After 250 years as a country, the United States has grown a rich cultural history of songs and stories, written, told, and sung by people who’ve come here and people who’ve lived here. As we mark this quarter-millennium milestone, what better music to pay tribute to America than through jazz, which employs song to tell a story? An artform of many influences from many places that emerged on these shores in the early 20th century, jazz has come to represent the country’s spirit of freedom and democracy, individualism and community, and discipline and improvisation.
In that same spirit, Of The People presents an eclectic and gorgeously reimagined array of spirituals, country and folk pop songs, traditionals, and straight-up odes to the U.S.A. Chosen by Visions Jazz Ensemble co-leaders Sam Butler and Garrett Fasig, Indiana University jazz professor Brent Wallarab, and producer Greg Reynolds, the repertoire forms a unique mosaic of these United States, forged in a smithy of musical craftsmanship and creatively dynamic writing.
“Simple Gifts,” a 19th-century Shaker song famously used by Aaron Copland in his Appalachian Suite, opens the album on a quiet note of aspiration. The ebullient rhythmic currents of pianist David Linard and April Varner’s earnest invocation of the spiritual values of simplicity and freedom set a reflective tone for this cultural travelogue of American music.
“Take Me Home, Country Roads” was an early hit for 1970s superstar John Denver, whose bright, jaunty delivery of the original is contrasted here by April Varner’s wistful vocals and the melancholic drive of Sam Butler’s arrangement—a sense, perhaps, that the place longed for is becoming more elusive, harder to reach.
Canadian Gordon Lightfoot gifted America “The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald” in the country’s bicentennial year of 1976, only a few months after the Great Lakes ore freighter sank with all hands in a Lake Superior storm. April Varner’s vocal brings out the Irish folk source in Lightfoot’s melody, while David Linard pings notes like distress signals as the band gathers a bursting force throughout Sam Butler’s foreboding arrangement.
Patty Griffin’s relatively recent (2013) Americana song “Not a Bad Man” is a haunting reminder of the price paid by those who have fought in this nation’s wars and had a hard time finding peace afterwards. April Varner’s sensitively-wrought vocal works in tandem with Garret Fasig’s moody arrangement to manifest the narrator’s pain.
“Coat of Many Colors” is a rags-to-emotional-riches song that alludes to both the biblical story of Joseph and Dolly Parton’s mother using discarded pieces of cloth to make her daughter a cherished childhood coat. Humble circumstances have given birth to some of this nation’s greatest artists and leaders. Alex Hoberty’s bass and Caleb Robinson’s tenor sax artfully weave their way through the center of Sam Butler’s kaleidoscopic arrangement.
If “Going Home,” based on the second movement of Anton Dvorak’s 1893 New World Symphony, is often mistaken for a spiritual, it’s because Dvorak drew on his studies of such songs for his work. Written by the Czech composer while he was staying in America, it morphed into a song about coming to rest at the end of life after Dvorak’s student William Arms Fisher arranged it and added lyrics in 1922. Garrett Fasig’s twilight alto sax and the soulful dignity of David Linard’s piano carry us in the lovely glow of Fasig’s chart.
American icons Johnny Cash and Peggy Lee are just two of many singers who’ve recorded “Ghost Riders In The Sky” since its 1948 debut. A song about a cowboy who needs to change his ways, it also evokes the frontier of the American West, which occupies a central place in the country’s mythology. Sam Butler’s trumpet solo swoops and soars over the spacious vista of Garrett Fasig’s arrangement.
Black baritone and actor Paul Robeson left a strong imprint on “Deep River” when he recorded the spiritual in 1927. Sam Butler’s arrangement begins with soft brushwork from Francis Bassett-Dilley, the plaintive pulse of Alex Turner’s guitar, and the undercurrent of April Varner’s vocals, building to embody the American longing for freedom and deliverance as a river-like force, quiet but powerful and prone to rising from time to time.
