Wednesday Jazz

July 28, 2010 / / No Comments

TULA’S JAZZ CLUB: Chelsea Crabtree Quartet

JAZZ ALLEY: Mose Allison

DULCES LATIN BISTRO: Eric Verlinde

LUCID JAZZ LOUNGE: Vocalize It w/ Cyndi Moring

NEW ORLEANS: Legacy Band w/ Clarence Acox

THAIKU: Ron Weinstein Trio

EGAN’S BALLARD JAM HOUSE:
7pm – Vocal Jam hosted by Kim Rushing, with Darin Clendenin (piano), Larry Halloway (bass) and Robert Rushing (drums)
9pm – Vocal Showcase featuring Jenny Kienzle, Cara Francis and Fathia Atallah – hosted by Kim Rushing, with Darin Clendenin (piano), Larry Halloway (bass) and Robert Rushing (drums)

Gail Pettis gets 4-star review in Downbeat Magazine

July 27, 2010 / / No Comments

Gail Pettis, “Here In The Moment”
by Frank-John Hadley, Downbeat, August 2010

* * * *

A former orthodontist, Pettis finds new vistas of emotion in the words and music of standards and surprises on her second album. Her wonderful version of “I Thought About You,” usually identified with Ella Fitzgerald, reflects the melancholy of a sad-faced train passenger with an intimacy that few singers in any genre have knowledge of. Another ballad, “How Did He Look?” a favorite of cabaret singer Mabel Mercer, is rendered poignantly with an easy elegance built of curiosity and lingering heartbreak over a lost love affair. This granddaughter of a Mississippi bluesman freshens Cole Porter’s “Night And Day” with exhilaration over sharing “sweet love” with her partner. Similarly, the directness of feeling she reveals about a blossoming romance does more than ample justice to Etta James’ old r&b hit “At Last.” All the other songs, too, whatever the tempo or mood, each graced by the surety of her delivery, have an unmistakable air of honesty about them. Minor compliant: Pettis’ two pianists and bassists are clearly talented by their solos don’t so much develop the songs as mark time between verses.

(excerpt of a two album review, Gail Pettis and Pamela Rose)

More about this CD at OA2 Records

Tuesday Jazz

July 26, 2010 / / No Comments

TULA’S JAZZ CLUB: Musicworks Big Band

NEW ORLEANS: Holotradband

EGAN’S BALLARD JAM HOUSE: Jump Ensemble

BOXLEY’S: Courtney Cutchins

JAZZ ALLEY: Mose Allison

MARTIN’S ON MADISON: Karin Kajita

THE MIX: Don Mock

OWL ‘N THISTLE: Jam w/ Eric Verlinde & Jose Martinez

Review: Nathan Eklund, Coin Flip

July 26, 2010 / / No Comments

from All About Jazz.com.

NewYork-based trumpeter/composer Nathan Eklund assembles a fiery, swinging quintet for Coin Flip, his fourth release as a leader and first for Seattle’s OA2 Records. The nine track disc is as much a showcase for Eklund’s convincing abilities as a composer and arranger as it is for his dynamic trumpet playing.

Eklund demonstrates an immense trumpet tone with technical agility, rooted in the post-bop tradition. Echoes of the late trumpet giants Freddie Hubbard and Woody Shaw can be heard on the meter-shifting opener “Rooicka’s Castle” and the groovy “Professor Dissendadt,” a tune reminiscent of a CTI Records date from the early 1970s.

Continue All About Jazz.com.

Friday Jazz

July 23, 2010 / / No Comments

TULA’S JAZZ CLUB: Stephanie Porter Quartet

BAKE’S PLACE: Greta Matassa: The Music of Ray Charles

NEW ORLEANS: Thomas Marriott’s Flexicon

LATONA PUB: Hadley Caliman, Phil Sparks & Matt Jorgensen
(5:00-7:00pm, no cover)

EGAN’S BALLARD JAM HOUSE:
7pm – Hugh Sutton and Susan Harper
9pm – Honeypie, with Kristy Smith (vocals/guitar/ukelele), Dawn Clement (vocals/piano/nord-electro), Geoff Harper (bass) and Steve Smith (drums)

