*The Danny Embrey Trio is featured on the most recent episode of Kansas Public Radio’s Live at Green Lady Lounge.
*Joe Dimino shared footage of the Prairie Village Jazz Festival.
Confirmation: Weekly News and Notes
Original image by Plastic Sax.
Album Review: OJT- Ground Level
What’s the best American band of the last 75 years? Variations of the question frequently pop up in barrooms and internet forums. Acceptable responses range from Miles Davis’ Second Great Quintet to Creedence Clearwater Revival. The correct answer, however, is Booker T. & the MGs.
The three members of OJT- organist Ken Lovern, guitarist Brian Baggett and drummer Kenny Watson Jr.- display their affinity for the legendary Memphis group on the new album Ground Level. “Loose Space” is an interpolation of “Time Is Tight” while the title of “Baggy Blues Jeans” may allude to Booker T. & the MGs’ “Hip Hug-Her”.
The jazz filter OJT applies to the framework of timeless soul amplifies the profoundly groovy sound. Their ten-minute “It’s Not That Bad” touches on the history of organ jazz from Jimmy Smith to Medeski, Martin & Wood. The inclusion of the colossal performance makes Ground Level the year’s most robust Kansas City party album.
(Ground Level will be be available at streaming services on September 6. Green Lady Lounge hosts a vinyl and CD release party on Wednesday, October 2.)
Confirmation: Weekly News and Notes
Original image by Plastic Sax.
*A band led by Adam Larson headlines the The Prairie Village Jazz Festival on September 7.
*Green Lady Lounge shared videos featuring Rod Fleeman discussing the third installment of his Saturday Afternoon Live at Green Lady Lounge album series and his role in the Kansas City jazz supergroup Wire Town.
*The Kansas City Star published a feature about the queer brass band Sass-A-Brass.
Confirmation: Weekly News and Notes
Original image by Plastic Sax.
*Joyce Smith highlighted Gerald Dunn’s barbecue restaurant for Startland News.
*Joe Dimino interviewed Jeff Shirley.
*A Houston publication’s guide to Kansas City references the Mutual Musicians Foundation and Green Lady Lounge.
Confirmation: Weekly News and Notes
Original image by Plastic Sax.
*Reporting on a junket to Kansas City partly subsidized by Visit KC, a correspondent for The Times of London mentions Green Lady Lounge and the American Jazz Museum in a Taylor Swift-themed feature.
*Larry Tye promoted his book The Jazzmen: How Duke Ellington, Louis Armstrong and Count Basie Transformed America on KCUR.
*From a press release: It has been a very long wait, but, with the combined efforts of three celebrated jazz musicians – and with the approval of the step-daughter of the great Charlie Parker – we proudly announce the release of "Pree's Wings", a composition and recording that not only adds to the Parker legacy, but fills a significant historical and musical void that has lasted nearly 70 years! As is well-known, Parker composed two brilliant jazz compositions for his children, “Kim,” for step-daughter Kim and “Baird Laird” for his natural son with Chan Richardson. However, Bird never composed a song for daughter “Pree” who, seriously ill from birth, tragically died as a toddler… After lengthy conversations with Parker’s still-surviving jazz vocalist step-daughter, Kim – and receiving her approval, three internationally known jazz artists, trumpeter/writer, Nick Mondello, saxophonist/arranger/composer, Gio Washington-Wright, and vocalist/lyricist, Giacomo Gates - each a lifelong acolyte of Parker’s legacy - combined forces to compose both an instrumental and vocal original composition dedicated to Kim Parker and named after the child who never had a Parker-composed song dedicated to her – “Pree’s Wings.”
*From a press release: Kansas City Jazz A.L.I.V.E. is pleased to announce it has been approved by the National Endowment for the Arts for a Grants for Arts Projects award of $10,000. This grant will support Spotlight: Charlie Parker, an annual Kansas City-wide celebration of the life and music of Kansas City’s native son, Charlie “Bird” Parker, held in August.
Confirmation: Weekly News and Notes
Original image by Plastic Sax.
*Queen Bey, once a prominent Kansas City based vocalist, has died.
*Green Lady Lounge recently initiated a series of lunchtime performances on Thursday, Friday and Saturday. The venue’s May calendar lists offerings from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. on Thursday and Friday and from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturdays prior to Rod Fleeman’s long-standing Saturday residency that begins at 2:30 p.m.
*Here’s a second way to listen to the KCUR audio feature about the Extemporaneous Music and Arts Society.
*The American Jazz Museum is featured in a National Endowment of the Arts "grant spotlight".
