Now's the Time: Quasimodo

The grand (re)opening of the retooled Quasimodo takes place this weekend.  The new promotional video for the southern Johnson County establishment serves as a microcosm of the actual status jazz holds in the community.  Of the 21 acts booked on its July calendar, there's one true jazz group (Chris Hazelton's organ trio) and a fine jump blues act (Grand Marquis).  Otherwise, there's an assortment of post-Stevie Ray Vaughan blues acts, dance-oriented blues ensembles and classic rock cover bands.  In its previous incarnation, the venue booked a higher ratio of jazz musicians.  I doubt that Quasimodo's management holds an institutional bias against jazz.  They probably found that the non-jazz acts simply attract larger crowds that spend more money.  Please- tell me I'm wrong.

Analysis: Jazz in the Woods

Jonathan Butler, Friday's headliner at Jazz in the Woods, surveyed the vast crowd from the stage and suggested that "over 10,000" people were in attendance.

The free festival is designed to raise money for area charities.  I'm tempted to bemoan the fact that Jazz in the Woods no longer features, you know, "jazz," but there's no arguing with success.  That's why I laughed along with Ian Byrne of The Elders when he joked that his Celtic rock band was performing "Irish jazz" as it opened for the adult urban contemporary Soul of Summer review of Butler, Warren Hill and Maysa.  Besides, I'm rather partial to the Elders and I love singing along to Butler's 1988 pop hit "Sarah Sarah".

I recall when the festival was headlined by founder Vince Bilardo and was held in the parking lot of the nearby strip mall that currently houses Garozzo's.  I also remember that I was able to secure a parking spot within 25 yards of the stage back when Jazz in the Woods featured "real" jazz.  With the notable exception of the acts featured at the free Prairie Village Jazz Festival and at a couple holiday-themed concerts, improvisation-based small jazz ensembles haven't been able to draw audiences of more than 1,000 in Kansas City for at least a decade. 

Pouting would be pointless.  Instead, my biggest concern today is that embarrassing video documenting my dancing to Butler's "Mandela Bay" will soon surface.

(Original image of the Soul of Summer's background vocalists by Plastic Sax.)

Review: UMKC Conservatory Concert Jazz Band featuring Jack Walrath at White Recital Hall

The ongoing opportunity to hear Bobby Watson tear it up is one of the best things Kansas City has to offer. No matter the setting, the jazz giant's exuberance is infectious.

Watson led the UMKC Conservatory Concert Jazz Band Wednesday, April 6, in a performance at White Recital Hall. The concert featured two arrangements commissioned for the event and the compositions and trumpet work of featured guest artist Jack Walrath. About 100 people attended.

The concert began with the world premiere of Edward Simon's arrangement of Horace Silver's "Song For My Father." In spite of drummer Ryan Lee's bashing, it seemed a bit creaky. Even the colorful presence of Walrath couldn't keep a few of the subsequent pieces from sounding overly academic.

A handful of participants, including saxophonists Blake Deibel and Brett Jackson and excellent bassist Zach Beeson, stood out. And as many already know, drummer Brian Steever is perhaps the most visually entertaining musician on Kansas City's jazz scene. It was disappointing, however, that not every student in the 18-piece ensemble was allowed to solo.

The final two selections were easily the most memorable. Walrath's raucous "Sorry Display in a '65 Ford" was in the vein of the wild music made during the trumpeter's stint as a member of Charles Mingus' band. Watson picked up his alto saxophone during the world premiere of Tyler Gilmore's arrangement of "Deep Pockets," a composition from Watson's 2008 From the Heart album.

A joyful noise ensued.

(Original image by Plastic Sax.)

Joe Who?

I'd already heard a lot of great music in 2011, but Joe Lovano's concert Saturday at the Folly Theater topped it all. Startlingly innovative, Lovano and his Us Five band demonstrated that jazz still contains entire universes of untapped potential. (It's astonishing how much I concur with this review of the concert.)

