In the organizer's words:

BILLY COBHAM turned 80 in May 2024 and isn't even thinking about retirement yet.
Cobham was born in Panama on May 16, 1944 and grew up in Brooklyn, New York. He had his first paid gig at the age of eight as a member of St. Catherine's Queensmen, a drum and bugle corps in St. Albans, Queens. He attended the prestigious Fiorella H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and the Performing Arts in New York, where he studied music theory and percussion technique.
During his military service from 1965 to 1968, Cobham played drums in the US Army Band. After his service, he played in Horace Silver's band, performed with Stanley Turrentine and Shirley Scott and recorded with George Benson.

In 1969, Billy Cobham co-founded the jazz-rock combo Dreams, which included Randy Brecker, Michael Brecker, John Abercrombie, Don Grolnick, Barry Rodgers and Will Lee. The following year he joined Miles Davis' new fusion ensemble and took part in Live-Evil, A Tribute to Jack Johnson and the Bitches Brew sessions, where he worked with guitarist John McLaughlin.

In 1971, Cobham became a founding member of the jazz fusion orchestra Mahavishnu Orchestra along with McLaughlin, Jan Hammer, Jerry Goodman and Rick Laird. This original group released three critically acclaimed albums: The Inner Mounting (1971), Birds of Fire (1973) and Between Nothingness and Eternity (live album 1973).

In 1973, Cobham released his first solo album Spectrum, a breakthrough in jazz fusion that is widely regarded as one of the genre's most significant and influential creations. Spectrum was recorded at Iimi Hendrix's Electric Lady Studios in New York City. Cobham's line-up for the album consisted of Tommy Bolin on guitar, Jan Hammer on electric piano, Moog synthesizer and piano and Lee Sklar on bass.
Also in 1973, Cobham toured with John McLaughlin and Carlos Santana, playing material from the album Love Devotion Surrender.
In 1974, the original line-up of the Mahavishnu Orchestra disbanded. Cobham continued his work on innovative fusion material with the release of Crosswind (1974), Shabaz (1974), Total Eclipse (1974), A Funky Thide of Sings (1975) and Life and Times (1976).

In the 70s and 80s Cobham recorded for Atlantic, CBS, Elektra and GRP. He worked with George Duke, John Scofield, Tony Williams, Jack Bruce and the Grateful Dead offshoot band Bobby & the Midnites.

In 1992, Cobham was commissioned by UNICEF to work with autistic outpatients and street children in Santos, Brazil, as part of a multi-year music project.

In 2001, Cobham released the double CD retrospective Rudiments: The Billy Cobham Anthology. In 2002, he began releasing a CD series with special artists under the title Drum n Voice.

By 2005, Cobham had recorded and released over 30 recordings under his own name. He developed and enjoyed a special musical collaboration with the Cuban group Asere.

In 2007 he released Fruit from the Loom, a comprehensive account of Cobham's roots and travels. In 2010, Cobham released Palindrome, the second installment of the Fruit from the Loom series.

In 2011, Cobham began teaching drum lessons online at the Jazz & Fusion Drum School with Billy Cobham.

In 2013, Cobham celebrated the 40th anniversary of the release of Spectrum with a tour of the U.S., Canada and Europe with the Spectrum 40 Band. Also that year, Purple Pyramid Records released the Billy Cobham Compass Point double CD set, recorded live at the Compass Point Hotel in the Bahamas in 1997 and never before released.

In early 2014, the highly anticipated album "Tales from the Skeleton Coast" was released, the third of four recordings in memory of Cobham's parents, who were both musicians. He himself says: "Tales from the Skeleton Coast reflects experiences I shared with my parents that are close to my heart, including impressions gained during my travels through former South West Africa, now Namibia. The images of the Skeleton Coast in particular still burn within me, and through the music I have reflected these experiences in sound."

Billy Cobham - drums
Gary Husband - keys
Rocco Zifarelli - guitar
Victor Cisternas - bass
Bjorn Arko - sax