StLJN Saturday Video Showcase: Six bands reviving (and re-imagining) vintage jazz

St. Louis has a long and storied history with jazz and blues music, and in the last decade, a number of performers on the local scene have had success reviving vintage jazz from the 1920s and '30s and, in some cases, making new music of their own that evokes those older styles.

Today, let's take a look at six of those bands and musicians, all of whom currently can be heard with some regularity at various venues around town.

First up are Sarah Jane and the Blue Notes, seen at the top of this post performing the classic "St. Louis Blues" in a music video filmed at singer Sarah Ulrich's south side "secret headquarters," The Deco Fortress.

After the jump, it's the Sidney Street Shakers playing "Yaas Yaas Yaas" at the Blues City Deli in November, 2015.

Next, it's Miss Jubilee (aka Valerie Kirchoff), performing "Throw Me In The Alley" during a promotional appearance last year on the morning newscast at KTVI in St. Louis.

That's followed by The Gaslight Squares, led by trumpeter and vocalist TJ Muller (who also plays with the Sidney Street Shakers), with an energetic version of "A Sentimental Gentleman from Georgia," recorded in a performance last year at The Stage at KDHX.

The fifth clip features Wack-A-Doo playing their original song "They Call Me Hairy" in 2014 at KDHX.

Last but not least, it's guitarist and singer Tommy Halloran doing his tune "Gardenias For Rita" from his 2016 album Moan and Shout, with some help from bassist Andy Hainz and violinist Abbie Steiling.

You can see the rest of today's videos after the jump...

So What: Local News, Notes & Links

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

* HEC-TV has released the final episode of I Love Jazz, the program created and hosted by the late Don Wolff (pictured).

Hosted by Cordell Whitlock, the last episode pays tribute to Wolff, who died last November, and also includes stories on the jazz program at Washington University and the dedication last September of the statue honoring Miles Davis in Alton, IL. You can see the episode online here.

* Tomorrow is the annual celebration of independent music retailers known as Record Store Day, and St. Louis stores taking part in the event with special pricing and promotions, live music, and more will include Euclid Records, Music Record Shop, Planet Score Records, Record Exchange, and Vintage Vinyl. There's also a new store on Cherokee Street, Endless Planets, that will be holding its grand opening celebration that day..

As mentioned last week in this space, yr. humble StLJN editor once again will be among the local music writers doing hour-long "guest DJ" sets at Vintage Vinyl, spinning tunes on the in-house sound system from 2:30 p.m. from 3:30 p.m.

You can find guides to all the local Record Store Day activities in both the Riverfront Times and St. Louis Post-Dispatch. And if you're looking for a list of the various record labels' special jazz releases for RSD 2016, DownBeat has all that info for you here.

* The 442s appear on the latest episode of the TV program STL Up Late, which can be seen online here.

* Wack-A-Doo has posted photos from their recent "Coffee Concert" performances at The Sheldon to Flickr and Facebook.

* St. Louis Legacy Ensemble has posted to YouTube a video of "Lafayette," a new original song by percussionist and bandleader Joe Pastor.

* Guitarist Todd Mosby has posted video of a new original song, "Ode to Joe," on Facebook. Mosby will perform it and other songs from his new album in a CD release event on April 30 at Focal Point

* Trombonist Dave Dickey's performance at tomorrow's North County Jazz Festival in Park Hills, MO is previewed in an article in the Park Hills Daily Journal.

* The Belleville News Democrat reports that student jazz bands from Belleville made a good showing in the annual Illinois State Jazz Invitational last weekend, as Central Junior High took first place in the statewide competition's junior high division and the District 118 Jazz Combo won first place in the high school division.

* According to a Riverfront Times article by Thomas Crone, the proprietors of 2720 Cherokee are reorganizing both their live music offerings and their physical space, including opening a new, smaller-scale lounge called Barcade within the 2720 building.

* Saxophonist Rev. Cliff Aerie and trumpeter/pianist Tim Osiek have published Hymns of the Spirit: Pentecost and Beyond, the fourth volume of arrangements in their Worship Jazz series. The downloadable book features hymns "arranged in a variety of jazz genres: straight ahead, Latin, Dixieland, funk and more," with all 12 selections transposed for C, Bb, Eb and bass clef instrumentation.

* Lindy Hop St. Louis, organizers of the annual Nevermore Jazz Ball weekend held in the fall, have announced the dates for the 2016 River City Mess Around. The fourth annual edition of the summer swing dance weekend will be held July 1 through July 4, with venues and exact schedule of events TBA.

