue Note, you're known for surprise guests. Will there be? You don't have to tell me who, but will there be any surprises?

[Don Was]

We're talking to a few folks. Yeah, of course.

[Alison Stewart]

You're the president of Blue Note Records.

[Interviewer / Host]

Does Blue Note, does it feel like a homecoming when you play there?

[Don Was]

Yeah, sure does. You know, it's a great club. We just opened one in la. We played the Tokyo Club, Pan Detroit Ensemble a couple months ago. It's a special place and it means a lot to folks and it means a lot to me to actually be on the stage instead of in the audience.

[Interviewer / Host]

I have been speaking to Don Was about his latest album, Groove in the Face of Adversity. He and his band, the Pan Detroit Ensemble, will be at the Blue Note on Monday. Have a great show.

[Don Was]

Yeah, thank you so much. I'm looking forward to it. And thanks for having me on.

[Interviewer / Host]

Today, let's go out with a little bit of insane. It's originally by the New York funk group Cameo. It can be found on the new album.

[Music Performer / Vocalist]

Sam.

[Ira Flato]

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