Jazz Talk

Editor Comments:

Many of us, from time to time, feel the need to discuss various aspects of jazz, music and the world at large. After developing the habit of reading much of the mail I receive relative to jazz I've decided our website needs a place to post such items so we can all share in their wisdom and/or the mirth.
Beware, the webmaster (that would be me) of this site enjoys many types of music; jazz just happens to be the primary but some other things I like may show up out of the blue. Also the items posted here may or may not be something that I personally agree with but, for what ever reason, I felt it was newsworthy. -- Ron Gable

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Headlines:

Jim Woodford reports on Delfeayo Marsalis at the Blue Wisp
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Jazz report on Phoenix Arizona by Teresa Hunt
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Paul Desmond's Gig Description.
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It's Commonly Jazz is looking for additional sponsorship!
(More Here)
Report on Pat Harbison at Wright State on February 28, 2009!
(More Here)
Doc Broadnax Is Back - Report on the Redmoor on 01/08/2009!
(More Here)
Report on Poco Loco at the Jazzy Java Cafe - by Jim Woodford on 1/16/2009!
(More Here)
"Jazz is apparently so popular at UD" - by Jim Woodford on 12/10/2008!
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Greg Turner reports on the 2008 Chicago Jazz Festival!
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Rob Lowe moved to San Diego and is helping kids develop their talents!
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Greg Turner reports on the 2007 Chicago Jazz Festival!
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Jim Woodford reports on Brookshire at Gilly's on Sept. 26, 2007
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Jim Woodford reports on the jazz scene in Tipp City on Sept. 22, 2007
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Jim Woodford reports on the Funk Brothers at the Fraze on Aug. 30, 2007
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The Mario Abney Quintet Was Recently Honored!
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Dayton Area Broadcasters Hall of Fame announce their 2007 inductees!
(More Here)
Report on Dayton Area Broadcasters Hall of Fame Gala at the Crowne Plaza Hotel!
(More Here)
Report on Hall of Fame Inductee Clay "The Cooker" Collins Celebration Party!
(More Here)

Note To Our Readers:

Some things you can do to really help out, first be an audience, second TELL YOUR FRIENDS and third write something about what you see and send it to me. The more that's written, the more that's read and more folks get involved. - Ron Gable

"write something about what you see and send it to me"

E-mail from Brian Powell: mouthpieceguybrian@yahoo.com

How Many of You Are There in the Quartet?

by Paul Desmond

Dawn. A station wagon pulls up to the office of an obscure motel in New Jersey. Three men enter - pasty-faced, grim-eyed, silent (for those are their names). Perfect opening shot, before credits, for a really lousy bank-robbery movie? Wrong. The Dave Brubeck Quartet, some years ago, starting our day's work.

Today we have a contract (an offer we should have refused) for two concerts at the Orange County State Fair in Middletown. 2 p.m. and 8 p.m. Brubeck likes to get to the job early.