So What: Local News, Notes & Links

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

* New music ensemble Alarm Will Sound's two performances this weekend are previewed by Stef Russell of St. Louis magazine.

* Meanwhile, the Post-Dispatch's Kevin Johnson takes a look at tonight's "250 Years of St. Louis Music" show at the Sheldon Concert Hall, which features Alarm Will Sound* playing a new work by Peter Martin, plus performances from a diverse list of St. Louis jazz, blues and roots musicians.

* Drummer/bandleader and U City native Ronnie Burrage is the subject of a feature article in Jazz Times.

* To promote an upcoming gig at LA's Jazz Bakery, saxophonist Greg Osby has put together a brief online playlist of some of his favorite music.

* St. Louis singer Katie McGrath will perform her cabaret show "Love in the Desert, Romance in an Age of Scarcity" at NYC's Metropolitan Room next Thursday, October 23.

* Keep On Keepin' On, the new documentary about trumpeter Clark Terry and his student Justin Kauflin, was reviewed by AllAboutJazz.com's Mark F. Turner. 

* Miles Davis' "Blue Xmas" b/w "Devil May Care" will be released as a limited edition 7" blue vinyl single (pictured) for Record Store Day's annual Black Friday event on November 28.

* In more Davis-related news, Jazz Times critic Nate Chinen weighs in on Mostly Other People Do The Killing's controversial note-for-note remake of Davis' Kind of Blue, and Popmatters has an interview about the record with MOPDTK bassist and bandleader Moppa Elliott.

* In response to the controversy, the Davis estate felt the need yesterday to issue an official statement: "I Vincent Wilburn Jr., drummer and nephew of Miles Davis, and Cheryl A. Davis, daughter of Miles Davis, want to clarify that “Blue” the ultimate tribute by the band Mostly Other People Do The Killing, is not supported by us, nor done with our cooperation or participation."

* Saxophonist David Sanborn's performance this week in San Diego was previewed by the local daily the Union-Tribune.

* The performances last week by Sanborn at Jazz at the Bistro and Chick Corea at the Sheldon Concert Hall were reviewed by Calvin Wilson for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

* Bassist Stanley Clarke's show Tuesday at The Pageant was documented via a photo set posted on Facebook by Hip 96.3 FM.

* The Riverfront Times this week published a set of photos by Mabel Suen showing off the newly renovated Jazz at the Bistro.

* The Funky Butt Brass Band's version of the Jackson 5's "I Want You Back" was listed at #4 in an article on the website Mashable about "13 Brass Band Cover Songs That Are Better Than The Originals."

Not only that, but while on a recent trip to Arkansas to play the King Biscuit Blues Festival, the FBBB stopped off in Memphis for a visit to the Stax Records museum, where saxophonist Ben Reece, trumpeter Adam Hucke and trombonist Aaron Chandler met famed trumpeter Wayne Jackson of the Memphis Horns.

* KDHX has posted online a photo set of Wack-A-Doo's performance last week at one of the station's "Harvest Sessions."

* Speaking of photo sets, the Midwest Jazz-tette has posted two of them to Facebook, documenting performances earlier this year at First Unity Church and Cigar Inn

* Trombonist Dave Dickey is moving his monthly big band gig to Jazz at the Bistro, effective Sunday, November 2. The band now will play on the first Sunday of each month, continuing in their new location the practice of having local student bands perform at intermission. Their run of monthly shows at Kirkwood Station Brewing Company lasted three years. Tickets for the November 2 debut performance at the Bistro go on sale at 10:00 a.m. today via Metrotix.

* The Regional Arts Commission is accepting applications for the 2015 Katherine Dunham Internship, which provides hands-on experience in arts administration for an African-American student. The deadline to apply is Monday, November 3.

* Jazz radio update: This Saturday on Radio Arts Foundation - St. Louis' “Somethin’ Else,” host Calvin Wilson explores the landscape of extended improvisation via tracks from Henry Threadgill, Wynton Marsalis, Branford Marsalis and more. The program can be heard at 8:00 p.m. on 107.3 FM, 96.3 HD-2, and online at http://www.rafstl.org/listen.

* Disclaimer: I've been working with Alarm Will Sound since 2010 on publicity for their gigs in Columbia and St. Louis, including this one. However, given their demonstrated accomplishments and StLJN's usual editorial focus, I'd be writing about them here even if I had no relationship with them.