Only about 400 people attended. Empty seats outnumbered patrons. And a significant portion of them, displeased by Lovano's aggressive approach, walked out. The Folly Theater's failure to utilize free promotional tools continues to disappoint me, but the problem is far more complex than that.

I was rattled by the reaction I received when I shared my excitement about Lovano's concert with friends during the previous day's First Friday celebration. One owns a record label. Another specializes in music marketing. A third books bands. A fourth works in radio. Not one of them had even heard of Lovano. He may lack the charisma of his frequent collaborator Esperanza Spalding, but within the jazz world, Lovano is a giant. When one of jazz's most important and compelling artists doesn't even register as a blip on the radar of music professionals, jazz is in a world of hurt.

Why the disconnect?

It's not the economy or competition from other forms of entertainment. Three rock-oriented concerts- Bright Eyes at the Uptown Theater, Three Days Grace at the Midland Theater and Henry Rollins at the Record Bar- drew capacity audiences the same night as Lovano's appearance. I have to believe that a least a few hundred fans at those events would also be attracted to the adventurous new sounds produced by Lovano. Rollins, for instance, issued a Matthew Shipp album on his 2.13.61 record label.

I realize, of course, that I'm preaching to the choir. I spotted several of Plastic Sax's 37 readers at Lovano's concert. Even so, it's come to this- jazz is so far removed from music's mainstream that active consumers of rock and hip hop have virtually no awareness of vital artists like Joe Lovano.

(Original image by Plastic Sax.)

Your Looks Are Laughable

Laughable. Unphotographable. Jazz may be, as the Rodgers and Hart standard would have it, my favorite work of art.

Yet I'm continually amazed at the miniscule number of people who share my passion. As I monitored the NEA Jazz Masters induction ceremony online on January 11, I was alarmed to see that the view count never surpassed 575. It's arguably jazz's biggest night of the year. A February 2 webcast by the Aaron Goldberg Trio + 1, well-promoted by NPR for at least a week in advance, drew less than 320 viewers. (A screenshot of the outstanding performance is below.)

Need context? A Ustream chat about video gaming that aired at the same time as the Goldberg concert had 2,873 viewers when I checked on it. And when Kansas City-based rapper Tech N9ne recently made a spontaneous Ustream appearance he attracted over a thousand viewers. (Screenshot above.)

Popular music is, by definition, bigger than jazz. But jazz may be more marginalized today than ever. Several friends openly mock my dedication to Plastic Sax. So why do I bother? That's easy. I love Kansas City's jazz scene and I want to see it prosper again. And maybe- hopefully someday soon- the tide will turn.

Stay, little valentine, stay.

Jazz Hang

Saturday afternoon at the Blue Room was a great hang. Joey Calderazzo, Gerald Dunn, Bobby Watson and Dennis Winslett were on hand to ponder "Jazz and the Music Industry." Their freewheeling discussion included trash talk, salacious gossip and a handful of genuine insights. It was hip, entertaining and over two hours behind schedule. The latter component might partially explain why less than a dozen people, including American Jazz Museum staff members and spouses of panelists, attended.

An anonymous commenter at the previous Plastic Sax post characterized Calderazzo as a "bitter a******." The talented pianist may be jaded, but I appreciated his candor. And like his three fellow panelists, he's really smart. Even so, I disagreed with much of what I heard.

Two video cameras were rolling and the four men had to have seen me taking notes. I'm not comfortable, however, quoting anyone directly. Instead, I'll broadly generalize the primary topics of the discussion and toss in my two cents.

The bad economy is responsible for poor attendance at jazz clubs.
I'm so tired of hearing this lame excuse. Times are undoubtedly tough, but Saturday's free event featured two internationally-acclaimed musicians and attracted less than twelve people. The previous night I was a member of a capacity audience of 2,000 at the Midland Theater. The cheapest tickets for the rock show were $45. The next day I was among a crowd of almost 1,000 people who paid $17 each to hear Kansas City jazz artists play Christmas carols. People still spend lots of money to hear the musicians that excite them.

Hip hop is horrible and fusions of jazz and hip hop are whack.
If you say so, Grampa.

