Of course, the East Coast news people go exactly the opposite way.  It only becomes news to them when it actually hits New York.  Chicago COULD have been wiped out by a freak snow fall and they wouldn’t notice or acknowledge it until the giant snow balls were rolling down 5th Avenue.

It turned out that it did indeed snow.  Then it rained.  Then it was freezing rain.  When I went to bed last night, it looked like everything outside was encased in plastic.  Then, when I woke up, a freak warm front had gone through and much of the ice had melted and it rained all day.  Then the weather people came on during the Bears game to scream that the melted ice w0uld re-freeze tonight.

People, we live in Chicago.  We should all be used to this by now.  Unless you just moved here from a life living on the equator, none of this should be a surprise to you.  You should also all learn how to drive in this stuff or else get off the road so I can get past you in my Jeep.

Sorry, I realize this has nothing to do with jazz.  As such, I suggest you go back to the top, and start reading it again with the Smooth Jazz song “New Snow” by Flim and the BBs playing.  Yeah, sure, it may be hard to find that song and the song itself may be the audio equivalent of a marshmallow dipped in honey…

But when the tenuous connections get tough, the tough dig up the elevator music.

Post from: Jazz & Blues Lounge

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 and on and on it goes.

For me, the two types of jazz are classic jazz and the new Smooth Jazz that you hear on most commercial jazz radio stations like WNUA.

I am a fan of classic jazz.  For me, this includes all of the forms of jazz I mentioned before in that list of jazz genres.  Any jazz that has horns and sounds like something you would hear from Gillespie, Davis or Parker is classic jazz as far as I am concerned.

WNUA plays mostly Smooth Jazz.  For me, there is nothing very musical or enjoyable about this type of music.  It is bland.  It is electronic.  It lacks all of the soul and passion of a Miles Davis riff or a Charles Mingus’ “Haitian Fight Song.”  It sounds, to me, like the kind of stuff that plays in the background while the dentist grinds your teeth or the stuff that plays in the background, slowly melting your brain, while you read old and outdated magazines in your doctor’s office.

Still, even I have drifted.  My own CD and music collection, in addition to the Miles Davis and John Coltrane, also has Tom Scott, David Sandborn and a group called Flim and the BBs.  So, even I can slip up.

I am not embarassed by that, though.  I celebrate the fact that this country and this genre is so diverse that it makes room for Wynton Marsalis and Kenny G.  I prefer to listen to Wynton, but if Kenny manages to crank out a good tune (it has yet to happen, as far as I know) I would give it a listen and maybe even download it.

So, for those of you wanting to listen to cool jazz sounds in Chicago, you can listen to two radio stations online.  The first is WDCB and the second is WNUA.  If you Google them you’ll find how to listen to them online.

Celebrate diversity.

Post from: Jazz & Blues Lounge

It all started exactly one week ago when the weather changed and I began coughing.  It was a cough as loud and annoying as any wrong note Charlie Parker may have ever played when he first picked up his saxophone.  I could only wish the coughing would sound remotely like the dulcet tones of one of Bird’s solos.

The coughing went on and on all week.  I also had a post-nasal drip and even I cannot figure out a way to tie that in with jazz.  It kept on until Sunday morning when, suddenly, I was stuffed up and my head was pounding.

It was pounding very much as if Louis Armstrong had taken up residence inside my brain and was trying to see just how loudly  he could blow his horn.

At the same time the sound of me blowing my nose was probably very close to the sound Dizzy’s trumpet made when it fell over and bent in that way he insists it was bent initially.  Of course, some dispute that his trumpet was bent that way accidentally, if you did that to a trumpet, I am betting it would make a honking much like my nose was.

I spent two days in bed, much like Miles, Bird and many others probably did after their weekend long and maybe week-long heroine binges.  In fact, had I actually taken any sort of

Post from: Jazz & Blues Lounge

Still, I hate to leave you all for days without something new.  As such, I have a couple of links for you.  The first one has NOTHING to do with jazz or blues.  It is just, without a doubt, about the funniest damn thing I have seen in a long time.  I had a friend forward this to me and it had me laughing so hard I feared I would pass out from lack of oxygen.  It is some crazy music video from India that someone has made up some subtitles to.   So, this is just for laughs and not at all in keeping with the theme of this blog.