So What: Local News, Notes & Links

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

* Saxophonist David Sanborn has posted an update about the PledgeMusic campaign to finance his next recording.

Fans can see the saxophonist next on national TV this coming Monday, June 16, sitting in with Paul Shaffer and the CBS Orchestra on the Late Show with David Letterman.

* Jazz Times has coverage and more photos of last week's dedication of "Miles Davis Way" in NYC, and the official Davis site has video of the event via the Pace Report.

* In a related note, a new "Order Is Everything" column from Revive Music's Matthew Allen offers his take on the 10 essential Miles Davis albums.

* Keep On Keepin’ On, the new documentary film about the friendship between nonagenarian trumpeter Clark Terry and twenty-something pianist Justin Kauflin, was the subject of a feature on KPLU radio in Seattle.

* Saxophonist Eric Person has posted on Facebook a set of photos documenting his big band's performance last month at Dizzy's in NYC.

* While we're talking photo sets, Wack-A-Doo singer/accordionist Valerie Tichacek has posted on Facebook an album of pictures from last Saturday's sold-out "Midsummer Night's Jazz Festival" at the Deco Fortress.

* And completing today's photographic troika on Facebook is an album of pics from recent Route 66 Jazz Orchestra rehearsals.

* The Riverfront Times this week announced the winners of the 2014 RFT Music Awards, with guitarist and singer Tommy Halloran and Guerrilla Swing getting the most votes in the "Best Jazz" category. You can see a complete list of this year's winners here.

* Speaking of awards, the Jazz Journalists Association this week announced their 2014 Awards for Musical Achievement, and Miles Live in Europe 1969 was the winner for "Historical Record of the Year." Check out the full list of winners here.

* Pianist Stephanie Trick (pictured) has a new album of duos with Italian-born keyboardist Paolo Alderighi called Sentimental Journey. It features four-handed versions of ragtime, standards, and blues, plus a couple of originals, and is available now via CD Baby.

* Guitarist/singer Elliot Ranney was spotlighted in one of KDHX's "On Demand" podcasts.

* Popular longtime St. Louis radio personality Lou "Fatha" Thimes, father of singer Denise Thimes, has died after a long illness. StLJN joins St. Louis jazz, blues and soul fans in offering our condolences to the Thimes family.

* Denise Thimes also was interviewed this week about her memories of her frequent accompanist, the late Tony Simmons, for an article by the St. Louis American's Kenya Vaughn.

* Jazz radio update: This Saturday on Radio Arts Foundation - St. Louis, Calvin Wilson's “Somethin’ Else” will feature past winners of the Thelonious Monk International Jazz Competition, including singer Gretchen Parlato, trumpeter Ambrose Akinmusire and pianist Kris Bowers.

Then on "The Jazz Collective," host Jason Church will spin tunes from Brother Strut, Jeff Lorber with Chuck Loeb and Everette Harp, Incognito, Chris Standring, Stanley Turrentine, Grant Green, Hugh Masekela, Young-Holt Unlimited, the Jazz Crusaders, Rod Tate, Soul Cafe, Jim Stevens, and and Jesse Gannon.

Wilson's program airs at 8:00 p.m. Saturdays, followed by Church at 9:00 p.m., on 107.3 FM, 96.3 HD-2, and online at http://www.rafstl.org/listen.   

Jazz this week: Funky Butt Brass Band, Nathaniel Bartlett, West End Stomp, St. Louis Guitar Fusion, and more

The first part of the New Year traditionally is a bit a slow for the live music business, but if you're willing to brave the cold and snow, there still are some noteworthy jazz and creative music performances happening around St. Louis in the next few days. Let's go to the highlights...

Tonight, trumpeter Jim Manley will be back for his ongoing Thursday evening gig at Joyia Tapas, 4501 Manchester Ave in the Grove neighborhood.

Tomorrow night, the Funky Butt Brass Band returns to Jazz at the Bistro for the first of two nights of what's being billed as a New Orleans-style New Year's Celebration. While the overall production may not be quite as elaborate as the FBBB's recent Holiday Brasstravaganza, no doubt they will have a least a few trickerations up their sleeves to entertain the assembled multitudes. 

Also on Friday, percussionist and composer Nathaniel Bartlett (pictured) will be in town to perform at Lemp Neighborhood Arts Center. Bartlett will perform trichotomic ecology, a composition for 5 octave marimba, viola, and percussion that uses a custom eight-channel speaker array he calls the "SSAL loudspeaker cube," which surrounds the audience and creates "an elaborate, kinetic, three-dimensional sound environment."