     So we pull up behind this hay truck around noon, finally locating the guy who had signed the contract. Stout, red-necked, gruff and harried (from the old New Jersey law firm of the same name), and clearly more comfortable judging cattle than booking jazz groups, he peers into the station wagon, which contains four musicians, bass, drums, and assorted baggage, and for the first and only time in our seventeen years of wandering around the world, we get this question: "Where's the piano?"
     So, leaving Brubeck to cope with the situation, we head into town for sandwiches and browsing. Since the sandwiches take more time than the browsing, I pick up a copy of the Middletown Record and things become a bit more clear. "Teenager's Day at the Orange County State Fair", says the headline across the two center pages (heavy move, in that the paper only has four pages). Those poor folk, especially the cattle-judge type (who has probably lumbered into heading the entertainment committee), thought we were this red-hot teenage attraction, which, Lord knows we've never been. Our basic audience begins with creaking elderly types of twenty-three and above.
     Nevertheless, here we are, splashed all over this ad, along with the other attractions of the day- judo exhibition, fire-fighting demonstration, Wild West show, and Animaloraa (which may have been merely misspelled). And right at the top, first two columns on the left, is the this picture of Brubeck's teeth and much of his face, along with the following text, which I'm paraphrasing only slightly. "Hear the music teenagers everywhere thrill to", it began. "Hear the music that rocked NewportRhode Island (an unfortunate reference in that only a few weeks earlier the Newport Jazz Festival had undergone its first riot). "Hear Dave Brubeck sing and play his famous hits, including 'Jazz Goes to College', 'Jazz in Europe', and 'Tangerine'.
     So, now realizing - in Brubeck's piquant ranch phrase - which way the hole slopes, we head back to the fairgrounds where the scene is roughly as follows: there is a smallish, almost transistorized, oval race track. (I'm not exactly sure how long a furlong is, but it seems not too many of them are actually present.) On one side of the oval is the grandstand, built to accommodate 2,000 or so, occupied at the moment by eight or nine elderly folk who clearly paid their money to sit in the shade and fan themselves, as opposed to any burning desire to hear the music their teenage grandchildren everywhere thrill to.
     Directly across the track from them is our bandstand - a wooden platform, about ten feet high and immense. Evidently no piano has been located in Orange County, since the only props on stage are a vintage electric organ and one mike. Behind us is a fair-sized tent containing about two hundred people, in which a horse show for young teenagers is currently in progress - scheduled, we soon discover, to continue throughout our concert. This is hazardous mainly because their sound system is vastly superior to ours.
     So we begin our desperation opener, "St. Louis Blues." Brubeck, who has never spent more than ten minutes of his life at an electric organ, much less the one he is now at, is producing sounds like an early Atwater-Kent Synthesizer. (Later he makes a few major breakthroughs, like locating the volume control pedal and figuring out how to wiggle his right hand, achieving a tremolo effect similar to Jimmy Smith with a terminal hangover, but doesn't help much.) Eugene Wright, our noble bass player, and me take turns schlepping the mike back and forth between us and playing grouchy, doomed choruses, but the only sound we can hear comes from our friendly neighborhood horse show.

"LOPE," it roars. "CANTER...TROT...AND THE WINNER IN THE TWELVE-YEAR OLD CLASS IS...JACQUELINE HIGGS!"

     As always in difficult situations such as these, we turn to our main man, primo virtuoso of the group, the Maria Callas of the drums, Joe Morello, who has rescued us from disaster from Grand Forks to Rajkot, India.
     "You got it," we said, "stretch out," which ordinarily is like issuing an air travel card to a hijacker. And, to his external credit, Morello outdoes himself. All cymbals sizzling, all feet working. (Morello has several. Not many people know this.) Now he's into triplets around the tom-toms, which has shifted foundations from the Odeon Hammersmith to Free Trade Hall and turned Buddy Rich greener than usual with envy.
     The horse show is suddenly silent. Fanning in the stands has subsided slightly.
     Suddenly a figure emerges from the horse tent, hurtles to the side of the stage, and yells at Brubeck, "For Chrissakes, could you tell the drummer not to play so loud? He's terrifying the horses."
     Never a group to accept defeat gracelessly, we play a sort of Muzak for a suitable period and split.
     When we return at eight, all is different. A piano has been found, the stands are packed with our geriatric following of twenty-five and above, and we play a fairly respectable concert.
     Even so, we're upstaged by the grand finale of the fair - the fire-fighting demonstration. A group of local residents has been bandaged and made up to appear as if they've just leapt from the Hindenburg and their last rites are imminent. But instead of remaining discreetly behind the scenes until their big moment, they mingle casually with friends and neighbors in the audience during the evening, sipping beer, munching popcorn, casting an eerie, Fellini-like quality over the gathering, and considerably diminishing the impact of their ultimate appearance.
     After their pageant come the main events of the fair, which have clearly been planned for months: a flaming auto wreck, followed by a flaming plane wreck, each to be dealt with instantly and efficiently by the Middletown Fire Dept. At one end of the oval is a precariously balanced car; a the other end, a truly impressive skeletal mock-up of a single-engine plane, tail up. Midway, at ground zero, is the Middletown Fire Truck, bristling with ladders and hoses and overflowing volunteers.
     A hush falls over the stands. At a signal given by the fire chief, the car is ignited. The truck reaches it in two or three seconds, by which time the fire is roughly equivalent to that created by dropping a cigarette on the backseat for two or three seconds. It is extinguished by many men with several hoses.
     A murmur falls over the stands. The fire chief, painfully aware that his moment of the year is at hand, signals for the plane to be ignited, also instructing the truck to take it easy, so that the fire should be blazing briskly when it arrives. The truck starts, at about the pace of a cab looking for a fare. The plane goes WHOOSH!, like a flashbulb, and by the time the leisurely truck arrives, has shrunk to a lovely camp-fire, just large enough for roasting marshmallows.
     Later, four pasty-faced, grim-eyed men pile into a station wagon and drive away. It may not be bank robbery, but it's a living.

