Had to go see Lenny at the Bootlegger. Wouldn't miss it. Way worth it, cat sings so fine. Dave Richardson played keys, Doug Turley was on bass, and George Bryant on tubs (plays for Martin Nievera at The Aladdin). Everyone dug it. Very classy set. Clint stopped in to show the flag for Lenny. Very cool.
I was with this yummie babe.
One lucky dawg. Below, a few Bootlegger gig shots:
OK, on to see my bro' Ronnie Foster. MJ's on Jones between Spring Mt. and D.I. Scott Cannady on bass, Jesse Gopen on tubs, and Morris J. O'Connor on guitar. They were cookin'. Nice room, big stage, decent acoustics. Wish they'd put in a few backlight par cans, and lose those blue & green gels. Had to shoot with flash.
Next stop, the jazz jam at Sonny's. Place was lively, with a lotta fine players steppin' up. Rob Mader subbed for tommy, and was throwin' down (kickin' serious butt on alto tonight!). The awesome Derek Jones (Cirque "Ka" show) was on bass, and the ever so tasty, smooth, and funky Joel Richman on drums. Melvin Macias again on keyboards, and our fearless leader Jerry Lopez on guitar.
Fun evening. I'm tired, now, though. Spent the afternoon moving piles of sandstone rock slabs around the back yard. That was a four-beer job. Then running all around town tonight, whew. Fixin' to go crash.
See everyone at The Palms tomorrow night for some more major Santa Fe and The Fat City Horns Healing.
MONDAY P.S., A CALL FOR HELP
I just sent this email around to the posse:
My friends -
I'm tryin' to find sheet music for two fine old tunes. These were covered by tons of jazz artists such as Ella, Arthur Prysock, Carmen McCrae, etc. MusicNotes.com doesn't have 'em, and I don't have any Realbooks, and I'm tryin' to avoid buyin' 2 entire CDs to get these two tunes on disk:
MISS OTIS REGRETS
"Miss Otis regrets, she's unable to lunch today, madam, Miss Otis regrets, she's unable to lunch today. She is sorry to be delayed..."
DON’T MISUNDERSTAND
"Don’t misunderstand, we are only strangers, On our way to someplace else, to someplace we forgot..."
The backstory is that when I met Cheryl in Birmingham 33 years ago this month at Joe Namath's, we were on a bill there with (the late) O.C. Smith, the "Little Green Apples" dude. That fluff pop novelty tune that made his general public rep notwithstanding, the cat was a stunning Arthur Prysock / Billy Eckstein type baritone cabaret singer. He had this killer trio comprised of Gildo Mahones on keys, Roland Haynes on bass, and Jimmy Smith on drums (the drummer J. Smith, not the B3 player). In addition to being musically dazzling, they were the nicest people. A great memory.
I've always wanted to do those tunes. I wanna put those in my acoustic book -- come outa Loggins left field and go off on this whole other 'WTF?' tangent, 'cuz it's so joyfully personal (aside from the tunes bein' so cool).
Just thought I'd ask for help. I'll see most of ya's tonight.
Went over to Michael Soli's "Unplugged" singer/songwriter gig at the House of Blues tonight (nice venue), then dropped in at the Casbah Lounge to see Kelly. The very nice lineup is Ron Crews on tubs, Eddie DiMarino on bass, Tommy Alvarado on saxes and percussion, Dave Hart on guitar & harp, and Dave Kowalski on keys. Kelly Clinton is as sweet as can be, and is a fine singer and entertainer. Shot a just few pics, couldn't stay long.
SATURDAY OFF-TOPIC UPDATE: TAJAUN PORTER
This is the kid who sent UNLV home from their glorious Big Dance run to The Sweet Sixteen:
EIGHT 3's, most of 'em via dead-run movin' left-or-right pull-up jumpers from Downtown. Amazing. He's just 5'6" and a friggin' Freshman! One that no other Div I school wanted. Kid could step up with Iverson, I swear. Fast as lightning, blow right by ya, or if you lay back and give him any slack, he just rains on you from beyond the arc.
Props to our Runnin' Rebels for a great season. You done yourselves proud.
JOKE
Since her new husband is so old, Lou Anne decides that after their wedding she and Wally should have separate bedrooms, because she is concerned that her new but aged husband may overexert himself if they spend the entire night together.
After the wedding festivities Lou Anne prepares herself for bed and the expected "knock" on the door. Sure enough the knock comes, the door opens and there is Wally, her 85 year old groom, ready for action.
They unite as one. All goes well, Wally takes leave of his bride, and she prepares to go to sleep.
After a few minutes, Lou Anne hears another knock on her bedroom door, and it's Wally. Again he is ready for more "action."