BOXLEY’S: Clark Gibson Trio

AMORE: Lonnie Williams

LAKESIDE BISTRO: Deems Tsutakawa

JAZZ VOX: Dena DeRose & Chuck Deardorf

THE CHAPEL: Andy Hayleck & Paul Neidhardt

LUCID: Mack Grout Group

SERAFINA: Fred Hoadley Trio

NORTH CITY BISTRO: Gail Pettis Trio

The Music of Wayne Shorter – Saturday at Tula’s

July 22, 2010 / / No Comments

MUSIC OF WAYNE SHORTER FOR BRASS
w/Tom Varner, Thomas Marriott and Dave Marriott

TULA’S JAZZ CLUB
2214 2nd Ave, Seattle
7:30pm $15

from Tom Varner:
Tom Varner, Thomas Marriott, David Marriott: The Wayne’ing Brass (New Looks at the Music of Wayne Shorter, with a brass trio–trumpet, horn, trombone, with piano, bass, and drums). With Bill Anschell, piano, Phil Sparks, bass, and Matt Jorgensen, drums.

I have always loved the soulful, intelligent, and searching music of Wayne Shorter, from his three-horn writing for Art Blakey to his more recent projects such as “Alegria.” I’m really excited that the David and Thomas Marriott will join me on an “all-brass Shorter celebration,” and I’m sure that the crack rhythm section of Anschell, Sparks, and Jorgensen will UP the party and keep us honest. A big thanks to David M. for providing the lion’s share of the charts. I haven’t played with a tpt/bone/horn sextet since moving to Seattle in ’05, and I LOVE this sound. Come on over and join us at Tula’s this Saturday, July 24!

Thursday Jazz

July 22, 2010 / / No Comments

INTERBAY GOLF CLUB: Leah Natale & Ambience
2501 15th Ave W, 5:00pm

TULA’S JAZZ CLUB: Beth Winter Showcase w/ students of Cornish College and Roosevelt High School

JAZZ ALLEY: Poncho Sanchez Latin Jazz Band

NEW ORLEANS: Ham Carson Quintet

THAIKU: Jon Alberts, Jeff Johnson and Tad Britton

EGAN’S BALLARD JAM HOUSE:
7pm – Jessica Stenson with Darin Clendenin
9pm – Jennifer Hoyt with Darin Clendenin

BARCA: Clark Gibson Trio

THE CHAPEL: Owcharuk 5; Paul Kikuchi’s Portable Sanctuary

LUCID: The Hang w/ The Teaching

Wednesday Jazz

July 21, 2010 / / No Comments

TULA’S JAZZ CLUB: Leah Stillwell and Jose Gonzales Group

JAZZ ALLEY: Jacqui Naylor

NEW ORLEANS: Legacy Quartet w/Clarence Acox

THAIKU: Ron Weinstein Trio

LUCID: OTC

Photos: Hadley Caliman Quintet at Jazz Alley

July 19, 2010 / / No Comments

There was a packed house last night at Jazz Alley to hear Hadley Caliman’s Quintet featuring Thomas Marriott, Bill Anschell, Phil Sparks and Matt Jorgensen.

The audience was treated to a 90-minute set by the Seattle jazz legend who performed material from his two recent CDs, Straight Ahead and Gratitude. Vocalist Gail Pettis made a special appearance on two songs as well.

Photos by Carolyn Caster

Monday Jazz

July 19, 2010 / / No Comments

TULA’S JAZZ CLUB: Jazz Jam with the Darin Clendenin Trio

JAZZ ALLEY: Somi

TOST: Michael Shrieve’ Spellbinder

NEW ORLEANS: New Orleans Quintet

AMORE: New Orleans Quintet

EL GAUCHO BELLEVUE: Primo Kim

POGGIE TAVERN: Better World w/ Marc Smason & Joanne Klein

Sounds Outside brings jazz to the people — free and outdoors

July 16, 2010 / / No Comments

from The Seattle Times:

Twice this summer, Monktail Creative Concern presents Sounds Outside, a free festival of modern jazz in Cal Anderson Park on Capitol Hill. Now in its fifth year, Sounds Outside is a form of forced exposure — make your way through the park on Saturday or Aug. 14, and there’s no way to miss the music. The bills typically focus on the more adventurous, less traditional end of the jazz spectrum — playful, experimental, more appropriate for noisy rock clubs than formal jazz venues.

Continue reading at The Seattle Times.