E-mail from E-mail from Laura Gentry: lgentry266@aol.com

Ron,
Hope you're doing well. Like all things in these current times, It's Commonly Jazz is looking for additional sponsorship. Attached is a letter we're sending out to individuals and businesses to solicit additional support. Would greatly appreciate if you could send this out, or put on your newsletter. - Laura Gentry

     I am requesting the consideration of businesses and individuals to become supporters or sponsors of the 24th year of Cincinnati’s oldest and most celebrated free summer jazz concert series - It's Commonly Jazz. Your support as well as sharing this information with possible supporters is appreciated.
     We are kicking off the 24th year in the newly renovated setting at Seasongood Pavilion in Eden Park. Our theme this year is It's Commonly Jazz is "Staying Green". We plan to continue to use environmentally sensitive promotional collateral. This year our music artists have been selected with an environmentally sensitive approach. We are using local musicians and a national musician whose instrument is a Steel Drum. We will use Stay Green approaches to travel by encouraging folks to Park and Ride the Metro to the concerts and wearing vintage t-shirts from the past 24 years. The intermission will have an Ahh - moment that will address living with an attitude of Abundance Health and Harmony.
          We have two levels of Support / Sponsorship:
          Level 1 Staying Green Sponsorship is $1500.00*
     As a 2009 Staying Green sponsor for the four It’s Commonly Jazz concerts that takes place every Thursday in August of 2009 from 6-8pm at Seasongood Pavilion on Eden Park Drive in Cincinnati, Carolyn Wallace, promoter for It’s Commonly Jazz, agrees to include your company logo on the following items and advertisement:
          All printed advertisement in Enquirer, City Beat, and Cincinnati Herald valued at $16,000.00
          Website www.itscommonlyjazz.com (which can be linked to your website if desired)
          5 on site Banners
          5,000 Go Green! Promotional Cards to be placed in Fifth Third Bank Branches, stores and restaurants throughout the city
          300 Bandannas
          75 t-shirts
          3,000 hand held fans
          Event location/presence … Opportunities to greet the crowd from the stage each week, an on site banner at stage, and a promotional table to distribute literature / product about the company. Attendance to a private kick off party for sponsors and their guest to proclaim the month of August as It's Commonly Jazz Month.
          Level 2 Being Green Supporter is $100.00* plus a give away prize
     As a Being Green supporter, your company or your personal name with a phone number, email or website address would be listed on our "Being Green" hand out which will be distribute at each concert. During the intermission we will play a game that will ask the crowd to answer questions about ways to be sustainable in their work place and in their personal lives. Before they answer the question they will have to name 4 Being Green supporters from the list. A prize will be given for correct as well as innovative answers.
     These two levels give you a choice in how you could keep this event going. I thank you for your time and consideration to help maintain this free, family friendly community event at a time where so many things are being dropped. Please contact me with any questions and hopefully your favorable response.
     *Payment for sponsorship would be made payable to The Perfect Brew/ Promoter for It's Commonly Jazz by June 6, 2009 at 1135 Clearbrook Drive Cincinnati, OH 45229. Please direct any questions to Carolyn Wallace at 513-242-6617 or 513-604-4230.

E-mail from Jim Woodford: jwoodford@gcisolutions.com (Dateline 02/28/2009)

Hey Ron,
How about another report from the field? Saturday night, 2-28-09, I made the time to get out to Wright State University to hear trumpet player Pat Harbison. I heard him one time before out at Central State on a night that Jim Smith played many of his originals. He was memorable that night so figured it was worth hearing him again. It was. There were other jazz aficionados in the audience as well, Todd Couch of DJO - his son plays trombone in the WSU ensemble (and played several solos with the ensemble) - Patrick Slaughter, a.k.a. Little Pops - brother of Clarence Slaughter [one day they will speak of Patrick without mentioning that he is the brother of Clarence] and Warren Saxon, a Jazz Central Jazz Jam regular participant.