Somewhat surprised, Lou Anne consents for more coupling. When the newlyweds are done, Wally kisses his bride, bids her a fond "goodnight" and leaves
She is set to go to sleep again, but, aha you guessed it -- Wally is back again, rapping on the door, and is as fresh as a 25-year-old, ready for more "action." And, once again they enjoy each other.
But as Wally gets set to leave again, his young bride says to him, "I am thoroughly impressed that at your age you can perform so well and so often. I have been with guys less than a third of your age who were only good once. You are truly a great lover, Wally."
Wally, somewhat embarrassed, turns to Lou Anne and says:
"You mean I was here already?"
The moral of the story: Senior moments have their advantages.
LOL! Don't forget, Jazz jam tomorrow night at Sonny's (see prior post) -- after the Bootlegger show featuring Lenny Lopez.
SUNDAY UPDATE
We got a lot goin' on tonight. Lenny Lopez Guest shot at Bootlegger (top of this post), Kelly finishing up this week's stint at the Sahara, Jazz jam at Sonny's (Rob Mader subbing for Tommy), and Ronnie Foster is back and sent this email out:
Hey Folks,
Well if last Sunday was any indicator I think everyone likes the new spot. A incredible turnout for the first Sunday. The food is kick'n! So come on out and enjoy. We had a lot of great musicians stop by and they threw it down.
MJ's Bar & Grill, 3417 S. Jones between Spring Mtn. & Desert Inn (702-364-1144) right in the middle of the big shopping center. We start at 8 pm, till 11 pm every Sunday starting this Sunday.
It is owned by 2 lovely young ladies Monica and Amanda who have done an incredible job of remodeling the place some of you might have know it when it was the Boston or Sultan's Table.
I love it when he uses that photo montage. I did that for him. Shot those pics one night at The Artisan and merged 'em and threw that header on there.
I guess I'm gonna be makin' the rounds tonight.
Then, don't forget, Santa Fe returns to The Palms tomorrow night -- and, a week from Monday we will have the incredible guest appearance of Spyro Gyra's Tom Schuman!
The historic phrase -- apropos, in a way -- just leapt out this morning. I was doin' my early mornin' surf-around on MySpace, clicked on Kenny Loggins' page, which led me to his son Crosby's MySpace page. OMG!
I love this line in his tune "Same Old Song live" -
"...he'd been accused of tryin' to fill his father's shoes, but, Dad was kind and left them by the door..."
How nice is that? Wow.
Yeah, the kids are indeed alright. Consider our friend Bill Champlin's boy, Will Champlin. Many of you will recall the killer new arrangement Santa Fe is doing of the tune "All My Might." That's a Will Champlin tune.
I am blessed to have been able to hear some of the studio roughs that Jerry shared with me regarding Bill's upcoming new CD. Will and Tamara will be on it (along with our Fat City Horns and other great cats). I've listened to two Will Champlin tunes amid those cuts (featuring Will on lead vocals) that are just fine as can be.
Our bro' St. Paul Peterson is now starting a tour with Kenny Loggins. See him on a promo TV show appearance link here. Just gotta love the bubblehead co-host chick raving about how Kenny's hits are played on the radio "ad nauseum."
Light grid still not working. In fact the room was dimmer than ever. Lookin' for candlepower? Stop by Bed, Bath & Beyond, pick some up on the way to the gig. Nothin' like last Monday, LOL!
Whatever. Didn't affect the band. They came out smoking! Traditional opening, "Just Kidding," followed by the Earth, Wind, and Fire Medley. Rochon in particular was ramped way up, dancin' all around, and it was infectious. (He took a bass ride tonight that was about the best I've heard him do, in a long line of jaw-droppers. It was a total knockout.) He drove everyone higher all night. The Fat City horn solos were all killer. The rhythm section was so in the pocket. Pepe took a solo that had Ron Crews mumbling.
I didn't get many pics, it was just too dim. But, I sure loved the music along with everyone else.
Band was way tight tonight, crisp as can be. The Fat City Horns were just wonderful. Those arrangements, man!
BTW- Jamie Hosmer will be at Hank's Tuesday night, 6 - 11 pm. Green Valley Ranch. Also, Kelly Clinton will appear at the Casbah Lounge this week at the Sahara (my bro' Ron Crews on tubs) through Sunday, 9 - 12 midnight. If I heard correctly, Tommy Alvarado will be there as well.
ALSO- We will have the blessed good fortune to have the eminent Tom Schuman as our guest artist on April 2nd. He'll be with us the entire evening, subbing for Dave. Who is Tom Schuman?
Member of the fabulous Spyro Gyra, my friends, in addition to the rest of his A-List rap sheet.
Tommy Alvarado, Jerry, and the guys will be hosting a Sunday night jazz jam beginning tomorrow night at 8 p.m. at Sonny's, an American Speakeasy, located just west of the 215 at the Flamingo exit. Come on over. Spread the word. I'll be there. I may even sit in. Jerry is raggin' me to get off my ass.