Friday Jazz

July 16, 2010 / / No Comments

TULA’S JAZZ CLUB: Kelley Johnson Quartet

JAZZ ALLEY: Karrin Allyson

TRIPLE DOOR MUSICQUARIUM:
5:30pm: Peter Schmeeckle Sextet
9:00pm: Das Vibenbass

NEW ORLEANS: Travis Ranney

BAKE’S PLACE: Riley Mulherkar

BOXLEY’S: Clark Gibson Trio

EGAN’S BALLARD JAM HOUSE:
7pm – Band-And-A-Jam featuring Jammy Jam, with Josh Rawlings, Katrina Kope and Tai Shan
9pm – David Marriott’s Pop Culture featuring Marc Fendel

LATONA PUB: Phil Sparks Trio

CYPRESS LOUNGE: Gail Pettis Trio

LAKESIDE BISTRO: Sam Chambliss

NORTHCITY BISTRO: David George Quartet

HIROSHI’S: Hans Brehmer Trio

THE CHAPEL: Christian Asplund

Thursday Jazz

July 15, 2010 / / No Comments

SAM Sculpture Park: Thomas Marriott & Tumbao
5:30pm, Free, 2901 Western Avenue

TULA’S JAZZ CLUB: Sonando

BARCA: Clark Gibson Trio

LUCID: The Hang w/ The Teaching

NEW ORLEANS: Ham Carson Quintet

THAIKU: Jon Alberts, Jeff Johnson & Tad Britton

Hadley Caliman at Jazz Alley this Sunday, July 18

July 14, 2010 / / No Comments

Come support this Seattle legend at this rare Jazz Alley appearance.

Celebrating Hadley Caliman with Thomas Marriott

July 18 – Jazz Alley
2033 6th Avenue
7:30pm, $12.00

Click here to make a reservation for this show or call 206-441-9729.

The Pacific Jazz Institute at Dimitriou’s Jazz Alley presents saxophonist Hadley Caliman with trumpeter Thomas Marriott. Joining them will be Bill Anschell (piano), Phil Sparks (bass) and Matt Jorgensen (drums). Show time is 7:30pm, doors will open at 6:00pm.

Tenor saxophonist Hadley Caliman is part of the living history of jazz music in America. From Dexter Gordon to Freddie Hubbard to Santana to Phoebe Snow through to his recent critically-acclaimed “Gratitude,” Hadley Caliman’s 78 years has been filled with the kind of personal achievement that all creative artists strive for. His influence on the sound of modern jazz music can be heard on many of his albums as a leader. On “Straight Ahead,” Hadley Caliman visits some of his favorite tunes including his old friend Harold Land’s “Rapture,” the Lee Morgan classic “Totem Pole,” and with his own original “Cigar Eddie,” he provides a spirited opening to another classic recording. Featuring his working Seattle band with trumpeter Thomas Marriott, pianist Eric Verlinde, Phil Sparks on bass, and Matt Jorgensen on drums, “Straight Ahead” is another clear example of a living legend in top form.

Wednesday Jazz

July 14, 2010 / / No Comments

TULA’S JAZZ CLUB: Bellevue CC Jazz Band with Hal Sherman

NEW ORLEANS: Legacy Quartet w/Clarence Acox

EGAN’S BALLARD JAM HOUSE:
7pm – Vocal Jam hosted by Carol Potvin, with Ed Weber (piano), Dan O’Brien (bass) and Robert Rushing (drums)
9pm – Vocal Showcase with Ed Weber (piano), Dan O’Brien (bass) and Robert Rushing (drums)

BOXLEY’S: Katy Bourne

LUCID: Chris Morton

THAIKU: Ron Weinstein Trio

Leading Questions: Michael Barnett

July 12, 2010 / / No Comments

Interview and photo by Steve Korn

When I was 14, I fell in love with the sound of the bass, specifically, Milt Hinton.

If I could do it all over again, I’d probably do most of it again, perhaps more efficiently.

Practice makes perfect, allegedly, but it never quite does which is why we keep doing it.

The bass is “a thing of beauty and a pain-in-the-ass forever.”

When I look at where I’m at right now, I know I’m still on the way to where I’m going.

My parents were talented, interested and interesting people, supportive and, in my case, very tolerant.

Fear is a poor motivator.

Motivation is whatever works for you.

As I get older, I’ve realized that advancing age is not necessarily a catastrophe, at least so far.

The thing about music is it’s the greatest blessing and thus requires nothing less than our best effort to do it right.
Read More