Jazz this week: Snarky Puppy, a tribute to Marvin Gaye, Route 66 Jazz Orchestra, Don Schroeder's Happy Go Lucky Jazz Band, and more

Though the "dog days" of summer have arrived in St. Louis so far mostly without the traditional blistering heat and soupy humidity, they still bring the usual annual slowdown in the number of touring jazz musicians passing through St. Louis.

However, there's still live jazz and creative music out there to be found all over the area - if you know where to look. And so, let's go to the highlights... 

Tonight, Good 4 The Soul will back singer Brian Owens in a performance of the music of Marvin Gaye at the Sheldon Concert Hall, and singer Joe Mancuso continues his run of Thursday nights at Cafe Eau in the Chase Park Plaza Hotel.

The week's big headliner arrives on Friday, when the jazz/funk/Latin/worldbeat ensemble Snarky Puppy (pictured, with special guest James T. Kirk at center) plays at the Old Rock House. It's the group's third St. Louis appearance in the last year, and you can find out more about them and see and hear samples of some performances in this post, which ran before their most recent gig here in May. The band's bassist and leader Michael League also talked with the Post-Dispatch's Calvin Wilson for a short preview article on the show, which you can read online here.

Also on Friday, Bach to the Future plays a free outdoor concert at Creve Coeur Park; guitarist Dave Black and saxophonist Paul DeMarinis will duet at the Tavern of Fine Arts; saxophonist Kendrick Smith leads a trio at Cigar Inn; and the Funky Butt Brass Band performs at the Broadway Oyster Bar, featuring a late night set of Allman Brothers Band covers (!).

On Saturday, saxophonist Tim Cunningham plays an afternoon gig at the Mount Pleasant Estates winery out in Augusta.

Then on Saturday evening, the Route 66 Jazz Orchestra will perform in a free outdoor concert at Kirkwood Park; Miss Jubilee plays at Schlafly Bottleworks in Maplewood; and singer Sarah Jane Ulrich takes the stage at Robbie's House of Jazz, this time without her Blue Notes, but with a cast of friends including Jerry Greene on saxophones, Joe Bozzi on vibes and trumpet, Tim Garcia on piano, and Mark Hochberg on bass and violin.

On Sunday, your "jazz brunch" options include guitarist Tom Byrne and reedman Sam Hagardine at Bar Italia, and trumpeter Jim Manley and keyboardist Mark Friedricks at Jimmy's Cafe on the Park. That afternoon, the St. Louis Jazz Club presents a matinee of traditional jazz from drummer Don Schroeder's Happy Go Lucky Jazz Band at Bel-Air Bowl in Belleville.

And looking beyond the weekend, on Monday the Sessions Big Band checks in at BB's Jazz, Blues and Soups for their every-other-month gig there.

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.)

StLJN Saturday Video Showcase: A sampler of St. Louis big bands

Continuing with our recent informal sampling of St. Louis jazz and creative music by genre, this week let's check out some video clips of several of the big bands from around the area.

The video up top features one of the newer entries in the local field, the Dave Dickey Big Band, which began gigging around town last year, not long after Dickey, a trombonist and music educator, moved here to take a job with the Lindbergh School District. Here, you can see them, with special guest Roger Ingram on lead trumpet, playing the Duke Ellington classic "Things Ain't What They Used To Be" last month during their regular monthly gig at Kirkwood Station Brewing Company. The DDBB's next appearance at Kirkwood Station is from 6:00 p..m. to 9:00 p.m. this Sunday, July 22.

Down below, the first clip shows another relatively new group, known simply as the St. Louis Big Band. Led by saxophonist and Webster University student Ryan Sheehan and featuring a number of younger, up-and-coming musicians, they're seen here performing "I've Got You Under My Skin" at Robbie's House of Jazz. The arrangement is by the band's saxophonist Dave Gill, and features guitarist Matt McCallie on vocals.

Below that, we've got clips of several other big bands that have been performing around the St. Louis area for years or, in some cases, decades. Today's third video features the Meramec Jazz Band playing an arrangement of Donald Fagen's "Walk Between the Raindrops" last year during one of their quarterly concerts at the Black Cat Theatre. Founded in 1969 on the campus of what's now known as St. Louis Community College - Meramec, the band currently is directed by Bob Boedges. The featured performers in this clip include singer Valerie Tichacek, trumpeters Fred Middlekauff and John Kinnison, alto saxophonist Colleen Templemeier, and tenor saxophonist Jason Kaminsky.

