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Original image by Plastic Sax.
*Camila Meza and Vernon Reid select Pat Metheny tracks and Steve Cardenas praises Jim Hall in The New York Times’ "5 Minutes That Will Make You Love Jazz Guitar" feature.
*Joe Dimino interviewed Bryan Hicks and shared footage of a Jeff Shirley performance at Black Dolphin.
Tim Whitmer has specialized in giving jazz fans in Kansas City exactly what they’ve wanted for more than forty years. The veteran’s joy-infused, smile-inducing and foot-stomping music delivers the goods for listeners preferring old-fashioned fun to high-brow innovation.
The cheerful sensibility of the pianist and bandleader isn't static. The new album Double Live at Black Dolphin shows how his celebratory sound continues to evolve. Saxophonist Michael Herrera II, bassist Chase McRoy and drummer Ray DeMarchi match Whitmer’s exuberance while avoiding excessive sentimentality.
“Back Alley Bluz” epitomizes the approach. Herrera’s slow, stirring solo and Whitmer’s evocation of Jay McShann on the original composition are conclusively Kansas City. “Brookside Boogie” and “Basie’s Back in Town” are similarly buoyant. Yet the album isn’t a nonstop party. A refreshed reading of “Dancing with Theresa” is among the solo piano statements adding depth to the nearly two-hour recording.
Whitmer frequently quotes the phrase “these are the good old days” in his social media posts. In this instance, the axiom is spot-on. City Light Orchestra’s classic 1984 album Raised Spirits excepted, Double Live at Black Dolphin is the definitive Whitmer album.
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The album release party for Double Live at Black Dolphin will take place at Black Dolphin from 6:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m on Saturday, November 2.
The J. Rieger & Co. distillery has revived the legacy of Kansas City’s The Hey! Hey! Club. Jazz is performed at the East Bottoms complex on Thursdays. The outstanding Kansas City based saxophonist Adam Larson is featured on March 2. Larson also performs at Black Dolphin on Saturday, February 25.
Original image by Plastic Sax.
*Paula Saunders, Amber Underwood and Angela Ward anticipate a cultural exchange in Chile in a television news report.
*Hermon Mehari looks forward to his performance in the Folly Jazz Series in a Kansas City magazine feature.
*Following a month-long stoppage, The Blue Room reopens with a jam session led by Matt Villinger on Monday, January 30.
*The Pitch relays an update from Chaz on the Plaza.
*Jakob Baekgaard composed an overview of Mary Lou Williams’ career for All About Jazz.
*Portions of the Miguel Zenón Quartet’s concert at the Folly Theater were captured by Joe Dimino.
*Tweet of the Week: Green Lady Lounge- In 2022, Green Lady Lounge & Black Dolphin musicians earned $942,582.81 in performance pay & credit card tips from fans. By the merit of their performances & demand from fans, these Kansas City jazz musicians showed their success & robust viability in the free market.
Original image of Bob Bowman and Peter Schlamb by Plastic Sax.
Top Performances by Kansas City Artists
1. Logan Richardson + Blues People at the Ship
2. Adam Larson, Clark Sommers and Dana Hall at Westport Coffee House
3. Black Crack Revue at Westport Coffee House
4. Steve Cardenas, Forest Stewart and Brian Steever at recordBar
5. Arnold Young and the RoughTet at the Ship
6. Bob Bowman and Peter Schlamb at Second Presbyterian Church
7. Evan Verplough and Ben Baker at World Culture KC
8. Rod Fleeman at Green Lady Lounge
9. Alter Destiny at Charlotte Street Foundation
10. Drew Williams, Ben Tervort and Brian Steever at Westport Coffee House
Top Performances by Artists from Elsewhere
1. Nduduzo Makhathini at the Blue Room
2. Ohma at the Midland theater
3. Livia Nestrovski and Henrique Eisenmann at the 1900 Building
4. High Pulp at recordBar
5. Phillip Greenlief at Bushranger Records
6. Terence Blanchard at Atkins Auditorium
7. Keefe Jackson, Jakob Heinemann and Adam Shead at Black Dolphin
8. Esthesis Quartet at the Blue Room
9. Kind Folk at the Black Box
10. Bill Summers and Forward Back at Dunbar Park
Almost every aspect of a touring trio’s booking next week is out of the ordinary. In the first place, Chicago based improvisers don’t often stop in Kansas City. Furthermore, the daring sorts of sounds made by saxophonist Keefe Jackson, bassist Jakob Heinemann and drummer Adam Shead are rarely heard locally outside the auspices of the Extemporaneous Music and Arts Society. And perhaps most unusually, the excellent listening room Black Dolphin is hosting the trio for a rare Monday show on November 14.
Original image by Plastic Sax.
*The Spotlight: Charlie Parker initiative tops The Kansas City Star’s weekly entertainment advisory.
*David Basse is teaching an online course about Kansas City jazz at Jazz at Lincoln Center’s Swing University.
*Kansas City’s Aryana Nemati receives a credit on a sanctioned live recording by singer-songwriter Father John Misty.
*Joe Dimino shares conversations with Daniel Dissmore and Dawson Jones.
