So What: Local News, Notes & Links

Here's StLJN's weekly wrap-up of assorted links and short news items of local interest:

* Lauren Parks, president of the House of Miles in East St. Louis, was interviewed for a Belleville News Democrat article about local culture in ESL.

* Asleep at the Wheel's concert last Friday at the Fox Theatre was reviewed by Dan Durchholz for the Post-Dispatch. The Post also published a gallery of photos from the gig.

* Also in the Post-Dispatch, Kevin Johnson reports on bassist Jahmal Nichols scoring a documentary that aired on PBS. There's also a brief video accompanying the story.

* Still in the Post, Kevin Johnson interviewed singer Robert Nelson about this Saturday's Juneteenth show at Blue Strawberry, and there's a video with that story, too.

* The Riverfront Times reports that the Way Out Club, a fixture of south city nightlife and alternative music for 27 years, will close permanently next month.

* A 1976 interview of saxophonist Julius Hemphill on the public radio program "Fresh Air" was resurfaced this week by pianist Ethan Iverson, who offered his commentary on the talk via Twitter.

* Marcus Baylor and Jean Baylor of the Baylor Project (pictured) were the featured guests this week on radio station WBGO's online video talk show "The Pulse."

So What: Local News, Notes & Links

Here's StLJN's latest wrap-up of assorted links and short news items of local interest:

* St. Louis natives Eric Person and Keyon Harrold are among the recipients of a new round of composer commissions from the NYC-based Jazz Coalition.

* The restoration of Miles Davis' childhood home (pictured) by the not-for-profit organization House of Miles - East St. Louis (HOME) is the subject of a feature story by Riverfront Times writer Eric Berger.

* Also on the Davis beat, an article at InsideHook.com looks at how in the 1980s the trumpeter became the spokesperson for an obscure Japanese liquor brand.

* Bassist and recent transplant to St. Louis Damon Smith has a new album, Universal or Directional, now available on Bandcamp.

So What: Local News, Notes & Links

Here's StLJN's latest wrap-up of assorted links and short news items of local interest:

* The second episode of saxophonist David Sanborn's new online video series "Sanborn Sessions" went "live" this week on YouTube and elsewhere.

The episode is an all-St. Louis affair with singers Michael McDonald and Brian Owens (pictured, with Sanborn) as the featured guests, and you can see it in the video embed at the bottom of this post.

* Bryan Cather, a ragtime historian and president of the Friends of Scott Joplin, has died. He was 53 years old, and was found Sunday by friends at his south St. Louis home after he apparently suffered a heart attack.

Cather came to St. Louis in 2004 from Arlington, TX, and subsequently played a major role as a volunteer with the Friends and the Scott Joplin House State Historic Site, as detailed in this obituary in Syncopated Times. Funeral arrangements are pending, but the article says that "a memorial service is likely to be held at Bryan’s John’s Episcopal Church in the Tower Grove Neighborhood of St. Louis and his cremains will be interred in Oklahoma."

* Treasure Shields Redmond, daughter of East St. Louis Poet Laureate Eugene Redmond, was a guest Thursday on St. Louis Public Radio's "St. Louis On The Air" to talk about the "Historic Jazz & Poetry Excursion" tour of East St. Louis, in which trumpeter Miles Davis and his now-restored childhood home play a major role.

* Also on the Davis beat, the recent biographical documentary Miles Davis: Birth of the Cool, directed by Stanley Nelson, has been nominated for a 2020 NAACP Image Award as "Outstanding Documentary (Film)."

* In a related story, Davis' son Erin and nephew Vincent Wilburn Jr. recently appeared on the program California Live on KNBC in Los Angeles to promote the film.

* And last but not least regarding Davis, a feature out this week from Jazzwise magazine looks at "How Miles Davis put together ‘the greatest rock ’n’ roll band you ever heard’."

* Pianist, singer and songwriter Rick Jensen's cabaret show last week at Blue Strawberry was reviewed by KDHX's Chuck Lavazzi.

* A story in the St. Louis American offers a brief preview of the "34th Annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Statewide Celebration Kick-Off Program for Missouri," which takes place tomorrow night at Harris-Stowe State University and will include appearances by saxophonist Kirk Whalum and singer Denise Thimes.