Kenny G is a hack.
Whatever. I'd rather listen to Kenny G than hear people bash him for the hundredth time.

Club owners and jazz promoters are often unpleasant and unethical.
Stop the presses!

Money is more important than art to music industry executives. Case in point: Grammy Award nominations don't always go to the best artists.
You think?

An audience member fretted that jazz is becoming "blond-haired and blue eyed." She asked how this trend could be reversed.
None of us have any easy answers.

Jazz musicians are smarter than everybody else.
Bitter and better are two different things.

The youth of today are insolent, poorly-educated louts.
Preferring Young Jeezy over Sonny Rollins doesn't make someone a bad person.

Someone asked what "the blueprint" for a young jazz artist should look like.
I guess she didn't realize that this guy was in the room.

(Original image by Plastic Sax.)

Review: Rhythm and Ribs Festival

Saturday's Rhythm & Ribs Jazz and Blues Festival seemed like two separate and entirely unrelated events. The first one ran from 11 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. Less than 1,000 people were on hand to hear a dozen local and regional acts. Attendance exploded immediately after the jazz and blues portion of the festival concluded.

"This is what I envisioned when I took the beating I did when I tried to get this area up and going again," Congressman Emanuel Cleaver, II, said in his introduction of Kirk Whalum as he looked out at an audience of about 4,000 at 7: 40 p.m.

When I departed at 9:30 p.m., it looked as if 5,000 were on hand. The enormous VIP section in front of the main stage, painfully vacant all day, filled up during Whalum's set. Many of the fresh VIPs toted lawn chairs, leading me to speculate that the passes were being freely distributed at the gate.

Cleaver called Whalum "one of the greatest saxophonists to ever put a reed in his mouth." The Reverend and I will just have to agree to disagree about that assessment. The audience, however, didn't share my skepticism of Whalum's smooth gospel caterwauling. I may have been embarrassed when Whalum told the audience that he was the saxophone player on "I Will Always Love You" (yes, that's him at the 2:10 mark), but I was obviously in the minority. I also didn't appreciate that Whalum's set felt more like a Sunday morning than a Saturday night. He closed with "Falling In Love With Jesus". Thank heaven for Lalah Hathaway's appearance midway in Whalum's set. She doesn't try to be sexy. She just is.

Whalum's music may not be my thing, but an unlikely collaboration between Whalum and Nicholas Payton was the undeniable highlight of the festival. After momentarily riffing on "A Love Supreme," Whalum explained that he'd invited Payton to sit in on his set. Their rendition of "Giant Steps" was a symbolic triumph. While no sparks flew, the pairing epitomized what the festival organizers surely hoped to prove- that fans and musicians representing disparate styles can find common ground.


















It's a nice thought, but very few people seemed to appreciate Payton's intriguing set. (Note the empty VIP seats as Payton performs, above.) Sounding like a fresh update of Miles Davis' "Ife" from the 1972 album On the Corner with a pinch of Fulfillingness' First Finale thrown in as a sweetener, it was real back to the future stuff. Yet most of the meager audience greeted the experimental sound with insolent chatter or expressions of disgust. I loved it. Only the intrusion of a traditional New Orleans swing number late in the set disappointed me. It felt like a jarring repudiation of everything that had preceded it. Save that misstep, Payton's application of impeccable bop chops to gauzy outside jazz made for the day's most interesting music.















I'd been looking forward to hearing Queen Bey. (In light green, above.) She recently returned to Kansas City and I hadn't heard her in years. I wasn't sure I'd get the chance Saturday- the long-winded introduction by Howard Hesseman seemed like it would never end. Her all-star band consisted of saxophonist Gerald Dunn, trombonist Jason Goudeau, guitarist Will Matthews, bassist James Ward, drummer Ryan Lee and pianist Otis Hays. I don't know that I'd ever heard the latter musician. His bluesy but elegant playing floored me. (He's just one of several musicians mentioned in this review without any online presence.) In spite of this stellar support, Bey confessed that her appearance was plagued by "technical difficulties." Maybe next time.























