“Jim was a great friend with a huge heart,” said Dave Seiler, jazz studies coordinator at UNH. “I’ve known him since I arrived here in 1972, and played many gigs with him over the years, from the days of the original Tom Gallant Trio with Les Harris, Sr. on drums, to more recent gigs, including on one of my faculty recitals at UNH with Paul Verrette. It was always great fun to play with Jim, and he exuded great joy and humor in his bass playing. This is a loss for the local music scene, to be sure.”

Les Harris Jr., who was a drummer in Howe’s trio over the past nine years, reflected on the time he spent playing gigs with Howe.

“I first played with Jim when I was 17, back in 1978, at an old club called The Horse of a Different Color,” Harris said. “We’ve probably played thousands of gigs since then, from the Annie Bosteels Trio to Tom Gallant’s trio to the present group with Ryan Parker on piano. It’s funny, but it recently occurred to Jim and I that we would have been playing together for three decades this coming January, which was a shock to both of us, since neither of us thought we were that old.”

Harris went on to say that Howe “was a really great guy with a really great way with people. He could sit down and strike up a conversation with anyone and have them laughing instantly. And, his humor followed into his playing, which is a nice thing to interject into the music. He never took himself too seriously, and he had fun playing the music, an aspect he never forgot. Playing a medium blues with him was like being on a freight train, as he would get that bass rockin’ back and forth, and he would be grunting and smiling. That was his territory and he owned that groove.”

Howe was everything one could ask for in a jazz bassist. He had a fine sense of swing and time, and an intuitive approach to the overall interaction with other musicians on the stage. The humor in his playing would often show through on his solos, as he would often sing and play his lines at the same time, ala one of his bass playing idols, Slam Stewart. And, his joyous smile could warm up an audience in an instant.

Over the years, Howe had a wide variety of local, regional and national players come in to perform as guests with his trio. A partial list would include local stalwarts like Charlie Jennison, Tom Barron and Dave Seiler; regional performers like Greg Hopkins, Paul Fontaine, Billy Pierce and Chris Humphrey; and such nationally known performers as Al Grey, Frank Wess and Scott Hamilton. Pianist Ryan Parker, who joined the trio in 2002, reflected on those experiences.

“Jim entrusted me to the piano seat left vacant by Tommy Gallant’s passing, something that enriched me musically and personally,” Parker said. “I was able to play with some of the best jazz musicians in the world because of it, something I will always be thankful of.” Parker said that he would miss having Howe call him to say, “Get your calendar out. I’ve got some dates for you.”

Musicians like Jim Howe are increasingly rare in today’s sometimes superficial music world. He was truly a great person who would give you a hand with anything in the world. He was keenly interested in helping young people learn about jazz and other aspects of music. He once told me that his advice to young folks was to “get as much gigging experience in a variety of contexts as you can, early on.” That’s sound advice from someone who once played a gig with Elvis.

Howe was somewhat old school in his approach to jazz, in that he was dedicated to perpetuating the straight-ahead, acoustic oriented aspect of the music. But, there’s absolutely nothing wrong with that, as the music always needs people who are dedicated to perpetuating the art form in its purest sense. Barry Danielian, a super trumpet player originally from Hampton, who is currently living and gigging in New York City, came up to the area with a variety of local players, including Howe.

“I feel bad for the younger guys that won’t be able to experience what I did when I was coming up,” Danielian said. “You can’t really learn this music in school. You have to be on the bandstand with guys like Jim kicking you in the butt!”

Like many folks, I’ll miss Jim. I’ll miss hearing him play on Sunday evenings at The Press Room. I’ll miss the sense of humor and the laughter that went with it. And, I’ll miss the encouraging words he offered me on so many occasions. The local music scene has had its share of characters and personalities—and still does. Jim Howe was one of those characters, and he was also a true gentleman. He left us all the richer for having been in his presence.