It's Thanksgiving week, and though that means a temporary slowdown in terms of touring musicians visiting St. Louis, it also presents an opportunity to be grateful for the many fine jazz musicians our town has produced over the years.One of those musicians, trumpeter and vocalist Jeremy Davenport (pictured), is returning home to St. Louis from New Orleans to perform at Jazz at the Bistro on Friday and Saturday. Davenport grew up in University City, but moved to the Crescent City in the 1990s to establish his music career there. After the devastation caused by Hurricane Katrina and the subsquent flooding of the city, Davenport came back to St. Louis temporarily, spending most of 2006 here performing as the house act at Busch's Grove. When the Ritz Carlton hotel in New Orleans reopened in January of this year, Davenport moved back to resume his house gig there.
This is first time in St. Louis since then, and in addition to the shows on Friday and Saturday, Davenport also is doing a Sunday matinee performance as a benefit for PanCAN, a not-for-profit organization that raises money and awareness for the fight against pancreatic cancer.
Besides Davenport, there's plenty of other noteworthy homegrown talent on St. Louis stages this weekend. On Friday, the Sinatra Songbook, featuring vocalist Tom Heitman fronting the Steve Schankman Orchestra, plays at Finale Music and Dining, and Wild Cool & Swingin' returns to Cookie's Jazz and More.
On Saturday, flute player and vocalist Margaret Bianchetta brings her group into Brandt's, and Trio Tres Bien, ably abetted by Danita Mumphard on vocals, will perform at Cookie's. Looking ahead to the Monday after the holiday weekend, the Genesis Jazz Project big band will do a free concert that evening at the Touhill Performing Arts Center.
I'd also like to call your attention to one more event this weekend that isn't jazz, but should provide a good time for fans of roots music. On Friday night, the Soulard Blues Band and some special guests will be presenting a show they're calling the St. Louis Blues and Soul Revue upstairs at the Sheldon.
It's styled as an old-school R&B review featuring vocalists Marty Abdullah, Renee Smith, Stacy Johnson and Margaret Bianchetta. All four singers will be backed by the SBB, augmented for the occasion by keyboardist Matt Murdick and a three-piece horn section, and they'll be doing a non-stop playlist of soul and blues classics, including some special material they've worked up just for this gig. (Disclaimer: I know most of the folks involved with this show, and have worked quuite a bit with Renee Smith and SBB guitarist Tom Maloney.)
These are just a few highlights of the holiday weekend, but you can see a more extensive list of jazz-related events in the St. Louis area by visiting 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. If you have photos, MP3s or other digital files, please send links, not attachments.)
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