Jazz this week: What's happening New Year's Eve, and more

The week between Christmas and New Year's is another slow time for the touring business, so it's no surprise that St. Louis' stages are pretty much devoid of traveling jazz headliners this week. And while many local musicians will still be working their regular gigs this Friday and Saturday, let's first take a look at what's going on Sunday, New Year's Eve.

Unfortunately, the amount of local jazz activity on New Year's Eve is, to put it charitably, rather small. The city's premier club venue, Jazz at the Bistro, is located within the Grand Center arts district, which serves as the site for the annual First Night celebration. Given the competition that event brings for parking spaces in the neighborhood, and the overall street traffic generated by First Night, the Bistro has usually gone dark on New Year's Eve, and they are closed for NYE once again this year. The First Night events begin at 6 p.m. and this year's program does feature some musical performers of interest to jazz listeners, including Swing Set, Kim Massie, Swing DeVille, singer/pianist Beth Tuttle with Sandy Weltman, Farshid Etniko, and Debby Lennon. Visit the First Night Web site for times, venues and details.

Finale Music and Dining has a New Year's Eve package featuring the Vegas-style sounds of trumpeter Jim Manley (pictured) and his mini-big band Wild, Cool and Swingin'. Some local nightspots that regularly feature jazz, such as Brandt's, Crossings Taverne and Grille, the Casa Loma Ballroom and Cookie's Jazz and More, are choosing to present non-jazz entertainment this New Year's Eve, while the New Year's Eve music or entertainment at other places, such as Riddle's, Busch's Grove and Main Street Jazz and Blues, isn't even listed on their respective Web sites.

As for jazz at other venues around town on New Year's Eve, fans of contemporary electric styles may want to check out smooth jazz saxophonist Reedus Miller and guitarist Brian White, who will be at the Casino Queen, or Mo and Dawn, who will bring their acid-jazz/dance sound to the Clark Street Grill. But that's about it, as best as I have been able to determine, for jazz in St. Louis this New Year's Eve.

So if you want to hear some jazz this week, get out on the town before NYE. On Wednesday, singer Jeanne Trevor is at Brandt's in U. City, with pianist Ptah Williams just down the street at Riddle's. On Thursday, trumpeter Dan Smith and singer Debby Lennon are at Cookies. Friday, you'll find harmonica genius Sandy Weltman and his trio at Crossings and Swing Set at Erato Wine Bar, while on Saturday night you can catch Sherry Drake and Scott Alberici at Cookie's and Jim Manley playing in a trio setting at Crossings.

To see a more comprehensive listing of this week's jazz offerings, please visit the St. Louis Jazz Notes Calendar.

(If you have calendar items, band schedule information, news tips, links, or anything else you think may be of interest to StLJN's readers, please email the information to stljazznotes (at) yahoo (dot) com. No attachments, please.)