* Bassist Sam AuBuchon, a senior at West County High School in Park Hills, MO and a member of the Jazz St. Louis All-Stars student ensemble, was the subject of a feature story in the St. Francois County Daily Journal.

So What: Local News, Notes & Links

Here's StLJN's latest wrap-up of assorted links and short news items of local interest:

* A story by St. Louis Public Radio's Eric Schmid reports that Miles Davis' childhood home (pictured), now restored and operated as a museum by the not-for-profit organization House of Miles East St. Louis, is the centerpiece of a new weekly tour focused on ESL history and culture.

* In related news, PBS has announced that the American Masters episode featuring the documentary Miles Davis: Birth of the Cool will premiere on Tuesday, February 25. (Check local affiliate listings for the broadcast time in your area.)

* The new vinyl reissue box set of Davis' The Legendary Prestige Quintet Sessions released last week is the subject of a brief feature in DownBeat and a longer story from UDiscoverMusic.com.

* Guitarist Vincent Varvel and Gaslight Theater owner William Roth were interviewed on Monday's episode of the KTRS program "St. Louis In the Know with Ray Hartmann and Jay Kanzler."

* The holiday cabaret shows of singers Debby Lennon and Dean Christopher last week at Blue Strawberry were reviewed by KDHX's Chuck Lavazzi.

* And speaking of Debby Lennon, she'll star next month in Max and Louie Productions' staging of "Songs for Nobodies," a one-woman play by Joanna Murray-Smith that features the music of Judy Garland, Patsy Cline, Billie Holiday, Edith Piaf, and Maria Callas in "a mosaic of stories told by the everyday women who had unexpected life-changing encounters with these musical icons." The production will run from Thursday, January 23 through Saturday, February 1 at the Kranzberg Arts Center.

* Singer, actor, and Belleville native Lea DeLaria was interviewed about her new streaming TV show Reprisal and plans for her next album by the Post-Dispatch's Kevin Johnson.

*  Oikos Ensemble has produced a video looking back on past editions of their annual "Jazz Noel" program and promoting this year's performances, which will take place tomorrow at Parkway United Church of Christ and Sunday at First Congregational Church of Webster Groves.

Miles Davis documentary opens Friday in St. Louis, with director Stanley Nelson attending

Miles Davis: Birth of the Cool, the new biographical documentary about the famed trumpeter, will open this Friday at the Tivoli Theatre in University City, with director Stanley Nelson and representatives of the Davis estate attending.

Nelson, Davis' nephew Vince Wilburn Jr., and the trumpeter's son Erin Davis will attend and conduct a Q&A session at the 7:00 p.m. screening on Friday, September 6.

Nelson and Wilburn then will be on hand for three additional screenings this weekend, at 4:30 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. on Saturday, September 7 and at 2:00 p.m. on Sunday, September 8.

In a related event, Wilburn, Erin Davis, and Miles Davis' daughter Cheryl Davis will appear at "A HOME styled Meet & Greet" from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. Thursday, September 5 at the House of Miles EStL (HOME), located in the trumpeter's restored childhood home at 1701 Kansas Ave in East St. Louis.

The East St. Louis High School Jazz Ensemble will provide music for the occasion.

So What: Local News, Notes & Links

Here's StLJN's latest wrap-up of assorted links and short news items of local interest:

* Jazz at Lincoln Center has announced four new inductees into its Ertegun Jazz Hall of Fame, including a former St. Louisan.

That would be saxophonist Frankie Trumbauer (pictured) who, while born in Carbondale, IL, grew up in St. Louis and did his first professional work as a musician here. He's joined in the class of 2019 by saxophonist Julian "Cannonball" Adderley, singer Dinah Washington, and drummer Chick Webb.

* The 2019 edition of Fair U City, the community carnival held during the first weekend in June in Heman Park alongside the U City Jazz Festival, has been cancelled due to a dispute over financial and other matters between city government and the University City Community Foundation, the not-for-profit group that organizes the fair.

Responding to the cancellation announcement in a Facebook post, U City Jazz Fest organizer Michael Silverman said he's now looking for an alternate location to stage the event on Saturday, June 8. Watch this space for more as this story develops...