The set by the so-called "Elderstatesmen of Jazz" was also a letdown. The music played by vocalist Patricia Lyons-Cox (above), flugelist Ronnie Reed, saxophonist Michael Herrera, pianist Donald Cox, bassist Joe Straws and drummer Sam Johnson was fine, but the average age of the band was a youthful 55 or so. I'd been hoping for the likes of Ben Kynard and Sellie Truitt. I guess it's just a sign of the times.


















Blues-bangers Trampled Under Foot did their thing from the main stage for a small but enthusiastic audience. (Above.)


















The refined piano-and-bass duo of Michael Pagan and Steve Rigazzi sounded splendid in the high-ceilinged atrium of the museum complex. Horace Washington's quaint set also succeeded in the same space. (Above.) I liked the veteran's joke about changing the name of Charlie Parker's "Scrapple from the Apple" to "Grapes On the Vine." Others preferred the Wes Blackman Trio's lounge-friendly versions of Roberta Flack's "Feel Like Makin' Love" and Anita Baker's "Rapture." The "B-3 Party" in the atrium, however, represented an audiophile's nightmare.

Back in the Blue Room, Heat Index preserved the fusion-funk of the mid-70s. A straight-ahead jazz band led by Nebraska-based trumpeter Darryl White featured beautiful contributions on vibraphone from Greg Carroll.


















Blues veteran Millage Gilbert's take on "Kansas City" was the first rendition of the song I heard Saturday. Alas, it wouldn't be the last one. I call for a moratorium on the tired standard. I have a few other quibbles about Saturday:

*Why were festival goers forced to show their ticket and/or hand stamp as they moved between the three stages? Unnecessary and annoying, the pointless process created logjams.

*Before the grounds filled for Whalum's set, the sound on the outdoor stage echoed off the back wall of the museum complex. The resulting reverb was awful.

*The decision to conclude the music on the two indoor stages at 6 p.m. was baffling. The odd oversight was made even worse by the horrid boogie recordings heard between live acts on the main stage. Would it have killed the sound man to play Jill Scott or Teddy Pendergrass?

*The food offerings (above) were a disappointment. I've sworn off one prominent restaurant after purchasing its inedible fare Saturday.

The latter two issues forced me to bail on the festival before seeing Sugarfoot's Ohio Players. While I hope festival organizers take this constructive criticism to heart, they're to be commended for successfully reviving Rhythm & Ribs after a one-year hiatus.

Rhythm & Ribs in 2011? I'm already there.

(Original images by Plastic Sax.)

Review: The Lionel Loueke Trio

A few of the songs Lionel Loueke performed Thursday at the Blue Room clearly evoked the musician's roots in Benin. Yet they weren't exactly exercises in traditional African roots music. Loueke applied an Auto-Tune-style effect to his vocals. It was funny, surprising and entirely delightful. That's Lionel Loueke in a nutshell.

About fifty people- at least a third of whom were area jazz musicians- witnessed an extraordinary musical dialogue between Loueke, bassist Massimo Biolcati and drummer Ferenc Nemeth.

I told someone at intermission that the intense way Loueke and Nemeth locked eyes for minutes at a time made me slightly uncomfortable. This intimacy, however, allowed the men to interact at an incredibly high level. While their music was serious, the musicians played with a rare sense of humor. Thursday's show was one of the funniest I'd seen all year. Nemeth, in particular, is quite a comedian. He'd occasionally raise his stick as if to bash a drum only to pull back at the last moment.

A trumpet player shot some footage of the show. Suggesting that it's not representative of the trio's performance is misleading. No two selections were alike. General references points in the trio's vast stylistic range included Pat Metheny-style gracefulness, John Scofield-ish funk and a bit of James "Blood" Ulmer-style skronk in addition to the African explorations.

The trio's next gig is in Martinique on December 3. I can't imagine a place I'd rather be that day.

(Original image by Plastic Sax.)

Modal Money

The economy stinks.

It's a fact. Still, I get tired of hearing prominent members of the jazz community use today's weak economy as an excuse for flagging support. It's not necessarily true.

