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The Bad Plus are calling it quits.
Pianist Ethan Iverson, bassist Reid Anderson, and drummer Dave King formed the experimental jazz group in 2000, and the latter two have kept it going since Iverson’s departure in 2017; the current iteration of the band features guitarist Ben Monder and tenor saxophonist Chris Speed. But pretty soon, no version of the Bad Plus will exist.
Anderson and King have announced that “after a great deal of soul searching and consideration,” they’re ending the band after this year. Here’s their message:
The Bad Plus has been a band for 26 years. That’s quite a long time! As we enter into year 27 – after a great deal of soul searching and consideration – we have decided to bring this chapter to a close. 2026 will be the final year of The Bad Plus. We share this news with heavy hearts, but also with great pride in what we have accomplished. It has been a privilege to share our music with the world and we leave behind a body of work that we could not be more proud of.
We look forward to performing our final shows throughout the coming year and hope to see as many of you as possible. This band changed our lives. Thank you all for being a part of that.
The Bad Plus have a residency in St. Louis this week, followed by a stop in Columbia. They’re also booked for the Montréal Jazz Festival in June. More dates are promised before year’s end. This spring, Anderson and King are also joining forces with pianist Craig Taborn and saxophonist Chris Potter under the name the Bad Plus Chris Potter And Craig Taborn for tour paying homage to the music of Keith Jarrett’s American Quartet. Those dates run throughout March and April. Below, check out a video message from Anderson and Reid plus their full 2026 itinerary thus far.
THE BAD PLUS TOUR DATES:
1/14 – St. Louis, MO @ Jazz St. Louis
1/15 – St. Louis, MO @ Jazz St. Louis
1/16 – St. Louis, MO @ Jazz St. Louis (Early Show)
1/16 – St. Louis, MO @ Jazz St. Louis (Late Show)
1/17 – St. Louis, MO @ Jazz St. Louis (Early Show)
1/17 – St. Louis, MO @ Jazz St. Louis (Late Show)
1/18 – St. Louis, MO @ Jazz St. Louis
1/21 – Columbia, MO @ The Blue Note
6/26 – Montréal, QC @ Montréal Jazz Festival at Théâtre Jean-Duceppe
THE BAD PLUS CHRIS POTTER AND CRAIG TABORN TOUR DATES:
3/03 – Lexington, KY @ Singletary Concert Hall
3/05 – Toronto, ON @ Meridian Arts Centre: George Weston Recital Hall
3/06 – Boulder, CO @ Boulder Theater
3/07 – Oakland, CA @ Yoshi’s
3/08 – Oakland, CA @ Yoshi’s
3/10 – Los Angeles, CA @ Blue Note LA (Early Show)
3/10 – Los Angeles, CA @ Blue Note LA (Late Show)
3/11 – Los Angeles, CA @ Blue Note LA (Early Show)
3/11 – Los Angeles, CA @ Blue Note LA (Late Show)
3/12 – La Jolla, CA @ The Conrad Prebys Performing Arts Center
3/13 – Santa Fe, NM @ The Lensic Performing Arts Center
3/21 – Bergamo, IT @ Bergamo Jazz Festival at Auditorium Parco della Musica: Sala Sinopoli
3/23 – Roma, IT @ Auditorium Parco della Musica
3/25 – Gdansk, PL @ Jazzjantar
3/27 – Madrid, ES @ Auditorio Nacional de Musica
3/28 – Paris, FR @ Maison de la Radio et de la Musique – Studio 104
3/29 – Monheim am Rhein, DE @ Aula am Berliner Ring
3/30 – London, UK @ Barbican
4/01 – Budapest, HU @ Bartók Spring International Art Weeks @ RaM-ArT Színház
4/03 – Leuven, BE @ 30CC Leuven
4/04 – Heidelberg, DE @ Enjoy Jazz @ Kulturhaus Karlstorbahnhof
4/05 – Stuttgart, DE @ Theaterhaus Jazztage
4/07 – Barcelona, ES @ L’Auditori
4/08 – Cenon, FR @ Le Rocher de Palmer
4/09 – Utrecht, NL @ TivoliVredenburg
4/10 – Amsterdam, NL @ Muziekgebouw
4/11 – Cully, CH @ Cully Jazz Festival
In 2024, we featured former Bad Plus pianist Ethan Iverson in our monthly jazz column, Ugly Beauty.