Now's the Time: Wynton Marsalis

Some call Barack Obama a "rock star" candidate. A reveler tries to "party like a rock star."

Somewhere along the way jazz music dropped out of the popular lexicon. As much as I'd like Ornette Coleman or Cecil Taylor to take the honors, the closest thing jazz has to a "rock star" is Wynton Marsalis. He and the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra return to the Folly Theater February 8 for a sold out concert.

Marsalis is a polarizing figure. I happen to adore him. While I disagree with about half of his officious pronouncements, I'm delighted that a jazz trumpeter still manages to scandalize so many people in 2008.