Also, don't forget to tune in tomorrow and every Sunday morning to Ric and Jackie Gould's fabulous 97.1 FM jazz show. Their playlist is as good as it gets.
SUNDAY: ST. PAUL PETERSON UPDATE
There's great news and scary news. Our friend the amazing Paul Peterson just announced that he will be touring for Kenny Loggins starting this week. Click his name (or Patty's below) to see the news about his beloved Sister Patty, who is struggling mightily to recover from a sudden ruptured aorta.
They are in our hearts and prayers.
JAZZ JAM FOLLOW-UP
This is one beautiful spot. Great looking room. Excellent P.A., high wall-mounted JBLs that threw out the best upper high Hz's I've heard at these small room gigs (but no monitors, which gave me a bit of terror when Jerry asked me to sit in; I gotta be able to hear my breath over the band to sing with confidence).
They have this weird light grid comprised of RGB front and back light arrays that are sound-trigger activated, which looks fine from an audience perspective (except that they are not aimed properly to cover the ends of the stage -- Jerry is off kinda in the dark), but made it difficult to get good shots, 'cuz they're constantly changing colors and light levels. Here's what I managed to cop:
Tommy had Tony De Augustine on tubs and Melvin Macias on keys, as well as Eddie DiMarino on bass, and Jerry on guitar. The place filled up nicely, and I lost track of all the fine players and singers that sat in. Don't mean to diss anyone, but I just couldn't keep up, and was not up for being in "reporter" mode all night. Matt Baldoni and his bass player Keith stepped up. Eugene Balog did as well (great to see him, been a while). The singer in the pics above is Barbara Pasqui. She was great. I hope this gig works out. It's a nice hang, but the house is gonna have to get more seriously into timely customer service mode to get the food and drinks out to make it pay. Tommy and the guys demonstrated that they can fill the seats (and it'll only grow as word gets around) but the house has gotta work the draw to max the return.
See everyone tonight at The Palms. Remember, Santa Fe is back in The Lounge tonight starting at 10:15 p.m.
Cheryl and I dropped over to NY/NY last night to hear the Michael Grimm Band at the Big Apple Bar. Cheryl had met Michael and and heard him on the CD I bought, but had yet to hear him live. Blew her mind, this huge voice and Old Soul in this fine young cat. And Sweet Southern' Belle that she is, she really resonates with Mr. Mississippi Michael (I do as well, grits and okra lovin' "damn Yankee" that I am).
Above: That's Dave Hart on guitar. Below: Mike Mechem on tubs and Doug Turley on bass. I tried like hell, but could not get a clean shot of keyboardist Bruce Wallace. I'm gonna have to go back and work harder to get better pics. I am totally spoiled after Monday night at The Pearl.
BTW- Michael does a rendition of "Proud Mary" that is unlike anything you've ever heard. Cat has a mountainous, soulful voice that just takes your breath away. Wonderful to hear. Also cool is to hear Dr. Lenny The Lopez featured as a lead vocalist in Michael's band. I'm not sure everyone truly realizes just how badass a singer Jerry's "much older brother" really is. _____
OK. my bro' Kurt Kolstad just sent me this YouTube clip link. Yellowjackets, man, OMG! At Montreux Jazz Festival '95. Check out the fact that the drummer is set up right-handed but playing sorta left-handed (that's what I need to do; I can play some tubs, but I'm a lefty, and my right hand is way deficient when it comes to stuff like sustained fast 16th notes on the hi-hat). Also, dig the bassist, playing a 6-string upside-down! Wow.
OFF-TOPIC BREAKING NEWS
Major props to our UNLV Runnin' Rebels, who just won their Big Dance opener against Georgia Tech, 67 - 63. I know there was some grousing about the seeding; the Rebs got a tough draw, but on they go. Very cool.
One lucky dawg. Below, a few Bootlegger gig shots:
OK, on to see my bro' Ronnie Foster. MJ's on Jones between Spring Mt. and D.I. Scott Cannady on bass, Jesse Gopen on tubs, and Morris J. O'Connor on guitar. They were cookin'. Nice room, big stage, decent acoustics. Wish they'd put in a few backlight par cans, and lose those blue & green gels. Had to shoot with flash.
Next stop, the jazz jam at Sonny's. Place was lively, with a lotta fine players steppin' up. Rob Mader subbed for tommy, and was throwin' down (kickin' serious butt on alto tonight!). The awesome Derek Jones (Cirque "Ka" show) was on bass, and the ever so tasty, smooth, and funky Joel Richman on drums. Melvin Macias again on keyboards, and our fearless leader Jerry Lopez on guitar.
Fun evening. I'm tired, now, though. Spent the afternoon moving piles of sandstone rock slabs around the back yard. That was a four-beer job. Then running all around town tonight, whew. Fixin' to go crash.
