Jazz & Blues Lounge

I have to admit, this post is a bit of a cop-out.  I am running really late today, plus, I am flying off to St. Louis tomorrow for a Super Bowl weekend dealie.  Of course, Chicago is forecast to be hit with like the biggest snow storm ever in the history of the world or something, so I could end up spending Friday at O’Hare airport.  If you see me, say hello, I’ll be the guy tearing his hair and beard out and who looks like he might like jazz music.
Also, the WDCB calendar of events did not have Friday …read more

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I have spent the entire week talking about doing things in and around Chicago when it comes to seeing live music, and, in particular, jazz and blues.  I hope that I have piqued your interest enough to maybe put Chicago on your list of cities to visit for that kind of music.  Some day, maybe a great Jazz Tour will be created for jazz fans to visit places like Chicago and St. Louis and New Orleans and other great jazz towns.
As I mentioned yesterday, a great resource for jazz and blues is public radio station WDCB which is located way …read more

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Of course, if you do visit Chicago and don’t have a small fortune to spend on a place like Stub Hub for tickets to sold out shows, you can still have a great time.  That’s the cool thing about a city like Chicago.  We have music everywhere and there is a thriving jazz and blues music scene here.
The first place you may want to check is the Chicago Reader, which is a weekly alternative newspaper.  They have a website, as you can see from the link there, and they are probably the definitive place to look for live music. 
When it comes …read more

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I recently was writing about how Buddy Guy is performing a bunch of shows at his place, Buddy Guy’s Legends.  I have been championing people going to see these shows.  Buddy, sadly, is not getting any younger and while I have not heard any rumors about his health and he seems happy, hale and hearty, the fact is one can never tell.  He is a legend and I understand, and from what I have seen, his live performances are electrifying and exciting.  This is a guy who loves music and loves to perform.
So, where do you get tickets?  Well, the …read more

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Throughout the month I have been talking about Buddy Guy and how not only is he a living legend, but that he was playing every weekend at his club this month.  If you want to see more about Buddy Guy’s Legends, you can click HERE and check out all kinds of stuff. 
Well, the time is running out to see this guitar virtuoso play live and in person.  Once again, I can say that seeing Buddy perform live is like nothing you have ever seen before.  It is also a truly amazing experience to see him in a setting like his …read more

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Well, we have made it to another Friday.  Here in the city of Chicago, it is once again frozen tundra outside my window.  It’s about as cold as it can be without actually freezing matter completely solid. 
So, it may be time to head out to a jazz or blues club.  There are lots of great shows and they are always warm (well, there are ALWAYS exceptions).  You can check out further performances by clicking HERE and checking out their calendar.
JAZZ
January 25, 2008
Andy’s Jazz Quartet
Andy’s, Chicago
January 25, 2008
Mike Smith Quartet
Andy’s, Chicago
January 25, 2008
Jazz Institute of Chicago Presents Annual Jazz Fair
Chicago Cultural …read more

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I have continued to poke arond on YouTube to see if I could find any more footage of Charlie “Bird” Parker.  It turns out that the stuff I posted yesterday is not exactly the ONLY existing footage of him performing live, at least from what I can see.  However, the one clip that struck me was the one you can see HERE.
The clip is from the Ken Burns’ documentary “Jazz” which you can buy in full at whatever PBS store is near you or on the PBS website.  It was a powerful and fascinating documentary, if a bit flawed.
It’s just …read more

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I am telling you that YouTube is about the greatest thing the internet has ever produced.  Yes, I am male, but I am going to discount the myriad of porn available to pretty much everyone at this time.  Why do I love YouTube?  Because you can find just about anything on there as long as it isn’t too perverted.  This is especially true when it comes to great jazz performances.
Check THIS one out.
I have no idea what TV show that is.  I am also unsure of what awards are being given out.  OK, well, the guys says what awards are …read more

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So, what do you get when a writer’s schedule gets so jammed he has to try and write his jazz and blues blog entries before work and before his boss gets in?  You get a lot of blog entries where he can copy huge portions from other things and places, after giving proper credit, of course, and lost of lists.  Hey, I have a word count to maintain here and I don’t have all the time in the world to write those nice, well-researched articles about jazz greats even though there are about a million more to write about.
So, once again, …read more

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It’s been a bit slow since the first of the year as far as new releases and re-issues for 2008.  Maybe this this has something to do with the holiday thing.  All of the record companies like to have the new music out before Christmas and then take a bit of a break.  Now that it’s officially 2008 in earnest, and the third week in January, it looks like the new releases and re-issues are coming out. 
I got this list from a great website called “All About Jazz” which is, next to this blog, one of the best places to …read more

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