*From a press release: Kansas City Jazz Orchestra Executive Director Alyssa Bell-Jackson today announced the final concert for the Conversations in Jazz 2023-2024 Season, This is Kansas City featuring two beloved Kansas City jazz greats Deborah Brown and Bobby Watson. This concert will be recorded live for an album to be released next season. This is Kansas City concert originally was to be held May 17 and 18 at the Folly Theatre. The concert will now be held on May 17 only.
Confirmation: Weekly News and Notes
Original image by Plastic Sax.
*Prominent Kansas Citians including Congressman Emanuel Cleaver and Bobby Watson consider the local erasure of Charlie Parker’s legacy in Ian Ritter’s think piece for Belt magazine.
*Charlie Parker and Bobby Watson are referenced in a Classical KC feature about the intersection of jazz and classical music.
*A vlogger shared footage depicting the atmosphere at Green Lady Lounge.
Album Review: Wire Town- Kansas City
The beautiful ballad “Tell Me Now” closes the debut album of Wire Town. No less rapturous than the collaboration of legendary guitar heroes Jim Hall and Pat Metheny, the hushed “Tell Me Now” is an outlier on Kansas City.
The eight tracks preceding “Tell Me Now” exemplify Green Lady Lounge’s signature sound: jaunty instrumental jazz rendered by elite musicians. Each of the esteemed members of Wire Town- guitarists Danny Embrey and Rod Fleeman, bassist Gerald Spaits and drummer Todd Strait- are closely associated with Green Lady Lounge.
Recorded live at the bustling Kansas City venue, the 69-minute Kansas City is a winning showcase for the considerable talents of the quartet. With the exception of “Tell Me Now,” the uptempo selections are vehicles for engaging soloing and seamless interplay.
The album’s official release show is 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. on Sunday, January 28, at Green Lady Lounge.
The Top Stories and Trends of 2023 on Kansas City’s Jazz Scene
Original image of Green Lady Lounge by Plastic Sax.
1. Last Train Home
The Lee’s Summit native Pat Metheny snapped an eleven-year embargo of the Kansas City area with a concert at Muriel Kauffman Theatre in June.
2. Larson vs. Otto: Everybody Wins
The astounding productivity of Adam Larson and Matt Otto, Kansas City based saxophonists in their artistic primes, resembled a friendly cutting contest.
3. Too Marvelous for Words
The Kansas City mainstay Marilyn Maye celebrated her 95th birthday with a concert at Carnegie Hall.
4. Everything’s Up to Date in Kansas City
The Extemporaneous Music and Arts Society presented performances by cutting-edge touring musicians including Vinny Golia, Maria Elena Silva, Eli Wallace and Jack Wright.
5. Absinthe Ascendent
Green Lady Lounge tightened its stranglehold as Kansas City’s dominant jazz venue. A program on Kansas Public Radio and an ongoing series of live albums furthered its hegemony.
6. Outside the Lines
Just two of Plastic Sax’s 20 Favorite Performances of 2023 transpired in jazz clubs. Venues including concert halls and art galleries hosted much of the most interesting improvised music performed in Kansas City.
7. Ticketed
Attendance at concerts by Samara Joy, the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra, Pat Metheny and Domi and JD Beck indicates the Kansas City area is home to about 1,500 people who are willing to pay $25 or more to hear instrumental jazz.
8. Turnover
Rashida Phillips resigned her position as Executive Director of the American Jazz Museum.
9. It Takes a Village
The Prairie Village Jazz Festival, a one-day, single-stage event featuring locally based musicians, remains the region’s most notable jazz festival.
10. Con Man
Con Chapman’s Kansas City Jazz A Little Evil Will Do You Good provided new insights into the area’s jazz history.
Last year’s recap is here.
Confirmation: Weekly News and Notes
Original image by Plastic Sax.
*Logan Richardson accompanies Aja Monet in her Tiny Desk Concert appearance.
*Joe Dimino interviewed Scott Emmerman.
*Gabe Rosenberg recommends Green Lady Lounge to Taylor Swift.
Plastic Sax’s Favorite Performances of 2023
Original image of Artemis at the Gem Theater by Plastic Sax.
Top Ten Performances by Kansas City Artists
1. Mike Dillon, Brian Haas and Nikki Glaspie at the Brick
Plastic Sax review.
2. Hermon Mehari at the Folly Theater
Plastic Sax review.
3. Adam Larson, Matt Clohesy and Jimmy Macbride at Westport Coffee House
Instagram clip.
