We're Just Lucky So and Sos

"I love this place," a friend told me Friday at Lucky Brewgrille.  "They don't have to have jazz- but they do."

It's true.  The popular establishment in Mission, Kansas, is an unlikely venue for live jazz.  Yet the televisions are muted in the suburban bar and grill most every Friday evening as guitarist Ron Carlson leads a jam session.  The superb Rob Scheps was Carlson's featured guest artist on October 12.

Scheps didn't play his signature tenor saxophone while I was at Lucky Brewgrille, but his distinctive sound was evident as he performed with a flute and a soprano sax.   His forceful personality was also in full effect.  Every "suggestion" he made to his band mates led to a marked improvement.

A few people were obvlivious to the exceptional mainstream jazz, but a couple dozen patrons hung on every note.  (Note to managers of other establishments- these jazz fans represent found revenue.)  My tasty nine dollar barbecue chicken salad was so large that I could barely finish it. 

Scheps and Shunzo Ohno will join Carlson's band at Lucky Brewgrille again on Friday, October 19.  Details on Scheps' additional area engagements are listed here.

(Original image of Clint Ashlock and Rob Scheps by Plastic Sax.)

Now's the Time: Gerald Wilson

As Joe Klopus' preview indicates, this week's biggest event is the American Jazz Museum's Rhythm & Ribs Jazz & Blues Festival.  In his roundup of other noteworthy jazz-related items, Klopus mentions that Gerald Wilson will receive a lifetime achievement award at UMKC this weekend.  Here's a related press release from UMKC.  It's unclear if Wilson, 94, will attend the function on Sunday, October 14, but Wilson is certainly worthy of the distinction.

Confirmation: Weekly News & Notes

*Lucas Homer lists the Top 5 KC Jazz Acts.  His KC Jazz Connection program on KJHK is profiled by Lawrence.com.

*Megan Birdsall is admired by KCJazzLark.

*Several jazz musicians make cameo appearances in the video of Making Movies' "Hangover Blues".

*The program for Saturday's Rhythm & Ribs Jazz & Blues Festival is available as a download here.

*The University of Missouri Concert Jazz Band has released a new album.  (Via KC Stage Blog.)

*Esperanza Spalding's concert at Helzberg Hall was reviewed by The Kansas City Star.

*Kristin Shafel Omiccioli reviewed the recent concert by Gary Burton, Chick Corea and the Harlem String Quartet at the Gem Theater.

*Here's footage of former Kansas Citian Lee Ingalls crooning "Come Dance With Me."

*Tweet o' the Week: Kassie Sands- The lovely Esperanza Spalding and her big ol' bass.  Can't believe I'd never heard her music until today. Instagram.

*Comment o' the Week: Anonymous- "The first thing that impressed me... was the volume."  Yes, because that's exactly what jazz needs. Something to cover up the subtlety of our dynamics and phrasing. Nothing like having your whole career limited to how loud, fast and high you can play!

*Via Facebook: Performing at the Mutual Musician's Foundation in conjunction with their Youth Education Program to expose people of ages (15-28) of the relevance of Jazz music in our mainstream society and in their local community. Concert Series will Kickoff with: Shades of Jade!…Question and answer session during one of the set breaks…  This will be one of the highlights of Kansas City's Jazz Scene this year. Tickets are $5.

(Original image by Plastic Sax.)

Groovin' High: First Impressions of the Kill Devil Club

The first thing that impressed me on my initial visit to the Kill Devil Club, a new venue featuring live jazz at the southeast corner of 14th & Main last week, was the volume.  Diverse, the evening's featured entertainment, was loud.  Really loud. I've seen Hermon Mehari's band perform at least two dozen times, but only the Riot Room has amplified the band to such an extreme level.  I loved it.

Even so, most of the fifty young and notably attractive people in the room shouted over Diverse's groove-oriented covers of hits by Herbie Hancock and Stevie Wonder.  Only Diverse's rendition of "*****'* In Paris" put a halt to the chatter.

The second thing that made a big impression on me were the substantial ice cubes that chilled my delicious fresh-squeezed orange juice.  So manly!  The extensive drink menu is pricey, but the Kill Devil Club's friendly service, swanky decor and dim lighting make alcohol seem like a wise investment.  The opportunity to enjoy jazz while contemplating an expansive view of the Power & Light District and the iconic H&R Block building adds to the club's allure.

The venue isn't perfect.  The small stage is in the central corner of the L-shaped space. Most of the seating, consequently, offers obstructed views of the stage.  And the Kill Devil Club's growing pains include an unclear cover charge policy and woefully inadequate advance notification of bookings.

The Kill Devil Club has been open for less than a month.  A recent string of failed jazz ventures has given advocates of the music numerous reasons to be skeptical.  For now, however, the Kill Devil Club serves as a very welcome addition to Kansas City's jazz scene.

(Original image by Plastic Sax.)

Now's the Time: Hal Melia

Former Kansas City resident Hal Melia has returned to his old stomping grounds for a series of gigs.  Melia joins Bram Wijnands at the Majestic on Friday, October 5, and Saturday, October 6.   On Sunday, October 7, Melia, Wijnands and Phil Wakefield perform at Take Five Coffee + Bar.   The saxophonist tears through "Flight of the Bumblebee" in the embedded clip.