The piece also employs software that not only responds to the composer via foot pedal commands but also ‘listens’ via microphones to the performers and generates notation on a video screen based on composer-created computer algorithms.

Elsewhere around town on Friday, Lindy Hop St. Louis' monthly "West End Stomp" dance will feature music from Wack-A-Doo at the Mahler Ballroom; saxophonist Willie Akins leads a quartet at Cigar Inn; Sarah Jane and the Blue Notes make their debut at Backstreet Jazz and Blues club in Westport; and Wendy Gordon returns to DeLeo's Cafe & Deli.

Then on Saturday night, Robbie's House of Jazz has a double bill, with an early evening show by saxophonist Jay Hutson and Da Wolvez with singer Tamesha Foote, followed by a late set by the Robert Tucker Quartet. Also on Saturday, bassist Bob DeBoo's weekly trio performance at Kranzberg Arts Center has been held over into the new year.

On Sunday, the St. Louis Record Collector and CD Show will hold their first event of the year at the American Czech Hall, 4690 Lansdowne at Kingshighway.

UPDATE - 5:30 p.m., 1/3/13: Organizers of the St. Louis Record Collector and CD Show posted on Facebook that Sunday's show is canceled due to the expected bad weather. The next show will be held on Sunday, March 2 

That evening, guitarists Dave Black, Randy Bahr and Farshid Soltanshahi (from Farshid Etniko) will team up for their first-ever concert together, billed as "St. Louis Guitar Fusion," at The Chapel.

UPDATE - 9:30 a.m., 1/3/13: Dave Black has posted on Facebook that Sunday's concert is postponed, due to winter weather.

And if for some reason that's not enough guitar for you, there's more on Monday, as guitarist Tom Byrne will be back at BB's Jazz, Blues and Soups.

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: Fumee Gypsy Project, T.J. Borden, Tuesday Night Swing Dance, and more

This week's jazz and creative music visitors to St. Louis include a gypsy jazz band from Chicago and an experimental cello player from New York.

Add in a busy lineup of gigs from local musicians, and the calendar for the next few days includes plenty of options for the discerning listener. Let's go to the highlights:

Today, if you're downtown during the lunch hour, you can catch a free performance of funky soul-jazz from the Jim Stevens Group as they play outside the Old Post Office and 8th & Olive.

Then tonight, Dizzy Atmosphere plays gypsy jazz and swing at The Shaved Duck, and singer Feyza Eren performs at Joe's Cafe, the "house concert" venue at 6010 Kingsbury Ave in the Central West End.

Tomorrow night, Wack-A-Doo will swing the Boathouse in Forest Park, while the Jazz Co-Laboratory, with trombonist John Covelli, bassist Ben Wheeler and drummer Joe Pastor, will be playing the music of Wayne Shorter at the Tavern of Fine Arts.

Also on Friday, drummer Kaleb Kirby brings a quartet to Robbie's House of Jazz; Second Generation Swing plays for dancers at the Casa Loma Ballroom; Sarah Jane and the Blue Notes will perform at Thurman Grill; and saxophonist Austin Cebulski leads a trio with Matt Villinger on organ and Micah Walker on drums at Cigar Inn.

On Saturday, the Fumee Gypsy Project (pictured), a young Chicago-based group fronted by singer Christy Bennett, will make their St. Louis debut at Robbie's House of Jazz. Also on Saturday, Miss Jubilee performs at Grappa Grill in St. Charles, and singer Danita Mumphard returns to Jazz on Broadway in Alton.

Update: 4:00 a.m., 8/16/13: A post on Miss Jubilee's Facebook page says Saturday's gig at Grappa Grill is cancelled, as the place has closed (rather abruptly, it would seem).  

If you can't catch them on Saturday night, the Fumee Gypsy Project also will be playing for Sunday brunch at the Rustic Goat. Also on Sunday, saxophonist Readus Miller has begun a recurring brunch gig at Patrick's at Westport Plaza (now back to its original name after several years as the namesake restaurant of departed St. Louis Cardinal Albert Pujols).

Then on Sunday evening, Tim Cunningham will be at Troy's Jazz Gallery, while the Lemp Neighborhood Arts Center will present a program of experimental music headlined by cellist T. J. Borden, plus "Pitiful Statement" feat John Beabout, NNN Cook, and John Cage: One.

Looking beyond the weekend, on Monday trumpeter Keith Moyer brings his group back to BB's Jazz, Blues & Soups, and on Tuesday, Lindy Hop St. Louis presents their monthly Tuesday Night Swing Dance, this time featuring music from Coco Rico, at the Grandel Theatre.

