SY SMITH

Sy Smith has proven throughout her career that an R&B artist can be progressive while remaining firmly rooted in tradition. Foremost a singer with a vocal range spanning five octaves, Smith began an unending succession of background gigs with Whitney Houston in the late ’90s, and has since worked closely with Grammy-winning trumpeter Chris Botti and Grammy-nominated group the Foreign Exchange, among dozens of other artists. After a brief period signed to a major, Smith established an independent label of her own, an outlet for compositionally solid and sonically adventurous albums including The Syberspace Social (2005), Conflict (2008), Fast and Curious (2012), and the entirely self-produced Sometimes a Rose Will Grow in Concrete (2018).

Sy raises her own bar and then leaps over it with her latest offering “Until We Meet Again” – her critically-acclaimed album produced by Zo! & Tall Black Guy, executive produced by Phonte Coleman and released on +FE Music in January 2024. This mellifluously soulful LP is drawing comparisons to Minnie Riperton and Deniece Williams and is already being called “the album of the year” by a few critics. Music journalist Mark Chappelle says “Smith evokes multiple traditions at once. With the sincerity of Diana Ross dedicating “Missing You” to Marvin Gaye, Smith lets her voice levitate until it breaks—as if just the right frequency could resurrect a loved one.”

Cover: $39.00 +fee

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T.K. BLUE QUARTET

jazz saxophonist, flautist, composer and educator from New York City, his parents were Jamaican and Trinidadian, and he has used their Afro-Caribbean musical styles in his own work. He has worked with, among others, Don Cherry, Jayne Cortez, the South African pianist Dollar Brand (now Abdullah Ibrahim), Randy Weston, for whom he was musical director, Jimmy Scott and fronts a powerhouse band of his own.

Cover: $35.00 +2 Drink Minimum

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ALLAN HARRIS

Aptly described by the Miami Herald as an artist blessed with “the warmth of Tony Bennett, the bite and rhythmic sense of Sinatra, and the sly elegance of Nat ‘King’ Cole,” Allan Harris is a Brooklyn-born, Harlem-based vocalist, guitarist, songwriter, and band leader. With an impressive discography boasting fourteen recordings as a leader, Harris has established himself as one of the jazz world’s most acclaimed vocalists, possessing a potent combination of dynamic vocal abilities, impeccable phrasing, and powerful emotional resonance.
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Harris has garnered a loyal following of ardent fans who are captivated not only by his remarkable talents but also by his unassuming personality and inquisitive, creative mind. Recognized for his outstanding contributions to jazz, he is a three-time winner of the New York Nightlife Award for “Outstanding Jazz Vocalist,” a DownBeat “Rising Star Jazz Vocalist,” and a winner of the prestigious 2022 “Sarah Vaughan International Vocal Competition.” He has also been honored twice as the “Best Male Jazz Vocalist” by Hot House Jazz Magazine, received a Back Stage award for “Ongoing Achievement in Jazz,” and was recognized with France’s Palmares Award for the 3rd Best Jazz Vocal Album. In addition, he has received notable grants, including the Chamber Music America Residency Grant, the “Pathways to Jazz” grant, and the South Arts “Jazz Roads Tour” grant.

Cover: $35.00 +2 Drink Minimum

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The Jazz Voyager

Heading west and coming in early to Ann Arbor, Michigan to investigate the African American Culture and History Museum, the Flight Museum and given time the Chelsea Area Historical Society Museum to see what the city and surrounding areas offer. The next leg of our tour stop of jazz clubs for a visit this week is the stylish lounge restaurant, Blue Llama. With Afro-Caribbean cuisine, designed by James Beard Award-winning Chef JJ Johnson paired with jazz, it creates a destination music venue.

On tap for entertainment is South African pianist Nduduzo Makhathini bringing the African warrior code that is deeply reliant on music for motivation and healing to the bandstand. With a deep influence of McCoy Tyner and Coltran’s quartet he allows his vision to be heard.

The Blue Llama is located at 314 S Main Street, 48104. For more information visit https://bluellamaclub.com.

CALIFORNIA JAZZ FOUNDATION

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NICHOLAS PAYTON NOUVEAUX STANDARDS

As a leading voice in American popular music, the Grammy Award-winning trumpeter is a multi-instrumentalist, vocalist, composer, producer, arranger, essayist, and social activist who defies musical and artistic categories. All the while, he honors the tradition of what he terms “postmodern New Orleans music,” as well as the spirit of Black American Music, of which he states, “There are no fields, per se. There are lineages.”

The New Orleans-born Payton has followed his calling since growing up under the tutelage of his parents — acclaimed bassist Walter Payton and Maria Payton, a pianist and vocalist. Already a prodigy before entering the first grade, he began playing trumpet at age four and started performing professionally at age 10. Before the age of 20, he was already in demand by everyone from Danny Barker and Clark Terry to Elvin Jones and Marcus Roberts. Payton released his first album, From this Moment, in 1995 on the famed Verve label. He received his first Grammy nomination in 1997 for the album Doc Cheatham & Nicholas Payton, and for the category of Best Instrumental Solo, which found him winning the award that year.

Nicholas Payton | trumpet
Gerald Clayton | piano
Vicente Archer | bass
Bill Stewart | drums

Cover: $40.00~$50.00 + fee | Streaming: $15.00 + fee

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