To see it click here.

The second thing I wanted to point out is this website that I have come to love.  Now, in my wildest dreams, this blog would be everything that is at this website.  However, since I am but one man, that is just not entirely possible.  They seem to have contributing writers from all over the place and I am trying to cover this large musical spectrum by myself and with help from Chip.

It is called JazzReview.com.  They have an extensive listing of concerts, articles, interviews and reviews.  Plus they even tell you which jazz MP3s you should be downloading.  It has a coolness factor about it I can still only aspire to.

So, I hope you have a great weekend.  I hope you laugh at the first link and then satisfy your jazz cravings with the second.  Most importantly, I hope you come back and visit soon.

Post from: Jazz & Blues Lounge

Well, thankfully, we have radio station WDCB which does jazz here in Chicago and they have a great events calendar filled with all kinds of cool jazz goings-on for you to check out.  In fact, you really should visit www.wdcb.org from time to time and just take the time to listen to the station through their online stream.

September 27, 2007
CD Release Party
Paul Abella Trio’s ‘mainstreamism’
Andy’s, Chicago

Support your local jazz musician!  Go to their CD release party and say hello.  Do that to your local writer too, perhaps in October when he may be having a reading and book signing at Kate the Great’s Book Emporium on Broadway.

How’s THIS for an event?

Jazz Cruise with WDCB’s Bruce Oscar 

PORTS OF CALL
7-Day Caribbean Jazz Cruise aboard M/S Norwegian Sun
Saturday, November 3 – Saturday, November 10, 2007
Friday, November 2
Flight to Miami
Saturday, November 3
Shuttle to Port of Miami, board NCL Sun
Sunday, November 4
At Sea (Private WDCB Reception)
Monday, November 5
Roatan, Honduras – In Port 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Tuesday, November 6
Belize City, Belize – In Port 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Wednesday, November 7
Costa Maya, Mexico – In Port 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Thursday, November 8
At Sea
Friday, November 9
Great Stirrup Cay, Bahamas In Port 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
Saturday, November 10
Arrive Port of Miami at 8:00 a.m.
Return flight to Chicago

THE MUSIC
“Rhythms of the Americas”
Booked by Joe and Wayne Segal of Chicago’s famed Jazz Showcase
* Randy Weston’s African Rhythms Trio
* Louis Hayes & the Cannonball Legacy Band featuring Jeremy Pelt, Rick Germanson, Gerald Cannon & Vincent Herring
* Dick Hyman
* David Sanchez Quartet featuring Lage Lund
* Lou Donaldson Quartet with Randy Johnston, Fukushi Tanaka, and Akiko Tsruga
* Judy Roberts
* Two for Brazil
* David “Fathead” Newman
* Everett Greene
* The Heath Brothers; Jimmy & Tootie Heath with Jeb Patton & Joe Sanders
* Willie Pickens Trio with Larry Gray & Robert Shy
* Dena DeRose Trio
* Deborah Brown
* Ragtime Reggie Robinson
* Bobby Broom & the Deep Blue Organ Trio with Chris Foreman & Greg Rockingham
Please Note: Artist roster is subject to change

THE PACKAGE
The prices below are all-inclusive, and include:
• Port Fees/Taxes
• Round-Trip Airfare – O’Hare Airport (ORD) to Miami Airport (MIA)
  * departs Friday, November 2, returns Saturday, November 10
• One Night Lodging for Friday, November 2
• Ground Transfers: MIA to hotel, hotel to Port, Port to MIA
• Pre-Cruise Reception in Miami
• Your Norwegian Sun Cabin includes:
  * Entrance to all jazz concerts and events
  * All customary ship programs and activities
  * $50/cabin shipboard credit
  * Pre-paid gratuities
  * Reception with our stars!
  * “Freestyle Cruising” – Dine when you want, with who you want…
  * Hospitality Suite each afternoon
  * Souvenir event poster/program
  * Jazz Cruise t-shirt
• A private WDCB reception with guest artists onboard Sun (Sunday)

A cruise filled with jazz.  Pretty cool.  Check out that website above for details about prices.

OK, that’s it for now.  Enjoy.

Post from: Jazz & Blues Lounge