March April 2006
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march/april 2006 issue 280 free jazz now in our 32nd year &blues report www.jazz-blues.com Jason Moran and The Bandwagon Randy Weston Yellowjackets Diane Schuur PLUS...Regina Carter, Bela Fleck & the Flecktones, Manhattan Transfer, Mulgrew Miller, Rebirth Brass Band...Jazz Meets Hip-Hop, Jazz Brunch & more... Get The Scoop...INSIDE! Published by Martin Wahl Communications Editor & Founder Bill Wahl Layout & Design Bill Wahl Operations Jim Martin Pilar Martin Contributors Michael Braxton, Mark Cole, JazzFest Time is Here Chris Hovan, Nancy Ann Lee, Festival is Expanding to Year-Round Live Jazz Peanuts, Mark Smith, Duane Verh and Ron Weinstock. For close to three decades now, mance by the Manhattan Transfer Jazz & Blues Report has featured will be held at the Ohio Theatre on Check out our new, updated web the Tri-C JazzFest in our issue at page. Now you can search for CD Saturday, April 22. Tri-C JazzFest Reviews by artists, Titles, Record this time every year. Once again, we Cleveland officially kicks off on Labels or JBR Writers. Twelve years are happy to announce yet another Wednesday April 26 at 5 p.m. with a of reviews are up and we’ll be going edition of this premier jazz festival, New Orleans-style “second line” pa- all the way back to 1974! and their expansion to year-round rade, complete with fans, admirers jazz. and festival revelers. Leading the Tri- Now in its 27th year, Tri-C Address all Correspondence to.... C JazzFest Second Line is the Re- Jazz & Blues Report JazzFest Cleveland has been a dy- birth Brass Band, who will end the 19885 Detroit Road # 320 namic force in cultivating the next procession at the House of Blues for Rocky River, Ohio 44116 generation of jazz music lovers a swinging party with The Tri-C Jazz Main Office ...... 216.651.0626 through its extensive offerings of All-Stars as special guests. Editor's Desk ... 440.331.1930 performances and wide range of [email protected] educational programs. Tri-C Web .................. www.jazz-blues.com JazzFest Cleveland is known inter- Copyright © 2006 Martin-Wahl Communications Inc. nationally for presenting world-class jazz performers — from the young No portion of this publication may be reproduced without written permission lions to legends of jazz. from the publisher. All rights Reserved. This year’s festival has ex- panded to a full year of jazz – not Jazz Report was founded in Buffalo New just two weeks in April. The first an- York in March of 1974 and began in Cleve- nual Jazz Picante Weekend was land in April of 1978. We are subsidized solely through advertisement and ask that held in November 2005. This full you support our advertisers. weekend of sizzling latin jazz fea- tured NEA Jazz Master Paquito a W division of artin-Wahl D’Rivera, Larry Harlow’s Latin Leg- c o m m u n i c a t i o n s ends with Alfredo De La Fe and Yomo Toro, dance parties, salsa dance lesson and more. Two excit- RANDY WESTON ing weekends of entertainment are NEA Jazz Master Randy "Buffalonious" planned for April highlighting our Weston’s African Rhythms and the more traditional and well-known jazz Gnawa Master Musicians of Morocco Original mascot from performers. Also new this year, hit the Metro Campus Auditorium on the Jazz Fest will host the first annual Thursday, April 27 at 7:30 p.m. Buffalo Jazz Report Summer JazzFest Weekend July Weston, influenced by Duke Ellington days – mid '70s 21-22. and Thelonious Monk, has developed Created by JazzFest continues its star- a unique rhythmic style of jazz. A Christine Engla Eber studded line up of performances in style that’s a perfect compliment to April. To whet the appetites of jazz the music of the Gnawa Master Mu- Watch for new t-shirts bearing his image–coming soon! lovers, an 8 p.m. pre-festival perfor- sicians of Morocco with their power- PAGE TWO March/April 2006 • Issue 280 ful mixture of religious Arabic songs and African rhythms, trance music tinged with mysticism. DIANE SCHUUR REGINA CARTER all wrapped into one exciting perfor- mance. Special guest performer Regina JASON MORAN & THE BANDWAGON New for the Tri-C JazzFest is Carter provides a fresh, aggressive approach to the violin and a JazzFest shifts into high gear on “Aesop Bops” with David Gonzalez multicultural perspective as she ex- Friday, April 28 with a 6:30 perfor- at 10:30 a.m. on Saturday, April 29 plores musical combinations and con- mance by the multi award winning at the Ohio Theatre at Playhouse texts that are both familiar and unex- Jason Moran and the Bandwagon Square Center. This extraordinary pected. at the Museum of Contemporary Art. performance is “jazz for kids” and Also on April 29, Jazz Meets Hip- Truly a