Jazz this week: Good 4 The Soul, Midwest Quintet, Cara Dineen, and more

While big-name touring musicians generally are off the road during major holidays, there still are some notable performances by local jazz and creative musicians happening over the next few days in and around St. Louis. Let's go to the highlights...

Wednesday, December 23
The Jazz St. Louis Big Band offers their third and final performance of Duke Ellington’s "Nutcracker" at Jazz at the Bistro; guitarist Tom Byrne's Yule Vibe Trio plays at Thurman Grill; and singer Ralph Williams presents a Christmas-themed performance at the Tavern of Fine Arts.

Friday, December 25
Byrne and singer Erika Johnson will host a Christmas night jam session at Evangeline's, and trombonist and former St. Louisan John Wolf will back in town to sit in with guitarist Dave Black at the River City Casino's 1904 Steakhouse. 

Saturday, December 26
Good 4 The Soul (pictured, top left) plays jazz, funk, and more for the first of two nights at Jazz at the Bistro; Miss Jubilee performs for dancers at the Casa Loma Ballroom; and Wack-A-Doo plays swing and Americana at Evangeline's.

Also on Saturday, singer Joe Mancuso brings a quartet to Nathalie's, and guitarist Eric Slaughter and bassist Glen Smith will play duets at Thurman Grill.

Sunday,
December 27
St. Louis and Chicago musicians will join forces for a performance by a group dubbed the Midwest Quintet at the Kranzberg Arts Center.

Saxophonist Christopher McBride (pictured, lower left) and trumpeter Quentin Coaxum will be representing the City of Big Shoulders, teamed with Eric Slaughter on guitar, bass phenom Nathan Pence (back home after his first semester at UMKC), and ESL's own Montez Coleman on drums.

Monday, December 28
Singer Cara Dineen, daughter of saxophonist "Blind" Willie Dineen, will be back home from NYC for a visit and sitting in with her dad and the Broadway Collective for their monthly gig at BB's Jazz, Blues & Soups, and Dizzy Atmosphere will play swing and Gypsy jazz for diners at The Shaved Duck.

Tuesday, December 29
Pianist Greg Mills will perform at the Tavern of Fine Arts.

For more jazz-related events in and around St. Louis, please visit the St. Louis Jazz Notes Calendar, which can be found on the left sidebar of the site or by clicking here. You also can keep up with all the latest news by following St. Louis Jazz Notes on Twitter at http://twitter.com/StLJazzNotes or clicking the "Like" icon on the StLJN Facebook page.

(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.)

Jazz this week: "Basie's Birthday Bash," a tribute to Ella Fitzgerald, and more

This week's schedule of live jazz and creative music in and around St. Louis avoids the late-summer doldrums with tributes to two jazz greats, plus a variety of shows in genres and styles ranging from pre-war swing to contemporary to free improvisation. Let's go to the highlights...

Thursday, August 20
Singer Erin Bode returns to Cyrano's, guitarist Dave Black and Friends will perform at Nathalie’s, and pianist Brad Ellebrecht and singer Tom Kernan play at the Tavern of Fine Arts.

Friday, August 21
The Jazz St. Louis Big Band will present the first of two nights of "Basie’s Birthday Bash" at Jazz at the Bistro. For more about the music and legacy of the legendary bandleader and pianist Count Basie (pictured, top left), see this video post from a couple of weeks ago.

Also on Friday, Sarah Jane and the Blue Notes return to Highway 61 Roadhouse; trumpeter Jim Manley takes the stage at Thurman Grill; and the Ambassadors of Swing play for dancers at Casa Loma Ballroom.

Saturday, August 22
Speaking of jazz legends, there will be a tribute to another jazz great - who also crossed paths with Basie more than once - as Robbie's House of Jazz presents Danita Mumphard (pictured, center left) and Trio Tres Bien interpreting songs made famous by Ella Fitzgerald at the Ozark Theatre.

Elsewhere on Saturday, Gypsy jazz band Franglais will be joined by guest saxophonist Dave Stone for a gig at Evangeline's; and the Sidney Street Shakers will be part of the musical menu for the one-year anniversary celebration at the Tick Tock Tavern.

Meanwhile, out in Hermann, MO, the inaugural Hermann Wine and Jazz Festival will feature sets from Dawn Weber, the Silverman Brothers, Ptah Williams, Maurice Carnes, and Tommy Halloran.