*The jazz portion of the lineup of the San Jose Summer Fest boasts saxophone heavyweights Gary Bartz, Donald Harrison Jr., Charles McPherson and Bobby Watson. A preview published by radio station KQED suggests that the event is a de facto tribute to Charlie Parker.
*Tweet of the Week: Jeff Zdanowicz- The Black Dolphin and the Green Lady Lounge. Nothing but good cocktails and great jazz! You should check it out!
Stephen Martin, one of Kansas City’s finest young musicians, will lead bands at Black Dolphin on Saturday, April 30, and Friday, May 6. The saxophonist is likely to showcase material from his impressive new album High Plains. He’ll be joined by pianist Brant Jester, bassist Sam Copeland and drummer John Kizilarmut on April 30. Pianist Andrew Ouellette, bassist Sam Copeland and drummer Brian Steever will accompany Martin on May 6.
Original image by Plastic Sax.
*Kansas City magazine includes Black Dolphin, Green Lady Lounge and Mutual Musicians foundation in a clickbait listing of the city’s best bars.
*St. Louis Jazz Notes runs down Jazz St. Louis’ recently announced 2021-22 season.
*The Tulsa World published a lengthy examination of the depressing decline of the Oklahoma Jazz Hall of Fame, an institution beset with “financial mismanagement and scandal.”
*Tweet of the Week: American Jazz Walk of Fame- We're back! Join us in one week.July 3rd, It's the annual American Jazz Walk of Fame. Music and Walk of Fame induction, Plus, this year it wraps with the big fireworks display! All on 18th & Vine.
Original image by Plastic Sax.
I didn’t set out to enrage readers with the unintentionally incendiary K.C. Blues series. The first three installments are a surprisingly controversial reality check. Problems are best addressed with candid recognition of the challenges. This, the fourth and final part of the series, lists eight reasons for optimism.
1. Lonnie’s Reno Club isn’t a new jazz venue. The hotel at 1111 Grand Boulevard has long hosted live jazz. But the newly rebranded club is slated to feature performances by the dynamic Lonnie McFadden three nights a week. In addition to being an ideal attraction for guests from out of town, the exciting concept breathes new life into Kansas City’s arts scene.
2. Rashida Phillips hasn’t had an adequate opportunity to show her stripes. The pandemic hit a few months after she was named the Executive Director of the American Jazz Museum. Here’s hoping Phillips is a creative innovator capable of altering the trajectory of the troubled institution.
3. The stylistic breadth of jazz made in Kansas City continues to expand. Amber Underwood, Eddie Moore and Logan Richardson are among the musicians capable of growing the audience for improvised sounds by bridging the divide between jazz and popular music.
4. Bobby Watson is irreplaceable. Yet the addition of Adam Larson to the faculty of the UMKC Conservatory lessens the blow of Watson’s retirement from academia. Larson possesses substantial artistic imagination and vital industry connections.
5. "Chronicles of Conception", a track Ernest Melton quietly issued earlier this year, suggests the brilliance occasionally flashed by the saxophonist may soon turn into a consistent torrent of inspiration.
6. The improvised music scene will be infused by a manic burst of energy if the peripatetic Mike Dillon continues to hang his hat in Kansas City. His return to his longtime home coincides with the release of the outstanding Rosewood.
7. The emergence of live streaming as a (semi)viable alternative to conventional performances is constructive. The high quality of productions at Black Dolphin continues to astound. There’s no reason the digital presentations shouldn’t be held over following a return to normalcy.
8. I’ll reveal my annual year-end top ten jazz album list by Kansas City artists in several weeks. Impressive 2020 releases are so plentiful that several strong albums won’t make the cut. My recognition of the abundant artistic excellence is yet another reminder to readers that my grievances shouldn’t be misconstrued as discontent with the music produced by Kansas City’s jazz musicians.
Original image of Matt Otto and Brian Steever at Black Dolphin in 2019 by Plastic Sax.
The timing of Alliance is fortuitous. Matt Otto released his latest album on August 29, just as the longing for worry-free live performances reached an apex. While I’ve reconciled myself to continuing to abide by pandemic precautions, I particularly miss attending performances led by Otto.
The saxophonist’s regular gigs at the Kansas City venues Black Dolphin, the Blue Room, recordBar and Westport Coffee House every couple months were among the artistic highlights of Kansas City’s music scene. The 44-minute Alliance resembles a short but satisfying set typical of the musician who’s responsible for one of the most rewarding strains of jazz in Kansas City of the past 15 years.
The album’s extensive lineup initially looks like a comprehensive roll call of Kansas City’s elite young talent. Marcus Lewis, Hermon Mehari, Peter Schlamb, Adam Schlozman and Brian Steever are among the prominent contributors. Each man modifies his approach to suit Otto’s graceful lyricism. Even when a drummer bashes aggressively, the gentle ripple of Otto’s signature style is maintained. The only surprise is the entrancing whine of Mike Stover’s pedal steel guitar on “Debs.”
While Alliance isn’t Otto’s most important work, it’s another vital statement from a man who continues to embolden Kansas City’s improvised music scene with his profound talent and fresh ideas. I’ve never taken Otto for granted, but I’ll have a new appreciation for his performances when this extended nightmare is over.