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 15 Years of Jams Yes, this magazine is turning 15 in 2001. But there's another jam that is reaching that same milestone in August. The Mama Ray/Rich Van Sant Saturday afternoon shindig will be celebrating 15 consecutive years at Harling's Upstairs with a special jam on Saturday, August 11, 2:00 to 6:00 p.m. There will be food, drink, plenty of special guests, and four hours of good sounds. "I figure when I die," Mama Ray tells us, "they'll just stuff me, put me in a back room and roll me out every Saturday afternoon..." Spoken like a genuine trouper. Call Harling's at 816-531-0303 for more information. Solid Sounds at Starlight Solid summer sounds will continue to light up the Starlight Theater stage in August and September with Grammy Award winning jazz and blues artists. Here's a preview. On Wednesday, August 15, eight-time Grammy winner and blues master B.B. King will bring his soulful guitar to Starlight along with friends John Hiatt and Tommy Castro. Then on Friday, August 17, singer Al Jarreau will fill Starlight with his trademark vocal velvet while teaming with fellow vocalist Rachelle Ferrell and keyboard wizard George Duke (see "Q&A"). And looking ahead to September, multiple Grammy winners Tony Bennett and k.d. lang will appear together in a rare concert setting on Sunday, September 9 as part of their 22-city summer tour. It will almost be one year to the day (Sept. 8, 2000) since Bennett's last Starlight performance -- a concert with the Kansas City Symphony that brought 8000 people to their feet at the finish. Call Ticketmaster at 816-931-3330 for more information, or visit the Starlight web site at www.kcstarlight.com. All Aboard the Jazz Train! Like we've been saying recently in both JAM and the KCJA newsletter Wholenotes, if you're in the market for a swingin' Labor Day Weekend 2001, be sure to get onboard the Jazz Ambassadors' first annual "Jazz Train" to Chicago, Aug. 31-Sept. 3. The sounds of live jazz will be the ticket from the moment of departure on Amtrak (with Luqman Hamza and Monny Nash providing the tunes) all the way through a fun-filled three days in the Windy City. The itinerary includes tours of Chicago's many jazz venues, museums and landmarks, visits to the Navy Pier and "Miracle Mile," a dinner and jazz cruise on The Odyssey to the breathtaking panorama of the Chicago skyline, and a musical highlight of the trip: the 23rd Annual Chicago Jazz Festival featuring Terence Blanchard, Cassandra Wilson, Dave Brubeck, Dee Dee Bridgewater, the Gerald Wilson Orchestra with Teddy Edwards and Harold Land, the Bobby Sanabria Big Band, Chicago-based jazz singer Kurt Elling and many others. It will be a weekend of good times and great sounds. Call 913-491-8686, 800-955-3233, or 816-822-2246 for details and reservations.
Singer and international jazz star Marilyn Maye will host a benefit for the March of Dimes on Saturday, September 8, at the recently restored Madrid Theater, 3810 Main. The doors will open at 6:30 p.m., the entertainment begins at 8:00. Ms. Maye's live performance is only the beginning of great things planned for the newly renovated Madrid. The venue will also host concerts, ballroom dancing, Latino nights, Sunday Gospel brunches, as well as weddings, receptions, and corporate events. Stayed tuned. Ticket prices for the Sept. 8 benefit are $23 and $26. For more information, call 816-474-4778 or 816-753-8880. The KCJW for 2001-2002 The Kansas City Jazz Workshop has released the lineup for its 2001-2002 concert series. As always, it's an eclectic mix of straightahead jazz headliners with all-star KC support TBA. Leading off the new season on September 10 will be the Jeff Hamilton Trio with Hamilton on drums, Tamir Hendelman on piano and Christoph Luty on bass. All three have impeccable credentials -- Hamilton has worked with Ray Brown, Lionel Hampton and Monty Alexander; Luty has played with the Bill Cunliffe Trio, the Jeff Clayton Quartet and the Bill Watrous Quartet; and Hendelman has appeared with the Henry Mancini Orchestra, and the Clayton/Hamilton Jazz Orchestra prior to joining Hamilton's trio -- so it should be a strong kickoff concert. And as long as we're talking KCJW, the rest the season for 2001-2002 follows. Unless otherwise noted, all concerts take place in the Downtown Marriott's 12th Street Rag Room on Monday nights and begin at 7:00 p.m. KCJW season ticket holders receive free parking in the Marriott garage; call 816-436-0318 or 816-737-3627 about that and other KCJW-related info.
