Tommy Ruskin, 1942-2015

A weekly jam session at Fedora's on the Plaza helped ease me into Kansas City's jazz scene in the 1990s.  Tommy Ruskin, a handsome drummer with a prodigious sense of swing, graciously oversaw those delightful forums.

It was clear that Ruskin had won the respect and friendship of Kansas City's most enthusiastic jazz fans and its core musicians. 

Ruskin died last week. 

The Kansas City Star's remembrance includes details about a memorial service.  A television station and KC Jazz Lark also paid tribute to Ruskin.