The big surprise of the night for me was that Harbison started off playing with a trio backing him up and the even bigger and incredibly pleasant surprise was that the trio consisted of jazz guitar player Cameron Voorhees, drummer Jim Rupp from Columbus and Vinnie on the skinny [Vinnie Marshal on the "stick" bass]. These guys were worth the price of admission. They started off with It Could Happen to You. Then Harbison told a story about the first song ever written by Lima, Ohio native Saxophone Joe Henderson, Recorda Me- the band made this sound as if they had played it many times before. Harbison then told the story of Bloomington, Indiana native Hoagy Carmichael and then proceeded to play The Nearness of You - Cameron Voorhees played a beautiful, emotionally moving solo that had the crowd spellbound. Then the group really swung on the next one, Bags Groove, Harbison had the crowd tapping their feet, snapping their fingers from almost the very first note and Vinnie on the Skinny responded with a fitting solo. They ended their portion of the show by inviting up WSU Director Ryan Tarjanyi and the two played a duet on Have You Met Miss Jones (a song that I have heard WAY too many times but thankfully except for the intro and going back to the head at the end, the song was unrecognizable - and I say this in a good way). The song was played very up-tempo and the trumpet duet kept things interesting throughout.
The WSU Jazz Ensemble kicked off the second half of the night with a Gordon Goodwin tune entitled Count Bubba. They followed this up with a tune I had never heard performed big band style before, Anthropology. A tenor saxophone player from the Air Force Band stepped in at the last minute to help out the band, Grant Koeller (who played the part of Charlie Parker while Harbison played the part of Dizzy Gillespie). The song was very well done. In my own personal opinion, the song on which guest artist Pat Harbison got to display his Arturo Sandoval type range and musicianship on the trumpet was the next tune, What's New. Harbison was magnificent throughout this piece. He then told the story of a good friend of his, Steve Allee, who wrote a big band tune entitled Bus to Belmopan (the capitol of Belize) attempting to capture the whole bizarre adventure. All I can say is what a challenging and expressive big band piece. Harbison started off on flugelhorn, switched to trumpet and then cornet to achieve the effects needed. He played cornet entirely on the next big band piece, Naima, one of my favorite tunes by John Coltrane and done very well by pianist Cedar Walton. The night ended with the Charles Mingus tune, Haitian Fight Song, also very well done. It was in this song that a saxophone player, who had been highly energetic all night long, got his big solo on soprano saxophone, Alex Mohr. Well deserved and well done. A couple of other comments are in order. I sat in the absolute perfect position to never see the drummer all night long in the ensemble, no matter which way I leaned and this was a big band drummer who was not timid or tentative on the drums, as young big band drummers sometimes are - come to find out it was a female drummer, Theresa Snider. Way to go! I never did find out who was playing the congas all night long but the conga work really added to the performances throughout. A very enjoyable experience. Hats off to the WSU jazz program!
p.s. one final word on Grant Koeller, he was called one day before the concert to help out, they "painted an overall picture" of the music for him and then he came in and read the heck out of the music during practice Friday and then put forth a stellar performance Saturday night, really stepping up on his solos - an amazing performance.

E-mail from Jim Woodford: jwoodford@gcisolutions.com (Dateline: 01/16/2009)