I see quite a bit of live music. So do thousands of other people in the Kansas City area. Here's a recap of my last four nights out.

Last night I stood amid 8,000 people for Incubus' rock show at City Market. Tickets were $35. I witnessed a standing-room-only performance by a couple of Kansas City-based roots-rock acts Saturday afternoon at The Record Bar. About 125 people paid $6 each to attend. On Friday afternoon, approximately 600 people saw reggae artist Matisyahu perform at Crossroads. Tickets were $35. The previous day I caught Chris Isaak at the VooDoo. He hasn't had a hit in over a decade, but close to a 1,000 people paid $70 to sit or $55 to stand at his vintage rock show.

That's a lot of discretionary income being spent on four distinct flavors of music. And that's just my experience in 96 hours.

Here's an another example that hits close to home. Parking has been at a premium at a certain jazz club since a new upscale bar and restaurant opened up the block. I continually marvel at the throngs of people cavorting on the outdoor deck.

I wish I knew where all this money was coming from (and I wish more of it was mine.) It's deeply troubling, of course, that more of these funds aren't being spent on jazz.

(Original image of a Friday afternoon reggae performance by Plastic Sax.)

Plastic Sax's Crystal Ball

I don't particularly care for the music made by the likes of Mouth. The Kansas City band has more in common with Phish and Allan Holdsworth than with Charlie Parker and Joe Lovano.

A contentious debate at the Plastic Sax compound about whether or not to include Mouth in Plastic Sax's jazz listings has inspired a great deal of thought about the future of jazz.

Here are a few predictions about major changes that will transform the jazz community over the next ten years.

Definitions. In 2019 it will no longer seem odd to categorize bands like Mouth as "jazz." The word will have lost much of its current connotation. Prog rock, jam bands and ambitious roots-based music? Call it jazz. Need a headliner for a big jazz festival? Book Ben Harper, John Mayer or Wilco. They may not meet the outdated definition of jazz, but they sell tickets to fans who own a copy of Kind of Blue.

Support. Traditional jazz musicians will increasingly rely on support from government agencies and charitable foundations. Organizations like the Kansas City Jazz Orchestra will thrive and multiply. Privately-financed operations like Jardine's will be forced to continue their gradual drift away from mainstream jazz.

Education. The jazz establishment will finally lose their firm grip on music education. The new model will be programs along the lines of Paul Green's School of Rock and Columbia College's music production training.

Underground. A subversive alternative scene will blossom. A rebellious form of jazz- much of it noisy and and anarchic- will become the chosen music of anti-establishment hipsters. Imagine loft jazz redux.

Thanks, Mouth, for inspiring these musings. But I won't be listening to jams like "Gnarly" as I attempt to defend this post. Instead, I'll be hiding behind my enormous collection of Jay McShann memorabilia as abuse is hurled in my direction.

(Original image of Mouth by Plastic Sax.)

Sara Gazarek at Jardine's

Apologies to Erin Bode and Megan Birdsall. Sara Gazarek is the best new jazz vocalist I've encountered in the last five years.

The Los Angeles-based artist's second set last night at Jardine's was breathtaking.

It's a shame Gazarek played to a nearly empty room. By my count, I was one of 19 people who paid the $15 cover. And that's only if the handful of prominent Kansas City musicians in attendance weren't comped.

The lack of an audience is especially disappointing because it's difficult to imagine anyone who wouldn't appreciate Gazarek's exquisite taste and seemingly perfect pitch. She combines old-school talent with a fresh sensibility.

Her upper register evokes a less strident Joni Mitchell. And when she hits lower notes, Gazarek resembles Karen Carpenter. Don't laugh. While Gazarek's talent could withstand direct comparisons to Sarah Vaughan, Nancy Wilson and Ella Fitzgerald, Gazarek is completely contemporary.

She covered Mitchell's "Carey" (here's Joni's version) and Billy Joel last night (just like this).

Gazarek was backed by her regular pianist Josh Nelson. The reliably excellent Bob Bowman and Tommy Ruskin provided sympathetic support.

