The Jazz Voyager
Heading back across the Atlantic to Rome, Italy and as they say, when in Rome… this weekend The Jazz Voyager will be embarking upon Tramjazz, a historical cable car converted into a traveling restaurant and concert hall. I will be enticed with a candlelit dinner, a jazz concert and a night tour of the center of the city. This is a project of Nunzia Fiorini and Anna Maria Sciannimanico and for about $80.00 takes each guest on a three hour culinary, musical and sightseeing adventure
One must be at the Piazza di Porta Maggiore at precisely 9:00 pm. This is the meeting point by the cable car platform near the ticket inspector’s cabin. They say it is where a 1947 Stanga railroad car will arrive and through the windows I will be able to observe the tables prepared and the candles lit. The band will already be in the turning platform in the middle of the carriage playing the first theme as the audience enjoys a flute of dry Spumante on the platform.
The cable car departs the station, the beer and the music begin to warm up and after a tour of the city it stops at the track of Parco de Celio, just in front of the Colasseo. Here dinner is served comprised of products from the Lazio region. All in all, I am looking forward to this evening. Hmmm… wonder what my attire will be. I think it will be prudent to check with Nunzia when I make my appointment at 339 6334700. #jazzvoyager#wannabewhereyouare
More Posts: adventure,club,genius,jazz,music,preserving,restaurant,travel,voyager
The Jazz Voyager
The Jazz Voyager is up in the air once again flying to the Keystone state to partake of the ambience and jazz being served up at the Lafayette Bar. feeling adventurous, as I always am, I have my Uber drop me off a few blocks from the venue and investigate the neighborhood. I’ll follow the directions to take a walk north on 4th past the doors to the hotel lobby and make a right on the other side of the coffee shop sign and you’ve arrived at the double grey doors of 15 N 4th Street, Easton, Pennsylvania 18042.
This well-worn venue is known for jazz hosts a laid-back, receptive crowd and features local, emerging and renowned musicians and I will be seated on the 19th in prime position to enjoy Jeff “Tain” Watts perform. They say it’s an American dive, just the kind of spot that brings good people together.
Shows start at 9:30pm and run to midnight often offering up two sets but sometimes a third set squeezes in. Free of cover and minimum but you must be 21+ and able to show identification to enter and drink. As always, for more information the number is 610-252-0711.
#jazzvoyager#wannabewhereyouare
More Posts: adventure,club,genius,jazz,music,preserving,restaurant,travel,voyager
The Jazz Voyager
Nighttown is my next destination for jazz and I am looking forward to sitting in a cool looking club that has been in existence for six decades. Opened in 1965 in a building that dates back to the 1920s, and what began as a single 40 seat storefront joint has evolved into one of the largest performance spaces and restaurants in the city. Named after Dublin’s Red-Light District in James Joyce’s Ulysses, Nighttown is located at 12387 Cedar Road, Cleveland, Ohio 44106.
Attracting an eclectic group of patrons to its ambience fashioned after the turn-of-the-century restaurants of the 1920s New York, it features renowned jazz artists four or more nights a week. This weekend the Jazz Voyager is spending the a couple of days in the city on the shores of Lake Erie and checking out the Cleveland Jazz Orchestra featuring Vince Mastro tonight at 8:30pm and on Sunday at 7:00pm, I will be catching the talents of pianist Chuchito Valdes. For dinner reservations and cover charge for performances the number is 216-795-0550. #jazzvoyager#wannabewhereyouare
Sponsored By
More Posts: adventure,club,genius,jazz,music,preserving,restaurant,travel,voyager
Review: Rick Bear & Friends | Sweetness
If you’ve ever been to the Crescent City, then you are well aware of the charms that seduce its visitors, as its residents are already under the city’s spell. Within its confines and in neighboring jurisdictions belies a cornucopia of delights in the aromas of varied cuisines, ample drinks and lots of music. It is, however, the latter that embraces and stimulates the enthusiast and aficionado to move to the myriad of rhythms.
So don’t allow the cover art to tempt you to pigeonhole this group of world class musicians in some staid understanding of what NOLA offers, for you just may miss their stellar performances. And for you initiates who have yet to sample the delights there is no better place to begin your journey than with a tasting of Sweetness. This is a recording representative of the talent that continues to spring forth from the city that has heralded the title of the birthplace of jazz.
