Deniece Williams @ Yoshi’s San Francisco
Deniece Williams Yoshi’s San Francisco 03.15.14 I can remember first hearing Deniece Williams sing “Free” in 1975 or 1976 when I was a child. I remember loving that song and much of her music as I was growing up . Fast forward to 2014 and Yoshi’s San Francisco announced Deniece Williams would be performing there […]
Happy Birthday, Bobby Hutcherson!!!
Vibraphone legend Bobby Hutcherson was born on this day in 1937. I first heard Bobby live in an SFJAZZ concert in 1999 celebrating three generations of vibraphonists featuring the great Milt Jackson and young lion Stefon Harris. It was an incredible night of music. I had the opportunity years later to ask Stefon Harris his […]
Vesta @ The Rrazz Room
Vesta – vocals Glen Pearson – keyboards Craig T. Cooper – guitar Curtis Ohlsen – bass guitar Dante “Taz†Roberson I went to see Vesta Williams at The Rrazz Room last night. It was like catching up with an old friend whom you had not seen for years. Vesta opened her 90 minute set with […]
SFJAZZ – Charles Lloyd New Quartet – Palace of Fine Arts
Charles Lloyd – saxophone, flute, piano and percussion Jason Moran – piano Reuben Rogers – acoustic bass Eric Harland – drums Sunday evening, I went to see the Charles Lloyd New Quartet in concert at the Palace of Fine Arts for the SFJAZZ Spring Season. Most of the music was original compositions from the sax […]
Joe Sample and Lalah Hathaway Reunited
Joe Sample – acoustic piano Lalah Hathaway – vocals Nick Sample – acoustic bass Xavier Breaker – drums Where were you in October 1999 when Joe Sample and Lalah Hathaway appeared together at Yoshi’s Oakland performing song from their The Song Lives On album? I was there in the crowded audience sitting really close to […]
Live from Monterey Jazz Festival 2009 – Part 1
My annual pilgrimage to the Monterey Jazz Festival started off a little different. I had stopped at a friend’s house to pickup my digital recorder. I got back in my car and it would not start…dead! I called AAA and they came out and pronounced my battery dead. Average car battery life is 3-5 years […]
VidyA @ Yoshi’s Oakland
07/06/2009 Prasant Radhakrishnan – tenor saxophone David Ewell – upright acoustic bass Sameer Gupta – drums I had the pleasure of recently hearing the band, VidyA, at Yoshi’s Oakland. VidyA, which means knowledge in Sanskrit, intertwines South Indian classical music (Carnatic music) and jazz. The result of this pairing of genres was intoxicating. They played […]
Roy Hargrove Big Band @ Yoshi’s
I closed out 2008 by seeing the Roy Hargrove Big Band at Yoshi’s Oakland. Roy put on a good show and played to a packed house for the late show on Tuesday night. His sound was solid and his band was incredible. Their set consisted of original compositions and some jazz standards including a fantastic […]
An afternoon of guitars, saxes, and keyboards
The 32nd Annual Russian River Jazz Festival/Jazz on the River was a blast last Sunday! The weather was perfect and the music was great. On the Main Stage, extraordinary guitarist Earl Klugh and his band jammed. I was there for his last few songs which included the classic “Dr. Macumba” and tunes from his current […]
Howard Wiley & The Angola Project @ The Intersection of the Arts
Howard Wiley – saxophones Geechi Taylor trumpet Danny Armstrong – trombone Jemal Ramirez – drums Devin Hoff & David Ewell – bass Yeruda Caesar & Dina Maccabbee – violin Lorin Benedict & Jeannine Anderson – vocals Howard Wiley & The Angola Project features Wiley investigating the roots and legacies of African American prison spirituals, encompassing […]
Clairdee @ FerryMusic
Clairdee – vocals Ken French – piano Ron Belcher – bass Deszon Claiborne – drums A Friday evening on a holiday weekend, a ferry boat on the bay, couples cozy, and the melodious sounds of Clairdee made for a perfect evening. Clairdee recently performed the inaugural jazz concert for FerryMusic on the Santa Rosa Ferry […]
Jeremy Pelt @ Jazz at Pearl’s
Jeremy Pelt @ Jazz at Pearl’s, originally uploaded by in2jazz. This photo mosaic is very exciting because I was finally create a mosaic using the flickr toy..YAY!!! A concert review will follow.