Sunday, August 23
Cornet Chop Suey plays a free concert of traditional jazz and swing at Carondelet Park; and
saxophonist Christopher McBride (pictured, lower left), who's been splitting time between Chicago and NYC, will return to offer up contemporary sounds at the Kranzberg Arts Center.
McBride's band for the late-afternoon performance will include trumpeter Quinten Coaxum and pianist Willem Delisfort as well as St. Louis' own Bob Deboo on bass and Montez Coleman on drums.

Monday, August 24
The eclectic acoustic band The 442s will play a free outdoor concert at the Public Media Commons, 3653 Olive St in Grand Center.

Tuesday, August 25
The STL Free Jazz Collective returns to the Tavern of Fine Arts, and singer Feyza Eren and band will perform as part of the "Notes From Home" series at the Sheldon Concert Hall.

For more jazz-related events in and around St. Louis, please visit the St. Louis Jazz Notes Calendar, which can be found on the left sidebar of the site or by clicking here. You also can keep up with all the latest news by following St. Louis Jazz Notes on Twitter at http://twitter.com/StLJazzNotes or clicking the "Like" icon on the StLJN Facebook page.

(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.)

Jazz this week: Jim Manley, Christopher McBride CD release tour, "ArtSounds" with Sylvia McNair, and more

This week's calendar of live jazz and creative music in St. Louis features the debut of a St. Louis trumpeter's new band; a mini-tour through the area from a Chicago saxophonist; tributes to the music of Nancy Wilson, Miles Davis and Jimi Hendrix; and more. Let's go to the highlights...

Tonight, singer Denise Thimes will take the stage at the Sheldon Concert Hall with the aforementioned "Tribute to Nancy Wilson" (meaning the Nancy Wilson who recorded jazz for Capitol and Blue Note, and not the lead singer of rock band Heart). Proceeds from the event benefit the Mildred Thimes Foundation for Pancreatic Cancer Research.

Also tonight, saxophonist Christopher McBride will showcase music from the new CD by his band Quatuor de Force in a gig at Robbie's House of Jazz. McBride, who studied under Ronald Carter at Northern Illinois University and now lives in the Chicago area, also will be playing at the Cigar Inn in Belleville on Friday and at Bugsy's in Union on Saturday.

And if that's not enough for one evening, guitarist William Lenihan on Thursday night will front a event billed as "Turning Point: Electric Miles and Hendrix Confluence" for a free concert presented by the Jazz at Holmes series at Washington University.

On Friday, trumpeter Jim Manley will play the first of two nights at Jazz at the Bistro, presenting the debut performance of his new group Mad Brass & Rhythm. In addition to Manley, the lineup of musicians includes Larry Johnson on saxophones, Jim Owens on trombone, Chris Miller on trumpet and flugelhorn, and a rhythm section of Arthur Toney (piano), Jeremy Pffefer (bass), and Joe Weber (drums). Manley hasn't released a lot of details on what they'll be playing, though he's said the band has all-new arrangements, and the Bistro is touting the gig as "straight-ahead jazz."

Update - 11/9/12, 10:30 a.m.: Manley checked in via email with details on the songlist, which will include new takes on familiar standards including "Take The 'A' Train," "In a Mellow Tone," "Angel Eyes," "Tin Tin Deo," "Softly as a Morning Sunrise," and "Caravan" as well as some blues.

Also Friday, the Sheldon presents its annual ArtSounds benefit, raising money for its educational programs with a cabaret-style performance from singer Sylvia McNair; and guitarist Tom Byrne and singer John Robinson will be at Robbie's House of Jazz.

On Saturday, Sandy Weltman and Hot Club Caravan will play Gypsy jazz and swing at Robbie's, and funk/fusion band Soul Cafe is at Jazz on Broadway in Alton.

Then on Sunday evening, saxophonist Tim Cunningham will perform at the Signature Room; and guitarist John Farrar will be playing solo at the Schlafly St. Louis Brewery & Tap Room.

Looking beyond the weekend, on Monday the Sessions Big Band will be back for their monthly gig at BB's Jazz Blues and Soups; and the Webster University student jazz combos will perform at Webster's Community Music School.

For more jazz-related events in and around St. Louis, please visit the St. Louis Jazz Notes Calendar, which can be found on the left sidebar of the site or by clicking here. You also can keep up with all the latest news by following St. Louis Jazz Notes on Twitter at http://twitter.com/StLJazzNotes or clicking the "Like" icon on the StLJN Facebook page.

(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.)