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.)

So What: Local News, Notes & Links

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

* Saxophonist David Sanborn and keyboardist Bob James are out on tour in support of their new album Quartette Humaine. Here's a review of their show at the Ottawa Jazz Festival from the Ottawa Citizen's Peter Hum.

* Saxophonist Oliver Lake's new big band album Wheels was reviewed by Jazz Times magazine's Mike Shanley. Lake is in California for the next couple of weeks, playing solo Saturday in Healdsburg; with the Airstrike Quartet on Monday in Sacramento; and next weekend doing four different programs, including a duo show with Roscoe Mitchell, in Oakland.

* More reviews of Opera Theatre of St. Louis' world premiere production of Terence Blanchard's opera Champion, from the New York Times' Vivien Schweitzer and KDHX's Chuck Lavazzi, plus another interview with Blanchard from BusinessWeek.

* Is actor Don Cheadle re-thinking the casting for his long-awaited Hollywood movie biography of trumpeter Miles Davis (pictured)? Jeff Hyatt of Miles Davis Online dissects the latest developments here.

* Synthesist Joe Raglani's track "Start Over" was featured on the indie music website Tiny Mix Tapes.

* The Muny pit orchestra was the subject of a feature story this week on local NBC affiliate KSDK, while Fox affiliate KTVI turned its lenses on the eclectic chamber ensemble The 442s.

* Guitarist and singer Tommy Halloran is profiled in the latest issue of St. Louis magazine.

* New photo albums online this week include pics from New Music Circle's presentation for last Satuday's Open Studios STL event; Wack-A-Doo's performance at Strauss Park for the StL Fringe Fest; and from KDHX, this past Sunday's performance by Bonerama at the Broadway Oyster Bar.

* Webster University is looking for a few more participants - especially bassists, drummers and trombonists - for its summer jazz camp, held the week of July 8 - 12 on the Webster campus. Taught by members of the Webster jazz faculty, the camp is open to players of all experience levels from high school age to adult, and focuses on improvisation in a small combo setting. Sessions run from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. each day, and the cost for the week is $235. For details, see the Webster U department of music website.

* This week in local jazz radio: On this Saturday's edition of "Somethin' Else," Calvin Wilson will focus on selections from the Great American Songbook (syncing up thematically with Erin Bode's shows this weekend at Jazz at the Bistro). The program begins on Radio Arts Foundation-St. Louis at 8:00 p.m., and can be heard over the air at 107.3 FM and 96.3 HD-2, or online at http://www.rafstl.org/listen.

Then on Sunday's "Jazz Unlimited" on KWMU (90.7 FM), host Dennis Owsley will be spinning selections from "Jazz Giants" including Bix Beiderbecke, Frank Trumbauer, Joe “King” Oliver, Fats Waller, Benny Goodman, Miles Davis, Shelly Manne, Freddie Redd, Betty Carter, Woody Herman, Eric Dolphy, Chick Corea, Bud Shank, Bill Holman, Betty Carter and Sun Ra. If you're outside the broadcast area, catch the stream online at http://www.news.stlpublicradio.org/.

So What: Local News, Notes & Links

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

* The New Orleans Times-Picayune says that pianist and former St. Louisan Tom McDermott (pictured) will release an anthology of tracks from his back catalog curated by famed arranger/producer and performer Van Dyke Parks. Keyboard magazine has more on the story here.

* New Music Circle was recognized as best "Cutting Edge Arts Organization" in St. Louis' magazine's annual "A-List" issue, which is out this week.

* Reviews of trumpeter/composer Terence Blanchard's opera Champion, which had its world premiere last Saturday at Opera Theatre St. Louis, are in from the St. Louis Post-Dispatch's Sarah Bryan Miller; former P-D columnist Harper Barnes, now writing for the St. Louis Beacon; and Denver Post classical music critic Ray Mark Rinaldi.

* Speaking of reviews, here's one by AllAboutJazz.com's Dan Bilawsky of Quartette Humaine, the new album from St. Louis native David Sanborn and keyboardist Bob James.

* The Route 66 Jazz Orchestra has posted on Facebook a photo album from their most recent show at Kirkwood Station Brewing Company.

* Two St. Louis music-related businesses have gotten some recent national attention, as Mel Bay Publishing won several 2013 Paul Revere Awards for Graphic Excellence from the Music Publishers Association, while Logic Systems Sound & Lighting was featured in the trade publication Lighting and Sound America.