The small audience aside, the only disappointment was that the second set lasted only an hour. I could have listened to Gazarek sing all night.

(Original image by Plastic Sax.)

Confirmation: Weekly News & Notes

*Here's some compelling video documentation of a youth jazz program at Johnson County Community College. (Tip via a faithful Plastic Sax reader.)

*"Quick: how many living jazz artists can you name? Wynton Marsalis? OK, who else?" A concert preview for Jacky Terrasson in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch suggests attempting this alarming exercise on civilians.

*Saxophonist Steve Wilson is working on a project titled “Charlie Parker – Looking Forward and Backward."

*Plastic Sax's magic elves failed to find Steve Paul's review of Eldar at Jardine's. Paul mentioned it to me when I bumped into him at Saturday's Stefon Harris show.

*Pat Metheny made NPR's "Best CDs of 2008" list.

*Here's a report on an Oklahoma-style tribute to Marilyn Maye.

*Last week I expressed excitement that a new Johnson County restaurant would be featuring live jazz. It turns out that the Gaslight Grill has opened with a house band led by Lynn Zimmer. He lacks a website but I get the impression Zimmer plays Dixieland.

(Original image by Plastic Sax.)

I Want To Be Alone!

Nevermind.

I've repeatedly chided Kansas City's jazz musicians for failing to adequately promote their careers. Only a few take advantage of all of the free promotional tools available. The absence of a handful of high-profile local artists on MySpace has been one of my particularly irksome pet peeves.

I decided to test my theory on Saturday, November 15. I checked that day's play statistics for approximately 200 artists between 5-6 p.m. The results were incredibly discouraging.

Only 13 Kansas City jazz artists had over ten play counts for the day. And I'm using a very liberal definition of both "Kansas City" and "jazz."

(Disclaimer: It's possible that I overlooked two or three artists while compiling this data.)

Kansas City jazz artists with 10-50 plays:
Chris Burnett- 18
Grand Marquis- 17
Jake Blanton- 13
D.J. Sweeney- 12
Mark Lowrey- 11
Brandon Draper- 10

Kansas City jazz artists with 50-100 plays:
Karrin Allyson- 76
Miles Bonny- 54

Kansas City jazz artists with over 100 plays:
Pat Metheny: 907
Krystle Warren- 481
Norman Brown- 275
Oleta Adams- 267
Eldar: 126

How do those numbers compare to those of top jazz stars?

National jazz artists:
Norah Jones: 7,723
Diana Krall- 1,981
Herbie Hancock- 1,488
Esperanza Spaulding: 1,119
Chris Botti: 1,019
Madeleine Peyroux- 645
Dave Brubeck- 637
Kirk Whalum- 323
Aaron Parks- 307
Fourplay- 295
Joshua Redman- 156
Roy Hargrove- 137
Erin Bode- 57
Branford Marsalis- 31
Jazz At Lincoln Center Orchestra- 25

I wondered if MySpace is just a forum for kids. With that in mind, I checked the play counts for artists appealing to an older demographic.

National artists with older audiences:
Michael Buble- 29,750
Sheryl Crow- 10,164
Chicago- 5,354
Barry Manilow- 3,955
Neil Diamond- 3,421
Michael Bolton- 2,441
Tony Bennett- 1,070
Rod Stewart- 394

I wondered if all of Kansas City's musicians- regardless of genre- suffered from a lack of interest. I took a random sampling.

Kansas City rock, hip hop and bluegrass artists:
Tech N9ne- 68,315
David Cook- 45,316
Jannelle Monae- 6,193
Get Up Kids- 3,740
Mac Lethal- 1,973
The American Life- 1,684
Vedera- 1,591
Skatterman & Snug Brim- 697
Rich the Factor- 564
Ssion- 359
Trampled Under Foot- 208
Beautiful Bodies- 183
D Will- 96
Shooting Star- 78
The Architects- 75
Reach -75
Event- 60
The Wilders- 49
Steddy P- 41
The Rainmakers- 11

MySpace play counts are probably slightly lower on weekends, but that didn't prevent a few of the music industry's top stars from racking up impressive numbers.