An Evening with Roberta Flack at the Palace of Fine Arts
Roberta Flack – vocals/piano Tony Terry – vocals Shelton Becton – keyboards/vocals Nicholas Brancker – keyboards/vocals Arturo Tappin – sax/flute Jerry Barnes – bass/vocals Sherrod Barnes – guitar/vocals Ricardo Jordan – drums/vocals Above photo: I love this shot because it captured just her alone at the piano in the dark. I have wanted to see […]
Berkeley Jazz Festival Highlights
Last month, I attended the Berkeley Jazz Festival sponsored by KBLX and Cadillac at the Greek Theatre in Berkeley. It was a day of great music featuring the Unwrapped All-Stars, Lalah Hathaway, Ray Obiedo, Rachelle Ferrell, Bobby Caldwell, Boney James, and Kem. Just as exciting was the DJ Russell Gatewood, who played old school jazz […]
Cedric Brown on Higher Ground…
Cedric Brown – Vocals Simon Butler – Guitar Sam Bevan – Bass George Bernard – Percussion Glen Iwaoka – Drums There is nothing more fascinating that watching an artist in their moment. A music teacher described that moment as being when you feel deep within that everything is just right and you are giving it […]
Kicking off the year with a Klugh…
Earl Klugh – acoustic guitar Greg Phillinganes – keyboards Al Turner – bass guitar Ron Otis – drums There is nothing like starting off the year with good music and Earl Klugh delivered. I was overjoyed when I found out he was coming to town because I have been enjoying his music for a number […]
Terence Blanchard Sextet @ Yoshi’s
Terence Blanchard – trumpet Aaron Parks – piano Brice Winston – tenor saxophone Massimo Biolcati – bass Lionel Loueke – guitar and vocals Rodney Green – drums Trumpeter/Composer/Leader Terence Blanchard is an innovator. He always has a fresh new groove and showcases new talent in his band. I have admired with his trumpet skills since […]
A couple of evenings with a familiar friend…
The Shirley Horn Quartet Shirley Horn – vocals George Mesterhazy – piano Ed Howard – bass Steve Williams – drums It was few minutes before Shirley came onstage. The crowd was a bit more seasoned than usual. These were the true jazz lovers filled with many stories of years of great music. I often find […]
Funk so strong….
Roy Hargrove and The RH Factor Roy Hargove – trumpet and flugelhorn Willie Jones III – drums Jason Thomas – drums Reggie Washington – bass and vocals “Spanky” Chalmers Alford – guitar Bobby Sparks – organ, rhodes, clavinet, and synthesizers Jacques Schwartz-Bart – tenor/soprano saxophones Keith Anderson – tenor/alto saxophones Renee Neufville – vocals and […]
Groovin’ with the Greg Osby Four + 1
The Greg Osby Four Greg Osby – alto saxophone Megumi Yonezawa – piano Matt Brewer – bass Eric McPherson – drums Ambrose Akinmusire – special guest on trumpet I first heard saxophonist Greg Osby last year on his Blue Note release, Inner Circle. I remember playing it as I was going to sleep but the […]
It was cheaper than a movie and much more entertaining…
The Mulgrew Miller Trio Mulgrew Miller – Piano Derrick Hodges – Bass Karriem Riggins – Drums Last night, I went to Yoshi’s to hear the Mulgrew Miller Trio for $8. It was cheaper than a movie and the trio was outstanding. It was also a live recording which will hopefully be used for one of […]
Fillmore Street Jazz Festival
I’m a big fine woman. I’ve got meat shakin’ on the bone. Ev’ry time I shake, A skinny woman loses her home. – Brenda Boykin I braved the really cool San Francisco summer weather on Sunday to attend the Fillmore Street Jazz Festival. There were plenty of street vendors, food, and good music along the […]
A Musical Journey with René Marie…
I had the pleasure of hearing singer/songwriter René Marie at the Monterey Jazz Festival last summer. She gave an outstanding performance so I knew we would be in for a treat this evening as she performed songs from her new MAXJAZZ album Live At Jazz Standard. René as wonderful stage presence and is very in […]
Patti Austin – “BeboperElla”
I admit that I am a Patti Austin groupie. My friends know this about me and will let me know, if I do not know already, when she is coming to town or has new music coming out. About 15 years ago, I met Patti for the first time. It was at the grand opening […]
