Jazz & Blues Lounge

I decided to do some checking to see if any of my favorite jazz artists were planning on coming to town.  One of my favorite current jazz performers is Wynton Marsalis.  I have written about him before on this blog.  If you haven’t spent any time listening to Wynton, I can’t recommend him enough.  He is about as close as you are going to get to listening to some of those old-time jazz players I write about so often here…  In my opinion, of course.
Wynton is a guy with a lot of talent.  He not only plays the trumpet better …read more

1 Comment

Yes, this is just an easy way to get out of writing another long and involved blog article.  However, tonight, I am turning things over to you.  Tonight, I am really tired, sitting here staring at a blank blog entry and wondering what the folks who stop by this blog are listening to right now.  What jazz or blues music is on your iPod or frequenting the CD player in your car or at home?
So, I am turning this blog over to you.  Some of you will have to wait for your comments to get approved, but I promise to …read more

Comments Off

It’s that time again.  Yes, I am too lazy to do any actual research about musicians.  I am quite overdo to write another article about one of the classical jazz musicians I love so much.  This entire blog is just aching for an official Miles Davis history lesson.  The problem is, that is a little like trying to tackle Mt. Everest for a guy who is not only a jazz fan but a huge Miles fan.  It would be fun, but there would also be so much to talk about it scares the beejezus out of me.
So, instead, I did …read more

1 Comment

There is nothing quite like Christmas music.  You might think that Christmas music and jazz are just mutually exclusive.  Well, you would be wrong.
Back when I worked at the college radio station that played jazz, when Christmas time came around, there was a sudden proliferation of jazz CDs and records for us to play.  For a time it was even required for us to play one Christmas tune an hour.  While almost all of the jazz vocalists had released Christmas albums, for those of us who enjoyed instrumentals, it was slim pickins.  Except for one guy that you may not …read more

1 Comment

You have to love speciality record stores.  I also love a place where you can still buy jazz records.  I mean real records.  I mean things pressed out of vinyl and with grooves in it that you have to put on a turntable and then place a needle.  There is just something cool about jazz listened to on vinyl.  A lot of the jazz from the era I love the most was designed to be listened to on vinyl.  That’s why, in my dreams, I have a classic jazz radio station that operates on the AM dial…  *sigh*
OK, sorry, I …read more

Comments Off

I love reading entertainment magazines.  I hate to admit that I find interviews with movie stars compelling reading.  At the very least, I read “Entertainment Weekly” which actually discusses movies and doesn’t just show pictures of whomever Jessica Simpson is dating.
They also provide cool information about things like Miles Davis box sets.  Yes,  it is another edition of my “Bryan’s Wish List of Box Sets.”  This one is called “Miles Davis:  The Complete On the Corner Sessions.”
According to the information found at Amazon.com:  “Miles Davis’ The Complete On The Corner Sessions, the eighth and final deluxe box set in the …read more

Comments Off

Just a quick posting with some things thanks to WDCB and their calendar of events.  Once again, you can check out all kinds of jazz-related stuff at their website and listen to their station online.  www.wdcb.org is the place.
Peter Lerner CD Release Party
Blujazz Records – ‘Cry for Peace’ 

WDCB Sponsored Events

$10 general admission, $5 students over 21 w/ID

* contact the Presenting Organization listed below for ticketing information

Sunday, November 25; 7:30 p.m.

Peter Lerner
Hyde Park Jazz Society Presents
CheckerJazz at the the New Checkerboard Lounge
5201 South Harper-Chicago
$10 general admission, $5 for students over 21 w/ID
Sunday, November 25th – 7:30 to 11:30 p.m.
CD Release Party
Blujazz …read more

Comments Off

First off, I wanted to write to all of you great readers out there and tell you that I am most thankful on this Thanksgiving for all of you.  I love writing in this blog and talking about this kind of music.  It isn’t always easy.  Sometimes coming up with something to write about is the most difficult part of my entire day.  But I am grateful for the outlet and for regular readers like Chip and others.
So, I know this is a bit late, but I do hope all of you have a great holiday and weekend.  I hope …read more

Comments Off

Writing yesterday about Ramsey Lewis and his morning show on WNUA here in Chicago got me thinking about the two major types of jazz that most people probably know.  Of course, like most genres of music, the various types of jazz just show what a wide and diverse and exciting genre it is.
Of course, Chip and other purists will be quick to point out there are a lot more than two types of jazz.  I know that.  There’s Latin jazz and other forms of jazz from around the world.  New Orleans jazz is just a little different than Chicago jazz …read more

1 Comment

I am so in love with MySpace.  It is just about as big as the internet itself.  Each time I go in there and do a search for Chicago Jazz, I expect not to find anything new.  Every time I go, I end up finding something new.
There is a guy that is a bit of a Chicago treasure in the jazz world.  He is also a morning radio personality on the jazz station here.  You may have heard of him.  His name is Ramsey Lewis. 
He was born in the Chicago in May of 1935 and is one of the most-respected …read more

1 Comment