Made my maiden visit to Jazzy Java Cafe in the Oregon District last night, thanks to some friends of ours who invited us out and got to hear a couple of jazz mavens I haven't heard in quite some time. The group is called Poco Loco [you may have seen the 1-11-09 Dayton Daily News write up] but I had no idea that G. Scott Jones (trombonist extraordinaire) and Brian Hogg (who disappeared to Africa at one point) were playing with the group. Either are worth going to see on their own, together it was pretty electric and then Latin jazz beats as well, very exciting. While we were only able to stay for the first set, they played Equinox (a John Coltrane composition), Billy Mumbo, a rousing Latin rhythm tune, Bernie's Tune (a well known version performed by Jerry Mulligan & Chet Baker) plus one of my favorite jazz tunes and they also played a crowd pleasing version of Watermelon Man [Herbie Hancock]. They also included
an exciting Tito Puente tune, the name of which I did not catch but which drove the crowd crazy. All-in-all it was a very energizing set. Brian Hogg knows his way around a tenor sax [played some soprano sax as well] and can really belt out the tunes and G. Scott Jones was matching him note for note. All band members kept the crowd deep into the music
with various solos and quotes from lots of other standard jazz tunes throughout but Liz Wu [the focus of the DDN article] was a crowd favorite on the vibes. An evening to remember. I will also add that Pamela Williams was a gracious host even though the club reached capacity and potential patrons had to be turned away at the door. Quite an evening. Poco Loco can be checked out at: http://www.pocolocomusica.com/ and you can find Brian Hogg at:
http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendID=121958451.

Editor's Note: (Dateline: 01/08/2009)

Fellow Jazz Advocate board member Jim Woodford and I went to the Redmoor in Cincinnati to see Doc Broadnax’s presentation of The Eddie Brookshire Quintet w/Kenny Drew Jr. Turns out Khalid Moss filled in for Mr. Drew, much to my companion’s displeasure. However, it was a great performance and I can’t say enough about the Redmoor. What a beautiful place with great service, outstanding food and all at reasonable prices. – Ron Gable

E-mail from Jim Woodford: jwoodford@gcisolutions.com (Dateline: 12/10/2008)

     Wednesday night my wife and I had the pleasure of a rare treat at the University of Dayton, three jazz ensembles. No wait, not just three jazz ensembles, but three very entertaining jazz ensembles. Jazz is apparently so popular at UD right now that they had to enlist the services of a third conductor, Tony Pepitone, who was really swinging with the opening ensemble (a.k.a. Jazz Band II). They started off with a Jobim tune entitled One Note Samba and ended with a Sammy Nestico arrangement of a Frank Foster tune entitled Shiny Stockings. To paraphrase Tony, the band was "swinging like Basie" when they launched into their big finish on Shiny Stockings. Rebecca Leis played a notable solo on L'il Darlin' and Thomas Kenneally put down a great drum solo on Almost Like Being in Love. And that was just the beginning of the evening.
     Next up was the University Jazz Band I under the tutelage of the best all round jazz drummer in the Dayton area, Jim Leslie - you can hear him with one of the area's premier jazz bands, The Dayton Jazz Orchestra, and with the Dave Greer Classic Jazz Stompers, among other combos. But tonight Jim was lifting and inspiring a group of up and coming jazz musicians to what surely had to be one of their best performances this year. They kicked off with one of my favorite tunes, Do Nothin' 'Til you Hear from Me - this one a Sammy Nestico arrangement of a Duke Ellington song. An ear catching touch, wonderfully executed, was the stop-pause right before the last stanza. Drummer Joe Conway was featured on brushes next, on a Neal Hefti tune entitled Cute. This group performed a Sammy Nestico arranged tune as well, Just in Time with memorable sax soli(s) that received excellent support from the entire band. W.C. Handy's St.
Louie Blues was the most exciting number of this set and the featured trumpet section got the blood pumpin' throughout the packed room. Trombonist Josh Cain was an integral part of that effort. The band ended with a song from the actual Count Basie book, Corner Pocket and what a performance with which to end the set. While the whole band was swingin' there was a notable rising to the occasion by trumpet player Natalia Owsiany and even though it was only 8 bars, the solo really stood out.
     Last, and I assure you certainly not least, was the Dayton Jazz Ensemble directed by Reg Richwine, a long time Dayton Jazz Orchestra trumpet favorite who was filling in for Director Willie Morris on sabbatical. A little fresh air never hurts. They kicked their set off with one of the bravest efforts of the evening, Channel One Suite made famous by the Buddy Rich band. Yes I said Buddy Rich - drummer Jacob Holloway stepped into some mighty big shoes on that one. And tenor saxaphonist Rebecca Holloway rose to the occasion with another one of her unique solos. They even did Maynard & Waynard, a Gordon Goodwin tune of The Big Phat Band fame, originally played by Wayne Bergeron & Maynard Ferguson - the part of Waynard was played by Chris Cornelius and the part of Maynard was played by Andrew Aldstadt - whew! My wife commented that the trombonist sitting right in front of the two soloists surely had to be deaf by the end of the performance. And a song that I had waited to hear since it was reluctantly dropped from the September South Park Jazz Festival due to unavoidable time constraints, Cruisin' for a Bluesin' - well worth the wait I might add [Gordon Goodwin and The Big Phat Band do this one as well] - the saxophones made this arrangement particularly toe tappin' in nature. The Evan King alto sax solo was kept the crowd going. But the big finish of the night was actually a Christmas song, check that, sort of a Christmas song - another Gordon Goodwin tune entitled Yo
Tannenbaum! This performance saw the trumpet section playing in unison, the trombone section playing in unison, the saxophones playing in unison - two sections together, back and forth from one section to the other, all sections playing together - wow! - and the really big finish, which followed the pause and the directive "one more time" would have made
Stan Kenton proud. Don't know if they will be doing anything like that again this school year or not but you will be doing yourself a favor to catch them if you they do.