April Varner gives a beautifully-understated delivery of “God Bless America,” a song that doesn’t generally encourage restraint when it comes to vocals. David Linard on the funky keyboards, ladies and gentlemen, with punchy brass touches from arranger Garrett Fasig and a conclusion of near-cacophonous joy.
Drummer Francis Bassett-Dilley and bassist Alex Hobey kickstart “Revolutionary Tea,” a traditional inspired by the 1773 Boston Tea Party that takes us all the way back to the country’s tumultuous birth. Garrett Fasig’s brooding score ultimately swells with a sense of defiance and increasingly inevitable conflict.
The soul of Ray Charles runs through Sam Butler’s bluesy arrangement of “America the Beautiful” like a big river. After heating things up with their solos, trombonist Jeff Parker and saxophonist Garrett Fasig go down swinging in jubilation.
“Hard Times,” an 1854 parlor song by seminal American music composer Stephen Foster, bookends this album with the same-era “Simple Gifts” as a spiritual reflection on life in the United States—that even this land of plenty is subject to deprivations and destitution. Credit Sam Butler as the signatory for this lovely ensemble declaration.
These young musicians summon a vision of America that is at once majestic and common, full of promise and pathos, united and diverse, aware of its past and attuned to its present, and always yearning to be free in a land for you and me. Of The People is a republic of song that invites us all to celebrate and reflect on the things about this country that we hold most dear. Count liberty and jazz among them.
–David Brent Johnson
Visions Jazz Ensemble
Since its founding in 2023, the Visions Jazz Ensemble—led by Indiana University alumni Sam Butler and Garrett Fasig—has been dedicated to delivering fresh, modern interpretations of both original compositions and timeless jazz standards. Their debut release, Across The Field (Patois Records), garnered critical acclaim, earning a feature in DownBeat Magazine and worldwide radio play for its inventive jazz arrangements of college fight songs, and collaboration with esteemed trombonist Wycliffe Gordon. Each performance highlights new works by Butler, Fasig, and members of the band, with the ensemble bringing a vibrant and joyful energy to every stage. Sam, the 2023 International Trumpet Guild Jazz Solo Competition winner, and Garrett, whose compositions have been showcased by the New York Youth Symphony and renowned vocalist Brianna Thomas, push the envelope with every performance, blending creativity, artistry, and positivity in their music. Now back with their second album, “Of The People” presents a new musical identity for the Visions Jazz Ensemble, featuring acclaimed vocalist April Varner.
April Varner
Award Winning NYC-based jazz vocalist and composer, April Varner, has often been described as a “direct, authentic singer…”, demonstrating “vocal dynamism… authentic jazz phrasing…electrifying numbers…” and possessing a “profound command of deep scat and vocalese…” (Marilyn Lester, The New York City Jazz Record). Recognizable by her curly red hair and voice of an “old soul”, April brings her listeners to another place- one long ago when the giants of jazz were still gracing the stage. Amassing several viral videos on her social media of her challenging solo transcriptions, cleverly crafted vocaleses and acapella renditions of the Great American Songbook, April’s voice can fit itself into a myriad of different molds. April has performed/will be performing at some of the most notable venues in the Northeast, such as Chris’s Jazz Cafe (Philadelphia), Blues Alley (Washington D.C), Con Alma (Pittsburgh), 54 Below (NYC), Birdland Jazz Club (NYC, sold out debut show), and Mezzrow Jazz Club (NYC, sold out debut show). She also recently made her International Debut, headlining the Longjumeau Jazz Festival (Longjumeau, France) in celebration of the great Ella Fitzgerald, along with two full shows at Sunset Sunside in Paris. In October, April will be an invited featured artist in the Jazz For All Ages Festival (Hilton Head, SC), alongside some of the most notable figures in jazz, such as Kurt Elling, Catherine Russell, John Pizzarelli and Emmet Cohen. At the age of 27, April has immersed herself deeply into the jazz tradition and has performed/studied with a multitude of legendary artists and jazz luminaries such as Tierney Sutton, Russell Malone, Sachal Vasandani, Jane Monheit, Kurt Elling, and others. April graduated in May of 2022 with her Master’s degree in Jazz Voice Performance from the Manhattan School of Music under the guidance of 2-time Grammy© nominated vocalist and teacher Theo Bleckmann. She was awarded the 2023 Winner of the International Ella Fitzgerald Jazz Vocal Competition and most recently received a 2024 Honorable Mention Award in the ASCAP Herb Alpert Young Jazz Composers Competition. She just released her Debut Album, “April by April Varner” (Cellar Live Record Label), available on all streaming platforms. This genre-busting collection of all April-titled songs was produced by Grammy-Award winning drummer, producer and educator, Ulysses Owens Jr.
