Jazz this week: Marlena Shaw, Bela Fleck and the Flecktones, and more

If nothing else, the two major headliners in St. Louis over the next seven days demonstrate that jazz is indeed a "big tent," capable of encompassing a true diversity of sounds.

Singer Marlena Shaw (pictured) comes to Jazz at the Bistro this week for a four-night stand, performing twice nightly through Saturday. Shaw has done a bit of everything in her long career, from disco and glossy, heavily orchestrated R&B to jazz standards and blues. Given the Bistro's intimate atmosphere, I'd expect more of the latter from her at this week's gig, although I wouldn't be totally surprised to hear some rearranged versions of some of that 1970s dance material alongside cozier numbers like "Go Away Little Boy".

The other big headliner of the week doesn't hit town until Monday, when Bela Fleck and the Flecktones return to The Pageant. Trying to describe the Flecktones can end up sounding like the setup for a hoary old joke - "A banjo player, a bass player, a guy playing two saxophones at once, and an electronic drummer walk into a bar..." - but there's no doubt that they've carved out their own unique niche in the music world, and even when their compositions meander a bit, their level of musicianship is always impressive.

Elsewhere in town, bassist Tom Kennedy and his group will perform a free concert on Thursday night as part of Washington University's Jazz at Holmes series. On Friday, singer Dean Christopher and his "Rat Pack and More" show begin a two-night stand at Finale Music and Dining, and the Ambassadors of Swing perform at the Casa Loma Ballroom.

On Sunday afternoon, the new Black Arts Group returns to the Scott Joplin House State Historic Site to present "Men of Words - A Poetic Collection of Men's Contemporary Thoughts," which will feature spoken word performances from Roscoe Crenshaw, David A.N. Jackson and Chris Hayden and a solo musical performance by bassist/mbira player Zimbabwe Nkenya. And on Monday night, Webster University will present "For the Sake of Art - A Tribute to Art Blakey," which will feature members of the University's jazz faculty and their special guest, bassist and Webster alumnus Steve Kirby, performing songs associated with the great drummer, bandleader, and talent scout.

To see more of what's happening this weekend, you can consult the St. Louis Jazz Notes Calendar. Please note that since it's the end of the month and February listings are still coming in, updates to the calendar likely will be in progress for the next several days. If you don't see listings for your favorite nightspot yet, please check back later, or you can always use the links on the sidebar to go directly to the site of the venue in question.

(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.)