Now's the Time: Luqman Hamza

The death of Freddy Cole rightfully generated a tremendous amount of press coverage and heartfelt tributes from grieving fans last month.  Cole’s passing caused me to reflect on Luqman Hamza.  Kansas City’s serene jazz-based balladeer died in obscurity in 2018.

The Top Jazz-Related Stories and Trends of 2018

1. Exhibit Closed
As the saying has it, this is why we can’t have nice things.  Ongoing disarray at the American Jazz Museum has substantially reduced the quality of life for dedicated music enthusiasts in Kansas City.  Not only does the institution no longer present an annual outdoor festival or book touring artists at the Gem Theater, the current programming at the museum’s nightclub is comparatively unimaginative.

2. Cracks In the Foundation
The legal travails and infighting at the Mutual Musicians Foundation acts as an ominous cloud over the entire Jazz District.  Pass the Tylenol.

3. No News is Bad News
Jazz coverage in Kansas City suffered several big hits in 2018.
Joe Klopus’ longstanding weekly Jazz Town column for The Kansas City Star was discontinued.  Metropolis, a publication subsidized by arts organizations, went belly-up.  The dedicated Kansas City jazz historian Larry Kopitnik stepped down as editor of Jam magazine.  The content and publication schedule of the periodical has suffered accordingly.  Plastic Sax is the sole local outlet offering regularly updated commentary and analysis of Kansas City’s jazz scene.

4. The Elephant In the Room
The most pressing issue on Kansas City’s jazz scene is the unabated erosion of support among the general public.  A cover charge of more than $10 attached to a jazz gig by an instrumental, improvisation-based Kansas City jazz ensemble not named the Kansas City Jazz Orchestra is the equivalent of cement shoes in a mob hit.

5. Wide Open Spaces
A de facto jazz festival took place in Kansas City this year.  Almost no one showed up.  The city-sponsored Open Spaces festival boasted an extensive jazz component.  Yet less than 25 people were present at each of the several free performances I attended.  Along with the Roots and Janelle Monaé, the Vijay Iyer Sextet headlined the festival.  Less than 75 people paid the $20 cover charge to hear Iyer’s auspicious New York based band.

6. Fists of Fury
Kamasi Washington’s concert at the Truman provided an accounting of precisely how many people in Kansas City will pay to see a jazz show by a touring jazz instrumentalist who isn't appearing under the aegis of an established concert series.  Far and away the most popular and critically acclaimed jazz artist of the decade, Washington drew 500 people to the downtown concert venue.

7. If a Jazz Album Was Released in a Forest
Another year passed without any national recognition for a Kansas City artist other than Logan Richardson or Pat Metheny.  To the best of my knowledge, not a single album other than Richardson’s Blues People that’s listed on Plastic Sax’s Favorite Kansas City Albums of 2018 revceived notice in a prominent national publication.

8. Glimmers of Hope
It’s not all bad.  The Kansas City Jazz Orchestra performed a few dates in Europe with Deborah Brown.  The Green Lady Lounge, Kansas City’s most popular jazz club, continues to thrive with a winning formula of offering mainstream jazz without a cover charge.  KC Jazz Alive sponsored a residency by saxophonist Tivon Pennicott in a series of performances billed as the Charlie Parker Jazz Festival.  The Marcus Lewis Big Band caught the attention of a few local pundits by bringing a pair of rappers into the fold.  “Bambu,” a funky track by Chris Hazelton’s Boogaloo 7, racked up more than 200,000 streams on Spotify.  The bookings of touring artists at the 1900 Building, Black Dolphin and at various locations used by Take Five Productions partly filled the void created by the retreat of the American Jazz Museum.

9. An Unsung Loss
The death of Luqman Hamza, one of Kansas City’s most respected veteran jazz musicians, was virtually unnoticed.

10. It’s a Date
The Kansas City Jazz Calendar was resurrected in 2018.

(Original image of a jazz performance at the Open Spaces festival by Plastic Sax.)

Confirmation: Weekly News & Notes

*Luqman Hamza has died.  He was 86.  The pianist and vocalist was the subject of Plastic Sax posts in 2007 and 2013.