Her next album, entitled “Ella” was released in late March 2026 with Cellar Live. Having been April’s biggest vocal inspiration, this album features a collection of Ella Fitzgerald’s greatest hits with a twist, spanning from the very beginning of her career to her peak. Produced by Ulysses Owens Jr., personnel include Emmet Cohen, Yasushi Nakamura, and more!
Sam Butler
Sam Butler is a professional jazz trumpet player, composer, arranger and educator based in Indianapolis, IN. He has performed all around the Midwest with various ensembles including the Buselli-Wallarab Jazz Orchestra, Sean Dobbins and the Modern Jazz Messengers, Sammy Miller and The Congregation, and his own Folklore Sextet. As the winner of the 2023 International Trumpet Guild Jazz Solo Competition and with his debut album “Folklore” out with positive reviews in May of 2023, Sam has “an abundance of jazz success coming his way.” (Debbie Burke) He is immersed in the blending of musical styles including rock, classical music, folk, and jazz, and is creating a unique voice as he enters the modern jazz scene.
Sam began work as a jazz education curriculum developer, transcriber, arranger, and composer with Playbook Music in July of 2023. He was also an Associate Instructor in the Jazz Department of the Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University while completing his master’s degree in Jazz Studies. Following the release of Folklore in May of 2023, Sam toured with his Folklore Sextet in the summer of 2023 at venues all around the Midwest, including Cliff Bell’s in Detroit, the Jazz Kitchen in Indianapolis, and Fulton Street Collective in Chicago.
Sam quickly flourished as a performer, composer and arranger after beginning his academic career at the Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University in 2018. He was named a semi- finalist in the Jazz Division of the 2019 and 2020 National Trumpet Competition, and performed with the Plummer Jazz Sextet, a select group of musicians that writes original music, plays shows around the Midwest, and records. Sam has also recorded and performed a dozen of his own large ensemble compositions and arrangements with ensembles at IU, and during his undergraduate tenure, recorded an EP of all original compositions with his sextet “Spoken Thoughts,” which was released in early 2022. Sam completed his undergraduate studies in 2022, and accepted an Associate Instructor position in the jazz department to earn his master’s degree.
sambutlermusic.com
instagram.com/sam.butler.trumpet
facebook.com/sam.butler.90834776/
Garrett Fasig
Garrett Fasig is an emerging composer and saxophonist originally from Defiance, Ohio. In his short career thus far, Garrett has written several original jazz ensemble compositions that have been recorded by the Brent Wallarab Jazz Ensemble, a full program of music for jazz sextet and string quartet and has been commissioned for both jazz ensemble and orchestral works by the New York Youth Symphony and Brianna Thomas, respectively. He has also learned and performed alongside world-class musicians Walter Smith III, Steve Houghton Dayna Stephens, and Greg Ward.
The first eleven years of Garrett’s musical journey were devoted to his development on the saxophone. This led him to the Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University where he would go on to complete both his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in jazz studies. While spending most of his time studying saxophone. This changed in early 2020 when a neurological disorder, dystonia, would prevent him from spending long amounts of time playing. Garrett turned his focus towards composition, and by the next year was awarded the David N. Baker Jazz Composition Scholarship from BMI.
garrettfasigmusic.com
instagram.com/garrettfasig
facebook.com/gfasig
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July 31, 2026
File: Jazz/Vox