Sweetness not only lends itself to the cuisine of the Crescent City but also invokes the very nature of the musicianship that is its tapestry. Herein lies the beauty of the compositions performed by drummer Rick Bear, guitarist John Fohl, bassist Jason Stewart and trumpeter/trombonist Ken Gregory. Stir in the piano and organ of Herb Avery and the vocals of Hampton B. Cole and you understand why jazz remains such an integral component to the gumbo that is New Orleans.
The base ingredients of this gumbo of compositions are Bechet, Waller, Rodgers & Hart, Henderson, Monk, Mitchell, Hines, Hancock, Ronell, Patton and Bernie who set the stage for this compendium of jazz standards. There is nothing subtle about their choices as they pay homage to the jazz canon and the Great American Songbook. So put aside any and all biases as to what may be and enjoy listening to these arrangements.
The set opens with the Sidney Bechet classic Petite Fleur where Spanish trumpet and French guitar influences conjoin in a flourish of style. The rest of the album follows with jazz standards – Willow Weep For Me, Rosetta, My Funny Valentine, Honeysuckle Rose, Bye Bye Blackbird, ‘Round Midnight, Hard Times, Jitterbug Waltz, Cantaloupe Island, Funky Mama and Sweet Georgia Brown.
Gregory takes the lead on most songs and his interpretations of My Funny Valentine and Round Midnight, the two ballads presented here, mournfully take you into a place of melancholy. The trumpet and trombone spell out his attributes, begging Valentine not to leave. On the latter, Fahl’s guitar quietly releases the anguish of a soul as it spells out its woes.
Hard Times is juxtaposed against its name with a rhythm that is anything less than enjoyable. Composed by Paul Mitchell during the turbulent Sixties, Americans on both sides of the struggle found lighter moments. Just the same way society did in finding its fun during the war years in the Jitterbug Waltz of Fats Waller.
Fohl opens up Cantaloupe Island with an easy strum and accompanies Gregory through what puts me in the mood for a hammock, warm breezes, sand and a cooler as the Hammond B3, guitar and the trombone swing you into a toe-tapping, finger snapping mode on Funky Mama. The closing tune on the album, Sweet Georgia Brown, opens with a rim shot staccato and ends the set on a fun note, a fitting tribute to the vocals of their recently departed friend, Colonel Bruce Hampton (Hampton B. Cole), making this final studio recording and an apt farewell.
Throughout the project, Rick Bear leads his compatriots and keeps time, allowing each musician to bring his sensibility to the signature sound that emanates from this city. Subtle though it may be, this session extolls a synchronicity in the songs that tell stories that are American made, as are the players whose star-power has not diminished.
To return to an earlier statement, allow me to clear up any misconception it was not my intent to disregard the thought behind the cover. I merely mentioned not to be distracted or form an opinion of what lay behind because there is a sellable story in the art. The missing part of the sign painted on the side of the building is A. J. ‘S Produce Co. Inc, 3162 Chartres. Angelo Benandi, the son who broke away from the family produce business at the French Market, established it in 1983. The Creole Tomato is grown in Louisiana soil in the river parishes along the Mississippi where the soil is richer. They are large, meatier, heat resistant, stay on the vine longer and hit the table so much sweeter. So when you’re down in New Orleans feel the pulse of the city, have a robust taste of homegrown and you’ll begin to understand the flavor that is The Big Easy.
carl anthony | notorious jazz / august 3, 2017
Give A Gift Of Jazz ~ Share 
#preserving genius
More Posts: bandleader,drums,history,instrumental,jazz,music,review
The Jazz Voyager
The next stopover for The Jazz Voyager is out West in 80205 zip code of Denver, Colorado to visit what has been widely praised and considered super elegant, a jazz spot named Nocturne. Located at 1330 27th Street it is said to be a place that introduces jazz fanatics to ravishing rations and lovely libations. We shall see…
This Friday night I’m looking forward to catching the Trio +1 tribute to the Oscar Peterson Trio and Clark Terry and I think I’ll stick around to see what the Late Night Sessions from 11:15pm to 1:15am have to offer in the way of duos, trios or jazz on vinyl.
The bi-level lounge and eatery is closed Sunday and Monday, but presents live jazz Tuesday through Saturday from 7pm to 11pm, with late night sessions on Friday and Saturday. Reservations are highly recommended and can be made by calling 303-295-3333. For those of you wondering, the entrance is to the left of the wall art and you already know who made their reservation three days ago!
#jazzvoyager#wannabewhereyouare
Sponsored By
Voices From The Community
#preserving genius
More Posts: adventure,club,genius,jazz,music,preserving,restaurant,travel,voyager