Next up, we have the Sessions Big Band, who have been playing on selected Mondays downtown at BB's Jazz Blues and Soups since the 1990s. This undated clip was made at BB's, and while the song sounds somewhat familiar to yr. humble StLJN editor, I must cop to not recognizing it by title. Perhaps one of our learned and erudite readers can identify it in the comments?

Below that, it's the St. Louis Jazz Orchestra, led by bassist Jim Widner, who also directs the jazz program at the University of Missouri-St. Louis, runs big band camps in several locations every summer, and heads up the Greater St. Louis Jazz Festival. The Orchestra, which also has gigged with similar personnel and repertoire as the Jim Widner Big Band, is seen here playing "Danny Boy" in an undated clip that looks to have been recorded at the Touhill Performing Arts Center. The featured performers are trumpeter Lorenzo Trujillo and saxophonist Paul DeMarinis.

We finish up with two bands that make regular appearances at the Casa Loma Ballroom, playing for dancers on Friday nights. Video number six is a compilation of excerpts from several numbers by the long-running group the Ambassadors of Swing, recorded a couple of weeks ago at Casa Loma.

Today's seventh and final video features Second Generation Swing, formed in 1978 as the Althoff Catholic High School Alumni Jazz Band and also frequent performers at Casa Loma, playing an arrangement of Herbie Hancock's "Cantaloupe Island."

Jazz this week: The Jazz Crusaders, Wine Dine & Jazz Festival, Sylvia McNair, Coco Soul, and more

Mid-summer heat has arrived in St. Louis several weeks ahead of schedule, but if you can brave the unseasonable temperatures, there are a number of jazz and creative music events worth checking out over the next few days.

Today at lunchtime, the band Swing Set will play a free concert from noon to 1 p.m. at the Old Library Plaza at 8th and Locust as part of the St. Louis Public Library's "Not So Quiet" concert series.

Tomorrow, there are several options for the discerning listener, including the first night of the Wine Dine and Jazz Festival in downtown Belleville. Friday's performers at the free event include the Usual Suspects with Gypsy Brown, the Dawn Weber Group and the Jim Stevens Group, while Saturday's lineup includes the USAF Starlifter Jazz Band, Tony D and the Groove, the Santana tribute band Stantana, and blues from guitarist and singer Vince Martin. (Full disclosure: Yr. humble StLJN editor will be playing keyboards with Martin. Consider yourself warned.)

Also on Friday, singer Coco Soul opens a two-night engagement at Jazz at the Bistro. Soul (nee Rochelle Walker) is known mostly as an R&B singer, former host of the open mic event Cafe Soul, and occasional performer in musical theater at venues including the Black Rep, Stages and Westport Playhouse. The promo blurb for her Bistro debut suggests that "her jazz influences, coupled with a strong R&B and soul background will surely delight listeners," but to these ears, the songs on her MySpace page sound more like straight R&B, albeit with the occasional brass background and/or trumpet obbligato.

Elsewhere on Friday, singer and pianist Bruce Hornsby and his band the Noisemakers are playing at The Pageant - you can read my Riverfront Times Critic's Pick on that show here - and singer Cheri Evans is at Robbie's House of Jazz

The most significant jazz show of the week, however, happens on Saturday, when the Jazz Crusaders (pictured) play at the Touhill Performing Arts Center. With original members Joe Sample, Wilton Felder and Wayne Henderson reuniting for the first time since Henderson left the band in the mid-1970s, this tour definitely counts as a special occasion. And with Jazz St. Louis offering tickets at half price, the least expensive seat is only $17.50, which is quite affordable. For more about the Jazz Crusaders, including videos of performances of six of their best-known songs, see this post from last Saturday.

Also on Saturday, pianist and singer Curt Landes teams with singer Mary Dyson for a gig at Robbie's House of Jazz; and on Sunday, BB's Jazz Blues & Soups has Latin jazz in the early evening from Clave Sol.

Looking beyond the weekend, on Monday the Sessions Big Band will be back at BB's, and on Tuesday, singer Sylvia McNair will give a special cabaret performance in the Sheldon Concert Hall's upstairs ballroom,

For more jazz-related events in St. Louis this weekend and beyond, 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: The Bad Plus and more

The jazz and creative music concert schedule in St. Louis is not exactly jam-packed for the first full weekend of 2011, but I suppose that's all the more reason to get out and catch The Bad Plus (pictured) as they return to Jazz at the Bistro tonight through Saturday.

