Blue Note Records Listening Party

I wasn't the youngest guy in the room. That was just one of the encouraging aspects of the Blue Note Records listening party at the Blue Room last week. A wide range of jazz enthusiasts attended the lively event. Miles Bonny (below) spun as Bobby Watson and Elmer Jackson (above) offered insightful commentary. Steve Paul reflects on the party in today's Star. The Blue Note 7 perform at the Gem Theater on Friday, February 20.




















(Original images by Plastic Sax.)

The Metheny Music Foundation's Scrapbook

Plastic Sax ranked the Metheny Music Foundation's contribution to the Kansas City-area's jazz scene as the seventh most important jazz-related event of 2008. This new video "scrapbook" serves as a reminder of the Foundation's value.

Confirmation: Weekly News & Notes

*This site is dedicated to music. Nevertheless, when a horrific and mysterious crime scene is discovered just a block from the American Jazz Museum at the Jazz District Apartments, it merits a mention in this space.

*KCUR's KC Currents talked to local jazz fan Elmer Jackson. Download the program here. The jazz segment begins around the 44:00 mark. Look for Plastic Sax's assessment of the Blue Note Records listening party at the Blue Room in a post next week.

*Of the seven Kansas City-related jazz nominees at this year's Grammy Awards, only Bob Brookmeyer triumphed Sunday. He contributed to the Vanguard Jazz Orchestra's Monday Night Live.

(Original image by Plastic Sax.)

Ida McBeth: An Appreciation

How many times have I seen Ida McBeth sing? Fifty? Seventy-five? Just like many music fans in Kansas City, I sometimes take the vocalist for granted.

With that unmerited negligence in mind, I dedicated early Saturday evening to a McBeth performance at Jardine's.

McBeth is better than ever.

Her striking physical beauty is intact and her dusky voice is now even more laden with emotion.

She completely invests herself in her repertoire. Songs including Irving Berlin's "You Can Have Him," Bill Withers' "Grandma's Hands" and the Rodgers and Hart standard "Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered" are unabashedly imbued with sorrow, bitterness and grief.

McBeth howls with anguish. Tears flow. Literally.

In peak form, McBeth is no less a distinctive and artistically important song stylist than Nancy Wilson, Nina Simone or Roberta Flack.

What's not to like? Well, I just don't dig McBeth's band. (Sorry guys.) I'd prefer either a smaller, more intimate presentation or a brassier, more commercial vibe. The current format just seems tired.

None of that matters, though, when McBeth is singing. She remains the best in Kansas City.

(Original image by Plastic Sax.)

Count Basie Introduces Duffy Jackson

Drummer Duffy Jackson "puts the grin on the groove and aims the beat at your feet" in this brief live clip ostensibly shot at a Kansas City concert in '79 or '80. Still with the Basie Orchestra, Jackson was the clear audience favorite at the ensemble's 2007 performance at the Folly Theater. It's one of eight videos Jackson has recently posted at YouTube.

Confirmation: Weekly News & Notes

*The Columbia Tribune offers a detailed story about the Village Vanguard's February 18 concert in Columbia, Missouri. Its twists and turns touch on NEA grants, Bob Brookmeyer and Columbia jazz promoter Jon Poses.

*The American Jazz Museum will host "Stories From the Vine" a "history of 18th & Vine as told by those who lived it." The series begins February 14.

*The Pitch reports that Dwight Frizzell will host a KKFI show dedicated to Sun Ra.

*The Star ran a lovely tribute to Joan Kent Dillon, the woman who spearheaded the restoration of the Folly Theater.

*The Blue Room will host a plethora of performances by female artists in March in recognition of Women's History Month.

(Original image by Plastic Sax.)

Is Jazz Dead? No, It's Dyed

Anyone driving along 12th Street Saturday night might have understandably presumed that a jam-band was performing at the Folly Theater.

Hordes of shaggy fans in tie-dye stood smoking outside the venerable venue. But neither String Cheese Incident nor a Phish side project were on stage. Instead, the bohemians were downtown to hear John Scofield play guitar.

Scofield has successfully collaborated with Medeski Martin & Wood and worked alongside Phil Lesh. Fans of those acts have subsequently latched on to Scofield.

While many members of the jazz community wring their hands about the dwindling audience for jazz, Scofield has gone out of his way to bring new fans into the fold.

The trend has been previously noted at Plastic Sax. While I don't spend much time collecting Grateful Dead bootlegs, I recognize that jazz's great hope, at least among American audiences, is likely in the patchouli-stained hands of Deadheads.

Incidentally, some jerk gave the show a mixed review. What an idiot!

(Original image by Plastic Sax.)