National superstars:
Beyonce- 1,413,857
T.I.- 1,235,708
Lil Wayne- 858,920
Akon- 781,525
Taylor Swift- 523,397
Britney Spears- 485,920
Katy Perry- 399,768
Kid Rock- 74,068
Metallica- 32,964

What conclusions can be drawn from this exercise? Sadly, it's that jazz is just not that popular. Kansas City jazz is even more marginalized.

And I admit it- I was wrong. Based on the results of this study, it's understandable why some Kansas City jazz artists make so little effort. It must seem like no one's listening.

So why do I dedicate a couple hours a week to Plastic Sax? Well, I love the music. I also think it's important. Kansas City's jazz scene deserves lively and objective documentation.

(Original image by Plastic Sax. I'm a popular guy.)

Disappointed

I was upset when Dennis Winslett announced Friday afternoon that a panel session would start at least thirty minutes late. I'd been looking forward to hearing jazz greats Curtis Fuller, Javon Jackson and Bobby Watson address the topic: Blakey Training vs. Academic Training: Reflections of the Blakey Institution.

I had rescheduled my day so that I could attend the American Jazz Museum-sponsored discussion; the delay meant I'd be forced to miss it.

My anger, however, was displaced by sadness. Only five people were in the room fifteen minutes after the event's scheduled start time. Perhaps I shouldn't blame the musicians for being so cavalier with the time. Public indifference could inspire such behavior.

The sour experience so annoyed me that I decided not to buy a ticket to the Art Blakey tribute concert Saturday at the Gem Theater. Anyone who went to the show is encouraged to leave a review in this post's comment section.

Plastic Sax Is a Winner

Even Kim Sivils and Steve Rigazzi don't completely get it.

They've been savvy enough to invite me to their gigs and ask me about the booking policies of area clubs. But when I spoke to Kim at Jardine's last Friday, I discovered that she was confused about the intent behind Plastic Sax. (I write about Kim and Steve's music today at There Stands the Glass.)

Allow me to use the occasion of Plastic Sax winning the Pitch's Best Music Blog Award clear up misconceptions and answer commonly asked questions.

*I don't make a dime from this site. I'm beginning to suspect, however, that demanding advertising support and applying for grants might be the only way to be taken seriously by many key players in Kansas City's arts community.

*I do not believe that jazz is an inherently superior genre. Furthermore, I'm not slumming when I attend hip hop, punk rock, country and heavy metal concerts. I love all forms of music.

*I desperately want Kansas City's jazz scene to thrive. I don't hesitate, however, to report negative news. This approach regularly confuses musicians, clubowners and promoters accustomed to mindless cheerleading.

*My friend and colleague Joe Klopus at the Star isn't afraid to tell the truth. I initiated Plastic Sax only because the weekly appearance of his Jazz Town column left me wanting more. And while JAM has the best of intentions, its static online presence and rosy tone doesn't always appeal to me.

*I was so flabbergasted by the absence of a comprehensive list of area jazz links that I dedicated a weekend in July 2007 to creating the guide posted in the right column.

*I haven't picked up a saxophone since I was sixteen. The "Plastic Sax" title is intended as a peevishly disrespectful reference to the American Jazz Museum's famous relic.

*Since February, every image posted at Plastic Sax is an original photo.

*I'm accessible; email me at happyinbag(at)gmail.com.

*I recognize that Plastic Sax is far from perfect. Even so, I'm confident that it's the single most useful and comprehensive source for information and opinion about today's Kansas City jazz scene.






















(Original images of Kim Sivils (top) and Steve Rigazzi (bottom) by Plastic Sax.)

Like a Phoenix?

I'd been hearing disturbing rumblings about The Phoenix. Sure enough, the doors were locked on the night of July 26. The site now confirms that the jazz bar is "temporarily closed." While the 8th Street establishment is just as much of a destination for revelers as it is a listening room, it's a vital part of Kansas City's jazz and blues scene. My fingers are crossed...

(Image pulled directly from the Phoenix's site.)