* Jazz St. Louis will team up this fall with three other local arts organizations for a production of "Such Sweet Thunder," an "avant-garde ballet" created by French choreographer Maurice Béjart in 1960 using the music from Duke Ellington and Billy Strayhorn's 1957 suite of the same name.

JSL will supply the sounds, Big Muddy Dance Company will create the choreography, and Shakespeare Festival St. Louis will "weave the pieces together with Shakespearean scenes and sonnets." The fourth partner, Nine Network, will host three free performances of the work on October 3, 4 and 5 at its Public Media Commons.

* Singer Alicia Olatuja was interviewed about her new album Intiution on the podcast Doing Jazz with Lorens Chuno.

* St. Louis writer (and Jazz Journalists Association 2019 "Jazz Hero") Terry Perkins got a byline in the May issue of DownBeat with a feature story about singer Cyrille Aimée.

* House of Miles East St. Louis, the organization that has restored Miles Davis' childhood home as a museum and educational facility, was profiled for the website TheSTL.com by writer Daniel Durchholz.

* The final performance of the 2019 Vision Festival, set for June 9-16 at Roulette in Brooklyn, NY, will be a tribute to the late saxophonist Hamiet Bluiett, led by his friend and collaborator, pianist D.D. Jackson, and featuring U City native and drummer Ronnie Burrage, saxophonists James Carter and Darius Jones, bassist William Parker, and percussionist Juma Sultan.

* The story of the legal battle between seemingly-defunct music festival LouFest and their former sound and lighting contractors Logic Systems has been updated by St. Louis writer and musician Kevin Mitchell in a post on Medium.com.

Jazz this week: Jazz St. Louis students with Antonio Hart, "Miles Fest 2018," and more

Post-Memorial Day, St. Louis' not-for-profit presenters mostly have wound down their season schedules and are transitioning to summer, but there still are some noteworthy jazz and creative music shows coming up in the next week.

Let's go to the highlights...

Wednesday, May 30
This week's "Grand Center Jazz Crawl" features saxophonist Jacob Alspach at The Stage at KDHX along with the jam session led by bassist Bob Deboo at the Kranzberg Arts Center and trumpeter Kasimu Taylor's band at The Dark Room.


Thursday, May 31
The Arcadia Dance Orchestra will perform jazz from the 1920s and '30s in a free out door concert at the Ulysses S. Grant National Historic Site; Ben Reece’s Unity Quartet returns to The Dark Room, where they'll be doing Thursday nights for the next month; and guitarists Carol Eder and Chip Katz play at The Pat Connolly Tavern.

Friday, June 1
Saxophonist Antonio Hart (pictured, top left) will be the special guest star as students from JazzU and the Jazz St. Louis All-Stars present the first of two nights of their annual performances at Jazz St. Louis.

Also on Friday, The Gaslight Squares will play outdoors at the Public Media Commons in Grand Center; the Midwest Jazz-tette brings their West Coast jazz sound to The Chapel, the Funky Butt Brass Band performs at the Chase Club; and the Ambassadors of Swing play for dancers at the Casa Loma Ballroom.

Saturday, June 2
House of Miles East St. Louis, the not-for-profit organization that has restored Miles Davis' childhood home, will present "Miles Fest 2018," featuring live music, an art show, and more.

Sunday, June 3
Following up on the annual festival celebrating the music of Scott Joplin this weekend in Sedalia, MO, the Friends of Scott Joplin will present some of the performers from the fest during their "Sedalia Afterglow Party" at the Scott Joplin House State Historic Site's Rosebud Cafe. 

Also on Sunday, the Columbus Youth Jazz Orchestra will team up with the JazzU student big band and guest saxophonist Antonio Hart for a performance at Jazz St. Louis; and the Jazz Troubadours return to Evangeline's.

Monday, June 4
Trumpeter Jim Manley is back at Momo's Greek Restaurant, and pianist Ethan Leinwand hosts the third annual "St. Louis Piano Festival" featuring seven different pianists performing blues, barrelhouse, and ragtime at BB's Jazz, Blues & Soups.

Tuesday, June 5
Drummer Montez Coleman and guitarist Eric Slaughter host "The Tuesday Night Hit" jam session at The Dark Room.

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.)