young lion, Moran’s some- is geared towards families attend- Hop, Part 4, featuring Bill Ransom times edgy renditions bring the di- ing the festival with children. and the Cincinnati-based hip-hop verse elements of jazz into a new Another first for Tri-C JazzFest band Iswhat?!, takes the festival to age. According to Rolling Stone, is the “Debut Series” at 3 p.m. on another level starting at 10 p.m. at the Moran is “the most provocative Saturday, April 29 that features Eric Beachland Ballroom. This creative thinker in current jazz.” Person & Meta-Four, and Neal Smith. This unique series gives performance fuses old school jazz, jazz lovers a preview of great per- socially enlightened rhythms and beat formers who are soon-to- be jazz box mastery for a performance that is headliners and is presented free of “downright stunning.” charge at the East Cleveland Pub- Sunday, April 30 rounds out the lic Library. festival with a Sunday Brunch with T.K. Blue, Benny Powell and Sayuri Goto at 11 a.m. at the Ritz-Carlton’s Silver Grille. The April festival con- cludes with a 3 p.m. performance by the Mulgrew Miller Trio at the East Cleveland Public Library. For tickets and information about Tri-C JazzFest Cleveland, call 216- 987-4400 or you can visit online at www.tricpresents.com. As America’s premier educational jazz festival, Tri-C JazzFest Cleveland has many free educational offerings that include adjudication/performance workshops, clinics and seminars, the annual jazz education field trips. A THE YELLOWJACKETS host of free concerts include: BELA FLECK & THE FLECKTONES Later in the evening on April 28 April 28 – Randy Weston Lecture/ Grammy Award-winning Diane Wildly popular Béla Fleck and Performance at Showtime at High Schuur will perform with the Carib- The Flecktones bring “blu-bop,” the Noon bean Jazz Project, led by vibraphon- mixture of jazz and bluegrass to the April 29 – Downbeat Magazine In- ist and marimba player Davis State Theatre Saturday, April 29 at vitational Concerts Downbeat Maga- Samuels. Also appearing with Shuur 7:30 p.m. The eight-time Grammy zine Blindfold Test as special guest are The Award winning Fleck has been nomi- April 30 – Mulgrew Miller Trio Yellowjackets, acclaimed by Bill- nated in more categories than any- Performance board Magazine as “...an elastic out- one in Grammy history as evidenced For information on free JazzFest ing of music that is straight-ahead by his creative energies in blue- Education programs, contact Alice and fusion, composed and impro- grass, jazz, pop, rock, world beat Backus, Education Director, at 216- vised, imaginative and adventurous,” and classical music. 987-3206 or [email protected]. March/April 2006 • Issue 280 PAGE THREE At the Rock Hall... WOODY SHAW Stepping Stones The following exhibits have been added at the Rock & Roll Hall of COLUMBIA/LEGACY Fame and Museum. Back in my early days of concert promotion I had the extreme pleasure Rick Nelson: From Idol to Icon of booking the Woody Shaw-Louis Hayes – now open – In remembrance of We only bring you Quintet into the old Tralfamadore Cafe, Rick Nelson’s untimely death 20 a wonderful small basement dive in Buf- years ago on New Year’s Eve, the the Cream of the Crop! falo NY. It was around 1976-77 and Museum is paying tribute to this trumpeter Shaw, who had some fine al- early pop icon with an exhibition of bums on the Contemporary and Muse never before seen artifacts. The ex- hibit is on the Museum’s Main Ex- in his own name, had a stellar lineup of hibit Hall and includes costumes, in- Rene McLean/saxes, Ronnie Matthews/ struments and handwritten lyrics. piano, Stafford James/bass and the great Louis Hayes/drums. It is to this day George Harrison and the Con- some of the hottest, most memorable cert for Bangladesh – now open – music I have heard - and we got to hear The Concert for Bangladesh was the it for four nights straight. About a year first major benefit concert of its kind later, Shaw and that same band, minus and paved the way for Live Aid, Farm McLean, would back Dexter Gordon at Aid, Live 8 and the other rock aid the Village Vanguard in NY for the live events that came later. The Concert for Bangladesh brought together an recording of his double LP Homecom- extraordinary group of major artists SAFFIRE – THE UPPITY ing album for Columbia. I was lucky collaborating for a common humani- enough to be invited by Maxine Gregg tarian cause. Organized by George BLUES WOMEN (Woody’s manager and future wife) to Harrison, the event sold out Madison Deluxe Edition the Vanguard for that recording. Square Garden in New York City, ALLIGATOR Soon after, Woody himself was generated millions of dollars for This Virginia-based bevy of blues- signed to Columbia.