A Good Cause... KC singer/pianist Candace Evans is scheduled to perform at the upcoming "Gatsby Gala," benefiting the Western Missouri/Greater Kansas City Chapter of the Arthritis Foundation. The Gala will be held from 7:00 p.m. to midnight on Saturday, September 22, at Aristocrat Motors in Merriam Kansas. The event will consist of live music from Evans, dinner and dancing, and a live and silent auction. Guests are invited to come in full Gatsby attire. Evans will be donating her talents on the 22nd to the Arthritis Foundation. "I enjoy performing at various benefits and charities throughout Kansas City," she says. "And on September 22 I am donating my time so more money can be raised for research and education of arthritis." Evans has performed at various festivals throughout the area such as the Fourth of July Festival at Powell Gardens and the Parkville Jazz Festival. She also performs regularly at the Fairway Grill and Union Station and has a self-produced album titled Interpretations (reviewed in the Oct./Nov. 1999 JAM). For more information on how you can be a sponsor of this event and/or to purchase tickets, call the Arthritis Foundation at 816-753-2220.
Soul of the City, a benefit for the Kansas City Church Community Organization (CCO), will be held Saturday, September 29, 8:00 p.m. at the Gem Theater, 18th & Vine. Now in its fourth year, this event is known for bringing Kansas City's best new and established jazz talent together for an evening of stellar entertainment. This year the Blue Devils Big Band from KCK Community College (and directed by Jim Mair) will be joined by such special guests as Lisa Henry and "Rusty" Tucker on vocals, Everette DeVan on organ, and Chico Battaglia on percussion. The Kansas City Church Community Organization, a grassroots, interfaith federation of congregations and schools working to improve the quality of life in Kansas City, trains ordinary people of all faiths in the skills they need to work together for changes in their communities. In 2001 CCO has continued the successful Home Visit Program with six public schools. There teachers are trained to build relationships with parents through effective home visits. CCO is also working to improve urban grocery stores, curb abuses by the payday loan industry, and increase housing reinvestment in southeast KC and the urban core. Tickets for Sept. 29 are $35, patron tickets are $60. The latter includes the Pre-Party at the Jazz Museum. To order tickets, volunteer, or to learn more, contact CCO at 816-444-5585. Looking Ahead October may seem like a ways off, but it's not too early to tell you about two notable events worth penciling in to the jazz calendar. On Sunday, October 14, the sixth annual fundraiser for Episcopal Social Services will take place at the Folly Theater, 4:00 to 6:00 p.m. "Serving Up Jazz" will feature singer Angela Hagenbach, Danny Embrey (guitar), Steve Rigazzi (bass), Gary Helm (percussion) and Doug Auwarter (drums). Call 816-587-4100 (ext. 248) for the details, and look for additional coverage in the October/November JAM. And if you're a lover of trad/Dixieland jazz, you'll want to make plans to attend the Lake Ozark Annual Dixieland Jazz Festival, October 25-28, at the Country Club Hotel & Spa, Lake Ozark, MO. Artists scheduled to appear include Lynn Zimmer and the Racquet Club Jazz Band with guest artist Bob Havens, Jean Kittrell and the St. Louis Rivermen, the Buck Creek Jazz Band, the Night Blooming Jazzmen, the Uptown Lowdown Jazz Band, and the Rent Party Revellers. Like to know more? Call 800-964-6698. A New Host For "The Jazz Scene" As regular listeners will already know, singer, songwriter and bandleader David Basse has been named the permanent host of "The Jazz Scene" on KANU out of the University of Kansas in Lawrence. Basse is only the second permanent host of the long-running radio show founded by the late Dick Wright over 40 years ago. Wright died in 1999. "I'm not sure anyone can fully replace Dick Wright," says KANU Program Director Darrell Brogdon. "He was such an important member of the jazz community. However, David brings