* This week in jazz radio: If you still can't get enough of Terence Blanchard and Champion, Saturday's edition of Calvin Wilson's program "Somethin' Else," airing at 8:00 p.m. on Radio Arts Foundation - St. Louis, features an interview with the trumpeter, plus music from his new Blue Note album Magnetic.

Right after that at 9:00 p.m., Jason Church's "The Jazz Collective" will have sounds from the great female vocalists of jazz - i.e. "Ella, Sarah, Billie, Nina" - in the first hour, with music in hour two from the Carolbeth True Trio, Commonwealth, Brian Owens, Jason Swagler, Brian Vaccaro Trio, Christopher Braig, Bela Fleck, Fourplay and Richard Boulger. You can hear both programs over the air at 107.3 FM and 96.3 HD-2, or online at http://www.rafstl.org/listen.

Elsewhere on the radio dial, having finally completed the 10-week-long, updated version of his radio history of St. Louis jazz, Dennis Owsley will be back to regular programming on this Sunday's "Jazz Unlimited", airing at 9:00 p.m. on KWMU (90.7 FM). This week will have "new music featuring a duet between Jaki Byard and Tommy Flanagan, Ben Sidran, Joey Calderazzo, Monty Alexander, Keith Jarrett, Jaleel Shaw, the Jim Widner Big Band and a five part Suite called "Hagar’s Song" by Charles Lloyd and Jason Moran."

* Turning to what might be called "Crowd-Funding Corner," bassist Willem von Hombracht is in the final days of a campaign on Indie-A-Go-Go to raise money for the International Jazz Academy, which sends jazz musicians from the USA and elsewhere to work with music students in Eastern Europe; and guitarist and singer Tommy Halloran is using the same service to raise the cash needed to press the next CD from his band Guerilla Swing.

* Finally, here's a new promotional video from Wack-A-Doo for their song "The Black Bear Bounce," featuring, among other things:  the local bakery of the same name; a lot of local outdoor art; and a guy in a bear costume dancing and riding a unicycle. While film buffs might quibble that the shot selection gets a little repetitive after a while, overall it's a fun and imaginative way to promote a piece of instrumental music, setting an example that other local bands might do well to emulate.

Jazz this week: Gregory Porter, Wack-A-Doo, a jazz/funk tribute to the Beatles, and more

Call it a post-holiday hangover, a winter break, or whatever you like, but with one major exception, it's a pretty slow week for touring jazz and creative musicians visiting St. Louis. Fortunately, there are plenty of local musicians who aren't vacationing and/or hibernating, and thus are prepared to take up some of the slack.

The big attraction of the week is singer Gregory Porter (pictured), who's making his much-anticipated St. Louis debut with a four-night engagement starting tonight and continuing through Sunday at Jazz at the Bistro.

Porter, a big-voiced baritone who mixes soul and gospel influences with jazz, has received a ton of positive press over the past couple of years, and deservedly so, as his sound certainly is distinctive and, on record so far, he seems to have the talent to justify the hype (to the extent that anyone could). Video evidence indicates that Porter is a galvanizing live performer, too; you can see that for yourself, read more about him, and check out some interviews with Porter via last Saturday's video showcase post.

Elsewhere around town, on Friday retro swing band Wack-A-Doo plays for Lindy Hop St. Louis' monthly first Friday dance at the Mahler Ballroom in the Central West End; drummer Paul Shaw leads a trio with bassist Bob DeBoo and vibraphonist Tom Rickard at Cigar Inn; and trombonist/vocalist Doug Burns fronts a quartet at Robbie's House of Jazz.

Then on Saturday evening, guitarist Brian Vaccaro's organ trio will bring their Beatles tribute show to the Wolf Public House in west county; Miss Jubilee and the Humdingers will play for dancers at Casa Loma Ballroom; and singer Joe Mancuso will perform at the KindaBlue house concert venue on the south side.

On Sunday, it's the winter edition of the St. Louis Record Collector and CD Show at the American Czech Center, and then that evening, Dizzy Atmosphere will perform gypsy jazz and string-band swing at the Schlafly St. Louis Brewery and Tap Room.

Looking beyond the weekend, on Monday night guitarist Tom Byrne and his trio will take the stage at BB's Jazz, Blues and Soups. Then on Tuesday, guitarist Dave Black brings his group to BB's, while pianist and singer Curt Landes will be just down the block at the Broadway Oyster Bar.

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.)