So What: Local News, Notes & Links

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

* Merci, Miles! Live at Vienne, the newly released album of previously unheard recordings from Miles Davis' last concert (pictured), was reviewed in Jazz Times magazine.

* Generations, the new release from the Baylor Project (featuring St. Louis' own Marcus Baylor and spouse Jean Baylor) is among the albums named by NPR to their list of favorites of 2021 (so far).

* The Baylors also are featured this month in an article on Grammy.com spotlighting "8 Jazz Artists Honoring Black Geniuses."

* The Old Webster Jazz and Blues Festival this week announced that the event will return on Saturday, September 19, featuring a dozen acts on two stages with headliners including blues guitarist/singer Marquise Knox, jazz-fusion band Bach to the Future, and singer Erin Bode.

* St. Louis magazine's annual "A-List" issue is out, and readers' picks for 2021 include the Funky Butt Brass Band as "Favorite Original Band", The Pageant as "Favorite Live Music Venue" and Erin Bode as "Favorite Vocalist." You can see the entire issue (albeit in flip-book format) here.

* Organizers of the upcoming Music at the Intersection festival have put together a Spotify playlist featuring the acts that will be playing at the three-day event.

"Music at the Intersection" festival announces lineup of performers

The "Music at the Intersection" festival first announced last year by the Kranzberg Arts Foundation and other Grand Center organizations has released the list of bands and musicians who will perform at the event, now scheduled for the weekend of Friday, September 10 through Sunday, September 12.

The roster includes 60 different acts, encompassing a variety of genres from jazz, blues, and old-school soul to Americana, hip-hop, and neo-soul.

Among the headliners who may be of particular interest to StLJN readers are vibraphonist Roy Ayers (pictured); singers Gregory Porter, Lalah Hathaway, and Bettye Lavette; New Orleans brass band the Soul Rebels with Wu-Tang Clan's GZA as special guest; keyboardists Booker T. Jones and Jon Cleary, and two jazz acts with a local connection, trumpeter Keyon Harrold and the Baylor Project, featuring St. Louis native Marcus Baylor on drums.

In addition to the national acts, the festival will program approximately four dozen local/regional bands and musicians, including something called the "Clark Terry Centennial Project," as well as Tonina, Funky Butt Brass Band, Denise Thimes, Anita Jackson, and just about all the performers currently designated at "music artists-in-residence" by the Kranzberg foundation. You can see the complete list of performers on the festival's website.

Participating venues will include the Fox Theatre, The Big Top, The Sheldon, Jazz St. Louis, the Grandel Theatre, and the Grandel's "Open Air" tent, but individual show lineups and venues still are TBA.

Tickets start at $63.50 for Friday and $80.50 for Saturday and Sunday, or a full weekend pass for $179, and will go on sale via Metrotix at 10:00 a.m. next Tuesday, May 18. VIP packages, including premium seating at the Fox, parking, and VIP bar service, also will be available for an additional charge.