a tremendous combination of musical savvy and on-air style to the job. He's a great choice to carry on the tradition that Dick began at KANU." The show also has new hours from the Wright era. Catch David Basse and "The Jazz Scene" every Saturday from 1:00 to 4:00 p.m. at 91.5 on your FM dial. Auditions Got the itch to dust off the axe and join a band? Johnson County Community College is looking for qualified people to join three new community musical ensembles -- a jazz band (directed by saxophonist Kerry Strayer), a wind ensemble (led by Ron Stinson) and a brass choir (also directed by Stinson). These groups are being formed by JCCC's Continuing Education and Community Services division "to give proficient amateurs a place to play." Auditions will be by appointment, August 21-24, rehearsals begin after Labor Day. Sound tempting? To schedule an audition, call Ron Stinson, assistant professor of music at JCCC, at 913-469-8500, ext. 3275. A Final Interview Just as we were getting ready to go to press we learned the sad news of the passing of another KC jazz legend. On July 16, 2001, trumpeter, organist and pianist Oliver Todd died at the age of 85. A bona fide Kansas City jazz icon, Todd was able to count among his colleagues Charlie Parker, Count Basie, Joe Turner, Mary Lou Williams, George E. Lee, Orville "Piggy" Minor, Ben Kynard and Jay McShann. This passing hit especially close to home for JAM. Special contributor John Anthony Brisbin had recently interviewed Todd for a feature article in a coming issue. Look for that article -- most of which is in Oliver Todd's own words -- in the October/November JAM. It is a gripping and lively account, from one of a dwindling number of eyewitnesses, of a golden era in the history of Kansas City jazz. A New "L.A. International" Although August 4, 1901 has been established as Louis Armstrong's actual birthday, this entire year is being celebrated as the Centennial of his birth, with special events scheduled throughout the world. The memory of these fine tributes will unfortunately fade during the passing years; however, a recent announcement from New Orleans predicts a magnificent tribute that will perpetuate the great man's name. A front page headline on The New Orleans Times-Picayune dated May 3, 2001, announced: 'AIRPORT MAY GET JAZZY NAME -- HONOR TO GO TO LOUIS ARMSTRONG." In her lead story, staff writer Stephanie Grace said: "By summer's end, the city's airport may bear the name of New Orleans' most famous native son: Louis Armstrong. That's the plan initiated by Mayor Marc Morial, and little opposition is expected. "The new name -- Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport -- could be in place for the late trumpeter's 100th birthday on August 4, Morial said." Until the arrival of the bronze statue of Louis, the gift from jazz fans around the world that now occupies Armstrong Park, the city had never fully recognized Armstrong's accomplishments. Grace's article suggests that the airport's new name "...would answer jazz buffs who for years have grumbled that the city has never adequately honored the musical icon." In a letter to the city's Aviation Board, Mayor Morial acknowledged that "...Louis Armstrong's name is synonymous with New Orleans, and his very name attracts visitors to our city. The Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport will celebrate the achievements of one of the greatest cultural ambassadors of the 20th century." The mayor urged the Aviation Board and the City Council to pass resolutions to officially change the airport's name. Morial expected that both measures would be enacted quickly. This will be the first airport in the world named after a jazz star. For years, fans flying to New Orleans have been thrilled by the sight of the curving Mississippi River glistening under the left wing during their approach to the airport. It now appears that, upon arrival, they will soon be greeted by a large sign proclaiming: "Welcome to the Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport!" -- Floyd Levin |
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