Confirmation: Weekly News & Notes

*The Orchestrion Project, a documentary about Pat Metheny's ambitious automated concept, hits movie theaters in fifteen states on Thursday, October 3.  No showings are scheduled in Kansas or Missouri.  Metheny is also interviewed by USA Today.

*Joe Klopus offers a survey of October's jazz events.

*The ongoing success of the Kansas City Jazz Orchestra is admired by KCJazzLark.

*Diverse will be among the performers at the opening reception for Prairie Logic on Friday, October 5.  The band is scheduled to perform at 7 p.m. at "Kansas City's newest public art project and performance venue."

*Phonologotronic offers an irritable examination of the Prairie Village Jazz Festival.

*The RecordBar promotes Sunday's show by the People's Liberation Big Band.

*Our Path to This Moment: the Rob Scheps Big Band Plays the Music of Ezra Weiss with Special Guest Greg Gisbert was released last month.  Scheps performs frequently in the Kansas City area.

*The Phoenix was a jazz club for much of its 22-year existence.  The 2012 Phoenix Fest on Saturday, October 6, features four rock bands, one blues band, an R&B act and two jazz-oriented acts that perform material by the likes of Gloria Gaynor and Bill Withers.

*The opening reception for the American Jazz Museum's Beyond Words: A Fusion of Poetry, Visual Art & Jazz is Friday, October 5, 2012, from 6-9 pm.

*I wish an animated video I made in 2010 was no longer applicable.

*Saturday's concert by Gary Burton, Chick Corea and the Harlem String Quartet was reviewed by The Kansas City Star.

*A blogger reviewed Nellie McKay's concert at Polsky Theatre.

*Mr. the Toad recently played "free form jazz" on his "plastic toy sax".

*Tweet o' the Week: ChrisHazeltonB3- The concert I saw last Friday was amazing! I think @BenFolds Five should hire me to play B-3 for the rest of the tour. #PipeDreams

*Comment o' the Week: Saul- So much of it is marketing and perception.  The Folly's marketing is antiquated. Even the free billboards they get don't help much.  Delfeayo and Sean Jones just were not advertised well. I found out about it too late.  Burton and Chick are an easy sell... even at the Gem Theater with its horrendous sound system operator.  If I were a Kansas City jazz presenter I would spend a couple of days with Jon Poses (We always Swing)in Columbia. I would visit with Tim Whitmer and the KCJO on how to market things. Go to the source! Model the masters.  In my opinion, a large part of the population that lives on Facebook doesn't have the dough to attend events. People with money are working one or two jobs, saving and have a time management plan in their daily lives and not killing time on Facebook. They paln things well in advance becauese their schedules are so full of commitments.  The JCCC stuff is not well publicized and the Winterlude dates are the Carlsen Center "left over" dates....possibly the least desirable dates of the year. Sure there are a few ads but you need a PR MACHINE.God bless Doreen Morande at JCCC. She does good work but she is retired for goodness sake. How can you expect Doreen to be responsible for getting people in the seats....she is just one person.  The Carlsen Center and Blue Room have minimal accountability because they are well funded by the government or an endowment. The KCJO, Jon Poses and Tim Whitmer have major accountability. If their programs don't draw the series' end.

(Original image by Plastic Sax.)

The Cost of Free Jazz

I was initially pleased when I learned that admission fees would be waived for the 2013 edition of the Jazz Winterlude festival, but I'm beginning to have second thoughts about the matter.  It's no secret that the audience for jazz is declining.  Could the plethora of free concerts featuring top-tier talent be part of the problem?

Jazz Winterlude's new policy will almost certainly ensure larger audiences for the annual event at Johnson County Community College.  The exciting young guitarist Julian Lage and the Kansas City-based veteran vocalist Deborah Brown are two artists who stand to benefit from the additional exposure.  But at what cost? 

It's safe to say that the only exposure many people receive to jazz performances comes during well-promoted free events such as Jazz Winterlude, Jazz in the Woods and the Prairie Village Jazz Festival.   Do these otherwise excellent festivals devalue the music?  Or does their accessibility translate into larger audiences for jazz performances with an admission charge?

Five hundred people were willing to pay $50 apiece to hear Gary Burton and Chick Corea at the Gem Theater last night.  And 1,000 people shell out $40 or $50 to see each of the Kansas City Jazz Orchestra's concerts.  A $7 cover charge doesn't deter a few hundred people from attending Tim Whitmer's monthly concerts at Unity on the Plaza.  That's the good news. 

The bad news is that Folly Theater (1,050 seats) was at half capacity for a spectacular outing by Pat Metheny and his all-star band three weeks ago.   I'm told that Bobby Broom recently played to a disturbingly small house at the Blue Room.   The audience for last weekend's concert by Delfeayo Marsalis and Sean Jones wasn't close to capacity.  And cover or no cover, an unhealthy portion of gigs by locally-based jazz artists are woefully attended. 

Or maybe it's just a jazz thing.  Over 14,000 aficionados of country music filled the Sprint Center last night for a concert headlined by Eric Church.  His fans paid nothing to see Church at Santa-Cali-Gon Days, Country in the Woods and the KC Live stage in the Power & Light district in recent years.  Yet Church is capable of attracting scores of fans willing to invest a minimum of $37.50 in a ticket to see him again.

I'll continue to ponder this conundrum as I enjoy tonight's free concert by '80s pop star Sheila E. 

(Original image by Plastic Sax.)