Jazz Buzz - Retrospectives On Pre-Covid-19 Live Jazz Concerts

As part of the San Francisco Jazz Spring Season 2012 , Kate McGarry and her band mates made an appearance at the Swedish American Hall , 2174 Market Street, San Francisco, California on April 20, 2012 for an 8:00 P. M. performance. McGarry was accompanied by Keith Gantz - guitar ; Gary Verace - organ ; Clarence Penn - drums & percussion. Song Stylist Kate McGarry Considering that the Swedish American Hall is not ideally equipped acoustically for music concerts of the type that McGarry and the band performed, the show was well attended and impressive. Judging from the reaction of the audience, who were attentive and engaged throughout the show, McGarry and her band should feel very gratified with their performance and reception. In spite of the venue's obvious shortcomings, they took the show forward as consummate professionals must. I observed Keith Gantz on several occasions work to get the right sound and balance for his guitar, and so...

It's rare. But it happens. You're barreling down the freeway and suddenly out of your car's sound system pours the voice of a jazz singer you have not heard before, and yet, there is a distinctively familiar quality in the voice that says; you must have. You have to solve this mystery; but the radio station likes to play the game of 'three or four songs in a row'  and then reel off a gaggle of names in the back announcement. So you sit there patiently waiting to hear who is this dynamite song stylist. Finally the DJ comes up for air, and gets around to killing the suspense. He gives you plenty rap about record labels, who's playing which instrument, recording dates and venues; he neglects to mention the name you are listening for, and deftly moves on to another music triple-shuffle: You're reduced to pounding on the car's steering wheel in vexed frustration.  There was a charm in the singer's voice that spoke of seducti...

Poncho Sanchez & Terence Blanchard Poncho Sanchez is a man of his word. On Saturday May 21, 2011, he announced during an appearance at Yoshi's Jazz Club in San Francisco, California, that his next project would be to produce a CD with trumpeter Terence Blanchard honoring jazz legend Dizzy Gillespie, and percussionist,  Chano Pozo.   And now less than a year later, he has returned to Yoshi's Jazz Club in Oakland, California, Blanchard in tow to deliver on his promise, present the work of his new CD: "Chano Y Dizzy," and add another 'musical championship belt' to his spectacular collection. Saturday February 18, 2012 was a spectacular California day, it was bright and the temperature was almost perfect. It was still officially Winter, but it was more like Spring. By nightfall it had cooled significantly, but not to require serious Winter gear for outdoors. It seemed a perfect evening for checking out some good music, and Poncho Sanchez's Latin Jaz...

Jazz Pianist Romain Collin On Sunday June 3, 2012, pianist Romain Collin appeared at The Piano Bar in Oakland, California for a solo performance. Collin's new CD "The Calling" was being received in the world of jazz with solid enthusiasm and high praise. This special appearance gave the small, but appreciative crowd an intimate look into the extraordinary, creative mind, and swelling talent of this young ascending jazz pianist, who, on this occasion, had at his disposal a magnificent Grand Fazoli Piano . The Fazoli Grand Piano is considered the luxury piano of choice for serious artists. Though designed for large spaces, and formidably compatible with large-capacity concert halls, on this occasion, Collin was able, in the intimacy of  The Piano Bar , to capture its best qualities and awesome "sound" in a way that augmented his selection of  material and produced a memorable event. Rollin admitted at the beginning of the program that he deliber...

Grupo Falso Baiano Photo courtesy: daniellathompson.com On Wednesday evening August 3, 2011, the 'infamous' fog that quietly spreads its cool, moist cloak over the San Francisco Bay Area was rolling in from the Pacific Ocean when Grupo Falso Biano took the stage at Yoshi's Jazz Club in Jack London Square, Oakland, California. Little did I know what an exquisite musical cloak this group also was set to spread over the large number of its excited fans that turned out to join in the celebration of the release of their new CD "Simplicidade: Live at Yoshi's." I had not heard of this band before, and knew nothing of the music it played. But I was drawn to them when I learned that roots of their music, an instrumental style called Choro , were planted firmly in Brazil; it predated the Bossa Nova ; was relatively unknown in North America ; and  Grupo Falso Baiano arguably, was the sole working Choro ensemble in America. This seemed to signal that the band ...

President Barack Obama presenting tenor saxophonist Sonny Rollins with the 2010 National Medal of Arts Award. When Sonny Rollins  was awarded the 2010 National Medal of Arts for outstanding achievements and support of the arts by President Barack Obama on March 2, 2010, I wonder if, among the many things that were going through his mind, was the time, "as a seventeen year old senior, and brilliant tenor player, attending Benjamin Franklin High School in New York, he used to go everyday up to Thelonious Monk's place (243 West 63rd Street, NYC) in Sugar Hill and practice with Monk, tenor saxophonist Jackie McClean , drummer Art Taylor , pianist Kenny Drew , and bassists Arthur Phipps and Connie Henry - the original "Sugar Hill Gang." "Monk helped Rollins, and encouraged him to develop his own sound, but most importantly, allowed him to play what he wanted." (Source: Thelonious Monk: The Life and Times of an American Original by Robin D. G. Kell...

 Tenor saxophonist Branford Marsalis The appearance of the Branford Marsalis Quartet at Yoshi's San Francisco, California Jazz Club (Sept. 21 - 25, 2011) was billed as,  "An evening with one of the most innovative and forward-thinking jazz ensembles today."  Oh yeah? Better be sure the health insurance is all paid up. It was more like five evenings with an  'innovative and forward-rolling earthquake.'  Earthquakes are not unusual for the San Francisco Bay Area. This one was different: it had a name: " Branford."  Usually names are reserved for hurricanes, but this was extraordinary.  Richter  had no number. By Saturday night (Sept. 24), uncontrolled mayhem and unabating turbulence had reached a level that rendered the establishment an undisputed danger zone. Marsalis had brought to the carnage: Pianist  Joey Calderazzo , a guy that really thinks ahead -  in music light years;  a twenty-year old drummer,  Justin...