E-mail from Jim Woodford: jwoodford@gcisolutions.com (Dateline: 9/22/2007)

You are always asking for live jazz performance audience input from those of us out there attending those live performances so here ya go:
Conrad Jessee and I took our wives up to Chin's in Tipp City last night to hear Mike Teckenbrock (on flugelhorn for those who do not know Mike) and Jeff Huffnagle (on keyboards for those who might not know Jeff) and it was well worth the trip. The music started at 7:00 but was over all too soon at 10:00. Mike and Jeff play together so well it is as if they have practiced every song hundreds of times, absorbing every little meaning of what is happening inside the tune and knowing where the song is going. When the real explanation is that Jeff and Mike listen to each other so very well, it is like they sense what the other is doing. The result is magical. They do a song entitled Boo's Blues that seems to be unique to their duo as well as a version of Sam Rivers' song, Beatrice, that is so beautiful it is hard to describe with words. Included in one set was a softly swinging song entitled Centerpiece and a enticing
version of Everything Happens to Me. They also played My Funny Valentine by request, a song way overdone and not often that well, but they played it with so many interesting nuances as they weaved their spell throughout the song that it really sounded quite fresh. They even played a Beatle's song, Michelle, and at one point during the song, Conrad commented, "I'll bet you never heard that on an album." I had to agree. Jeff and Mike interact almost effortlessly, offering musical conversation that can truly be a balm at the end of a long hectic day. Oh yeah, we had a nice dinner too. And let me add this about Chin's. I have not ever been to Chin's when owner Art Chin did not come out and interact with guests, making sure they are enjoying their dining experience. Teckenbrock, Huffnagle and Chin's, a tough combination to beat. - Jim Woodford

E-mail from Jim Woodford: jwoodford@gcisolutions.com (Dateline: 8/30/2007)