You can read my preview of TBP in this week's Riverfront Times, and to see some videos of the band playing material from their most recent CD Never Stop, check out this post from last Saturday.

Elsewhere around town, the new year seems to be getting off to a bit of a slow start. There's nothing jazz-oriented on tap this week at the Pageant, the Touhill or the Sheldon, and at this writing, Robbie's House of Jazz hasn't updated their website with schedule information for the new year. Area universities have yet to resume classes, and so the Jazz at Holmes series at Washington University has yet to announce their winter/spring 2011 schedule.

On the bar/restaurant scene, Mangia Italiano is under new ownership and will be closed for renovations until mid-month, thus temporarily sidelining their long-running Friday night attraction, saxophonist Dave Stone's trio.

To sum up, it looks like the 2011 concert schedule won't really get rolling until next week, but in the meantime, there are just a few more local gigs to commend to your attention.

On Thursday, saxophonist Dave Cheli will perform free improvisation with his sons, Kevin (drums & percussion) and Dominic (keyboards) at Stone Spiral Coffeehouse. and on Saturday, the Chelis will split a bill with flute player Fred Tompkins and pianist Jim Hegarty at the St. Charles Coffeehouse (which, name notwithstanding, actually is in St. Peters). Tompkins and Hegarty promise "some original music and our own versions of pieces by Ornette Coleman, Brian Eno and Douglas Ewart."

Looking beyond the weekend, BB's Jazz Blues and Soups has guitarist Tom Byrne's trio early on Sunday night, and the Sessions Big Band on Tuesday.

For more jazz-related events in St. Louis this weekend and beyond, 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: Euge Groove, Andre Delano, and more

With many summer concert series having run their course, and the fall presenting season yet to get underway, it's a relatively light week for live jazz in St. Louis.

All the more reason, then, to turn out for saxophonist, vocalist, and East St. Louis native Andre Delano (pictured). who's back home to perform Friday night on a bill with Euge Groove at The Pageant. For more about Delano and some video clips of him in action, see this post. For some video footage of Groove in concert, check out this post.

UPDATE - 9:30 a.m., 8/20/10: Delano did a brief Q&A with writer Terry Perkins for an article in today's Post-Dispatch, which you can read online here.

Elsewhere around town, Robbie's House of Jazz has vocalist Crystal Haywood on Friday and its house band, the Robert Edwards Ensemble, on Saturday.

BB's Jazz, Blues and Soups will feature Good 4 the Soul for the early set on Sunday night, and then on Monday, the Sessions Big Band returns to the BB's stage after a summer hiatus.

For more jazz-related events in St. Louis this weekend and beyond, 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: Oliver Lake Organ Trio with Russell Gunn, Garaj Mahal, Funky Butt Brass Band, and more

We're heading into the proverbial holiday home stretch of 2009, and though some local music venues have gone dormant for the holidays (such as the various university-based concert series) and others are deep into Christmas music to the exclusion of all else, there are still some noteworthy events over the next few days in St. Louis for fans of jazz and creative music. Here's a quick look at some of the highlights:

Fittingly for the holiday season, the weekend's marquee event involves a homecoming of sorts, as saxophonist and former St. Louisan Oliver Lake brings his Organ Trio to town with trumpeter and East St. Louis native Russell Gunn (pictured) as special guest. This band is essentially Lake's version of the classic soul-jazz ensemble, though seasoned with more adventurous and/or contemporary flavors, and they'll be at Jazz at the Bistro through Saturday. For more on Lake and Gunn with some video samples of both, see this post from last week

On Friday, the jam/funk/jazz-fusion band Garaj Mahal will be performing at 2720, a new performance space and gallery in a former furniture store 2720 Cherokee on the south side. Also, on Friday, the Funky Butt Brass Band will be doing a holiday show at the south side rock club Off Broadway, and smooth jazz combo 3 Central will take the stage at Robbie's House of Jazz.

On Saturday, Robbie's has their house band, the Robert Edwards Ensemble, featuring vocalist Larry Hamilton. Looking beyond the weekend, on Monday the Sessions Big Band will do their last performance of the year at BB's Jazz, Blues and Soups.

