Department of shameless self-promotion & blog business, slight return

OK, I know I promised a return to regular updates several days ago, and yet I haven't posted since Sunday. Shame on me, mea maxima culpa, etc.

But I do have a semi-good excuse. Though I'm finally out from under some of the writing deadlines I mentioned earlier, I've been rehearsing with the Oliver Sain Review for a couple of upcoming gigs, and also working with singer Kim Massie to get ready to record a live CD this Friday and Saturday at Jazz at the Bistro.

In addition to Kim on vocals and yours truly on piano, the band includes Gus Thornton on bass, Lew Winer III on tenor and soprano saxes and Isaac Jerome Harris on drums. We'll be doing some standard tunes recorded by Ella Fitzgerald, Dinah Washington, Etta James and others, some more modern stuff from Diana Krall and Norah Jones, and a few surprises. Should be fun, and tickets are still available, so come on down, if you're so inclined.

I did manage to complete a big update of the StLJN calendar, which now includes the entire fall schedule for Washington University's Jazz at Holmes series; the entire year's worth of concerts at Webster University; monthly updates for Cookie's and Brandt's; and a number of other shows that were announced and/or called to my attention over the last couple of weeks. So at least there's that.

And I'll have at least one more post tonight, and tomorrow, a preview of a busy weekend in St. Louis for jazz and creative music. After that, it's likely to be slim pickings again until Sunday, at which point I'll likely post a recap of the gig at the Bistro and some other stuff that's been piling up. In the meantime, thanks for reading.