*Logan Richardson leads a band that includes his fellow Kansas City musicians Ryan Lee, DeAndre Manning and Justus West in a Tiny Desk Concert for NPR.

*Laura Spencer reports on the latest developments regarding the uncertain future of the American Jazz Museum for KCUR.  The editorial board of The Kansas City Star asserts that “yanking all support for the jazz museum immediately would be counterproductive.”

*Joe Dimino’s Neon Jazz show has moved from KCXL to KOJH.

*Tweet o’ the Week: Bill McKemy- One of KC’s master musicians has left us. Thanks for the music Luqman Hamza (link)

*From a press release: On May 11, 2010, The People’s Liberation Big Band of Greater Kansas City will perform the ensemble's original score to Sergei Eisenstein’s classic 1925 silent film “The Battleship Potemkin.”  Along with a complete screening of "Battleship Potemkin," the People's Liberation Big Band will also accompany two short films as a prelude to the performance... The People’s Liberation Big Band’s score contains a combination of  newly composed material, free improvisation, and arrangements of Shostakovich melodies and traditional Russian songs… The performance will take place at the Musical Theater Heritage at Crown Center (2450 Grand Blvd, Suite 301, Kansas City, MO 64108) at 8:00 p.m.  Ticket price is $20.

(Original image by Plastic Sax.)

Now's the Time: Montez Coleman

Montez Coleman will lead a band at the Blue Room on Friday, August 28.  He supports trumpeter Roy Hargrove in the embedded video.  The drummer from St. Louis has also collaborated with Kansas City’s Ahmad Alaadeen, Luqman Hamza and Bobby Watson.

Luqman Hamza: An Appreciation

Luqman Hamza was first featured at Plastic Sax in 2007.  An elegant man and exquisite musician, Hamza's public profile has faded in the intervening six years.  That's why the embedded interview and accompanying performance video are so welcome.  Hamza is an overlooked gem.

Confirmation: Weekly News & Notes

*The current version of the Count Basie Orchestra will provide the soundtrack to this year's holiday season for tens of thousands of music lovers. A Swingin' Christmas, a collaboration with Tony Bennett, is one of 2008's most prominent new Christmas albums. Don't miss the wacky album cover.

*Steve Penn pays tribute to Luqman Hamza. "From time to time," Penn suggests, "It’s good to let such pioneers know that they won’t be ignored any longer." I concur with Penn's praise of Hamza. But it's pretty hard to properly pay attention to the man when he doesn't have any online presence. It sure would be nice to know, for instance, if Hamza has any forthcoming gigs. Could someone please address this woeful situation?

*The New York Times published a fascinating story about jazz benefactor Baroness Pannonica de Koenigswarter. A new book features her photographs and fresh details about her relationships with greats including Charlie Parker and Thelonious Monk.

*Tim Finn profiled jazz-folk artist Krystle Warren. I've heard great things about her recent show at the Record Bar in which she was backed by some of Kansas City's best jazz musicians.

*The silent auction of Jardine's piano takes place November 1. The minimum bid is $7,000. Details are listed here.

*Robert Folsom reviewed Branford Marsalis' concert at Johnson County Community College.

*I know it's really ugly, but I continue to update the Plastic Sax Jazz Calendar with information musicians provide directly to me. If you're not there, you're not trying.

(Original image by Plastic Sax.)

Luqman Hamza's Hot Seat

PHOTO REMOVED AT THE FAMILY'S REQUEST ON OCTOBER 5, 2020

On each of the dozens of occasions I've seen Luqman Hamza perform, I'm struck anew by his urbane persona and consummate musicianship. He recalls the sophistication of Nat "King" Cole, Charles Brown, Mel Torme and Bobby Short. It seems like he should be the featured attraction at an elite New York cabaret instead of playing for a handful of people in a Kansas City tavern. Consequently, Hamza's program last Friday at the Mutual Musicians Foundation's "Rush Hour" was somewhat surprising. The unpredictable behavior of the guest vocalists- including his wife, pictured here (I can't recall her name)- seemed to rattle Hamza's placid veneer. (Original photo by Plastic Sax, 8/24/07.)