UPDATE - 11:00 a.m., 12/17/09: Drummer Kyle Hunnicutt sends word that New Orleans steel guitarist Dave Easley will be in town on Monday evening for a workshop at Fazio's Frets and Friends music store in West County. (Scroll down the linked page to the second item for details.) Easley's resume encompasses jazz, blues, jam bands and more, and his workshop will cover "tetral harmony (harmony based on thirds), quartal harmony (harmony based on fourths), some exotic scales, diversification vs. specialization and the role of the producer." Hunnicutt and bassist Bob DeBoo will provide the musical backing. The cost is $20; to reserve a spot, call Fazio's at 636-227-3573 or email brianv@faziosmusic.com

For information on more jazz and creative music events this weekend and beyond, please visit the St. Louis Jazz Notes Calendar, available for viewing on the left sidebar, or by clicking here.
Also, you can follow St. Louis Jazz Notes on Twitter at http://twitter.com/StLJazzNotes and become a "fan" by signing up 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: Eddie Henderson, The Wee Trio, Bernard Harris, and more

From a musical theater production honoring one of the music's most revered legends to an up-and-coming trio stretching the boundaries of the genre, there's a diverse lineup of jazz events happening over the next few days in St. Louis. Here are some of the most noteworthy shows coming up this weekend:

Tonight, the Unity Theatre Ensemble's production Lady Day at the Boston Bistro (An Evening With Billie Holiday) opens at the Ivory Theatre, with Mardra Thomas as Holiday and her husband, pianist Reggie Thomas, as arranger and accompanist. The show will be performed Thursdays through Sundays ending October 25.

On Friday, The Wee Trio begins a two-night stand at Jazz at the Bistro. The critically acclaimed young group, which has drawn comparisons to The Bad Plus, includes former St. Louisan Dan Loomis on bass, James Westfall on vibraphone and Jared Schonig on drums. You can see some video samples of them in action by going to this post

Also on Friday, bassist Bernard Harris will perform a concert of "inspirational smooth jazz" at the Hilton Regency Conference Center, 400 Regency Park Drive in O'Fallon, IL. For more on Harris, see this post.

On Saturday evening, trumpeter Eddie Henderson (pictured) performs in a show sponsored by the Nu-Art Series at Luna Bar, 13 Maryland Plaza in the Central West End. Though he's perhaps still best known for his work with Herbie Hancock and the series of electrified jazz-fusion albums he released after leaving the pianist's group in the 1970s, in recent years Henderson has worked more in the acoustic hard-bop idiom and also has taken part in a number of tributes to Miles Davis, including an extended tour in 2005 and 2006 with drummer Jimmy Cobb. He'll be backed on his St. Louis gig by a local rhythm section of pianist Ptah Williams, bassist Jamal Nichols and drummer Charles "Bobo" Shaw.

Also on Saturday, the smooth jazz group Three Central will do a free concert for the Vaughn Cultural Center at the Urban League, 3701 Grandel Square in the Grand Center area.

On Sunday, the Bosman Twins kick off this year's St. Louis Jazz and Blues Vespers series with a free concert at the Second Baptist Church of St. Louis, 9030 Clayton Rd. (at McKnight). And on Monday evening, the Sessions Big Band is back at BB's Jazz, Blues and Soups.

For more jazz and creative music events this weekend and beyond, check out the St. Louis Jazz Notes Calendar, available for viewing on the left sidebar or by clicking here.

(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.)

(Edited 10/17/09 to fix a typo.)

Summer concert series in Godfrey to feature three jazz big bands

Three St. Louis area big bands will be featured as part of a free jazz concert series this summer in Godfrey, Illinois. The Sessions Big Band leads off the 2008 Jazz in the Park series at 7:00 p.m. this Wednesday, June 11, followed by the Sentimental Journey Dance Band on Wednesday, July 16, and Shades of Blue, the jazz ensemble of the US Air Force Band of Mid America at Scott Air Force Base, on Wednesday, August 12.

Although the concert series has been known as Jazz in the Park since its inception five years ago, this year's performances will take place indoors in the Commons at Lewis and Clark Community College in Godfrey. In a story published in the Alton Telegraph, the president of one of the local groups sponsoring the series said that the move was made because of "unpredictable weather."

Ross Gentile of WSIE (88.7 FM) will serve as host and MC. All three concerts are free and open to the public. Concert goers also may reserve a picnic-style dinner catered by Carver's Barbecue for $15 per person or $27 per couple; plates must be reserved in advance by calling 618-466-6110 no later than the Monday preceding each concert.