You are always asking for people who visit/read your jazzadvocate web site to write and tell you what is going on out in the community, well here is something a little different. I was recently torn between going to hear DJO down at RiverScape, Tim Berens over at Pacchia's or the kick off for the United Way Campaign in Dayton at the Fraze Pavilion. The Fraze featured The Funk Brothers. For jazz purists that might not be familiar of whom I speak, they were the band that played behind Motown artists for decades, playing on more number one hits than the Beatles, Elvis and The Beach Boys combined. You might ask what does that have to do with jazz? I'm glad you ask. The opening act was The Serious Young Musicians, led by Tumust Alison - they brought the crowd of over 2,000 people to their feet on more than one occasion. Anyone who has heard The Serious Young Musicians know they have an abundance of talent and they play jazz! Man do they play jazz. The crowd appreciated the solos by all three sax players plus Mario Abney on trumpet but as a regular at Jazz Central, pretty much every Sunday night, I am proud to say that the crowd seemed to especially appreciate the solos by Sunday Night Jazz Central Jazz Jam regular, Clarence Slaughter. The crowd loved him. Thank you Butch Stone for making Jazz Central available so players like Clarence [ I would add that I have seen all the other current members of The Serious Young Musicians down at Jazz Central as well.] have somewhere to regularly practice and master their craft. As one of the singers with the Funk Brothers later pointed out, these Serious Young Musicians were not out participating in the rap scene so popular today.
But that is not all - The Funk Brothers were backed up by a brass ensemble which consisted of a saxophone, a trumpet and a trombone, admirably I might add, all night long. (however they were literally "in the back" - you might say standing in the shadows of love for any Motown fans reading this) But at one point the song called for a sax solo, so popular in the rock/R&B scene in the 60s - Earl Bostic like for jazz purists, when suddenly I realized, "Hey, I know that guy!" It was Dayton's own Bill Burns. A guy who can wail on a sax in his own right. If you haven't had the pleasure of hearing Bill play barisax on the Bobby Timmons version of Moanin' then you owe to yourself to make that happen. Then I quickly realized that the trumpet player was Dayton's own Al Parr (horn player "parr excellence") and trombone player (also of DJO fame), Steve Schoppert. What a great night of music. The Motown sound of the 60s & 70s filled the air but the Dayton jazz scene was well represented. Heck, one of the female singers touring with The Funk Brothers was even from Urbana. And as you always say Ron, support live jazz. - Jim Woodford

E-mail from

E-mail from Jim Woodford : jwoodford@gcisolutions.com (Dateline: 9/26/207)

Ron,
Caught part of the Jerry Gillotti show on WING's Jazz Brunch on Sunday 9-16-07 and heard a tune that really caught my ear which turned out to be The Eddie Brookshire Quintet. I was intrigued. Eddie doing bebop away from his usual big band efforts. Called GEM City records to see about getting a copy but they were out. Later that week I learned that the group would be appearing at Gilly's. Caught Jerry's show again on 9-23-07 and heard a couple more songs. My ears had not played tricks on me so the group appearing at Gilly's later that week was perfect timing. Additionally, I am a fan of the piano playing of the late Kenny Drew and his son, Kenny Drew, Jr. was part of the Quintet so was looking forward to hearing him live.

The Quintet opened the set with some hard driving jazz and Conrad Jessee leaned over to me and said, "You weren't kidding when you said they play BeBop!" That was just the beginning of a great night of music. Flugelhorn player Gary Onady made that instrument sound like a trumpet and Jack Novotny coaxed some incredibly rich sounds out of his saxophone. Mark Lomax played drums way beyond his 25 years and hands that might make one think that Kenny Drew, Jr. was a pro football defensive lineman
stretched across the piano keys and made the piano come alive. Every one of his solos fit the music perfectly. Excellent musicians playing exciting music and all urged on to greater heights by leader Eddie Brookshire. My favorite of the evening was one of Eddie's own compositions from the CD, Minor Blues, with a hard driving bass line that kept the song jumping. And I am happy to say that the CD version is just as good. It was also thoroughly enjoying to hear the simultaneous instrumentally coordinated horns on As I Say to You, one of the three compositions provided by Eddie Brookshire "great friend", Bobby LaVell. The group kept things even more interesting by playing songs that were
not featured on their new CD, Bass Notes; The Heart Beat of Jazz. One in particular that was quite memorable was a Kenny Drew, Jr. tribute to the late Joe Zawinul entitled Midnight Mood. They ended the night on a tune that maybe took me a little further out than I might have wanted to go entitled Trane Thang but what a great musical adventure all night long. But one final note, though I saw no specific acknowledgment for the CD cover art, I learned that it was the vision of a six year old child that blossomed over the years into local jazz aficionado Jack Moody and who finally lent his vision to The Eddie Brookshire Quintet. (To their purchase CD, contact Eddie Brookshire at (937) 278-1116 or send an e-mail to ebrook9376@woh.rr.com) - Jim Woodford

E-mail from Rob Lowe: roblo1@aol.com

Hi Ron
Hope you have been well. I have a favor to ask could you please look at the attached information sheet as well as our website www.castingnewlives.com. I am living in San Diego now but we take kids from all over the U.S. If you have any questions please let me know. If you could share this with your readers and friends I would appreciate it.