4. Rod Fleeman at Green Lady Lounge
Instagram clip.
5. Pat Metheny’s Side-Eye at Muriel Kauffman Theatre
Plastic Sax review.
6. Drew Williams, Alex Frank, Ben Tervort and Brian Steever at Westport Coffee House
Plastic Sax review.
7. Cynthia van Roden at the Market at Meadowbrook
Instagram snapshot.
8. Chalis O’Neal at the Blue Room
Instagram clip.
9. Alan Voss, Benjamin Baker, Forest Stewart and Evan Verploegh at Swope Park Pavilion
Plastic Sax review.
10. Rich Hill, Arnold Young and Rob Whitsitt in Volker Park
Instagram clip.
Top Ten Performances by Artists from Elsewhere
1. Samara Joy at the Folly Theater
Plastic Sax review.
2. Devin Gray and Maria Elena Silva at the Firehouse Gallery
Plastic Sax review.
3. Bill Frisell, Greg Tardy, Gerald Clayton and Johnathan Blake at the 1900 Building
Plastic Sax review.
4. Artemis at the Gem Theater
Plastic Sax review.
5. CRAG Quartet and Joshua Gerowitz at the Bunker Center for the Arts
Instagram clip.
6. Miguel Zenón Quartet at the Folly Theater
Plastic Sax review.
7. Henrique Eisenmann and Eugene Friesen at the 1900 Building
Plastic Sax review.
8. Robert Stillman at the Midland Theater
There Stands the Glass review.
9. Jack Wright and Ron Stabinsky at Charlotte Street Foundation
Instagram clip.
10. Rob Magill and Marshall Trammell at Farewell
Plastic Sax review.
(Last year’s survey is here.)
Confirmation: Weekly News and Notes
Original image by Plastic Sax.
*Results from The Pitch’s The Best of KC 2023 awards: Best Jazz Artist: Lonnie McFadden; Best Jazz Band: The Kansas City Jazz Orchestra; Best Jazz Venue: Green Lady Lounge.
*Plastic Sax has belatedly learned that the arts journalist Calvin Wilson died in August.
Album Review: Danny Embrey- Orion Room
Stepping through the doors of Green Lady Lounge is a transportive experience. The transition from urban sidewalk to swanky jazz club necessitates a psychological shift. Revelers immediately sense good times are imminent.
Kansas City’s most popular jazz venue has a second performance space in the basement. The Orion Room is even groovier than the lounge upstairs.
Even though it was recorded at Green Lady Lounge in 2023, Danny Embrey’s new album Orion Room captures the speakeasy ambience of the plush basement. The guitarist, bassist Gerald Spaits and drummer Brian Steever craft a slinky soundtrack to slightly subversive behavior.
While several solos are stupendous, the emphasis of Orion Room isn’t on the individual statements. Instead, the music is an invitation to a party brimming with sly innuendos and knowing winks.
Embrey has long been one of Kansas City’s most respected musicians. Spaits and Steever steer his sophisticated playing in insinuating directions. The trio get into artistically exhilarating forms of trouble on Orion Room. All are welcome at the seductive soirée.
Confirmation: Weekly News and Notes
Original image by Plastic Sax.
*Eboni Fondren sang in a choir at the G20 Summit in New Delhi.
*Recent episodes of Kansas Public Radio’s Live at Green Lady Lounge program include performances by Tim Whitmer’s Goodtime Quartet and the Reyes Brothers Organ Trio.
Now’s the Time: OJT
The Prairie Village Jazz Festival provides a rare opportunity to experience OJT outside the dark confines of Green Lady Lounge. The organ jazz trio is likely to thrive in broad daylight at 4 p.m. on Saturday, September 9.
Now’s the Time: Rod Fleeman
Kansas Public Radio uploaded a batch of Rod Fleeman solo performance videos to YouTube this week. The guitarist can be found at Green Lady Lounge every Saturday afternoon. Fleeman’s new episode of Kansas Public Radio’s Live at Green Lady Lounge program streams here.
Confirmation: Weekly News and Notes
Original image by Plastic Sax.
*Matt Otto told Steve Kraske about his latest album on KCUR’s Up To Date program.
*The first two episodes of Kansas Public Radio’s new program Live at Green Lady Lounge are available for streaming.
Confirmation: Weekly News and Notes
Original image by Plastic Sax.
*Kansas Public Radio will begin airing a weekly program titled Live at Green Lady Lounge in July.
*The Kansas City Star reports on a lawsuit regarding the February death of Ronald McFadden.
Confirmation: Weekly News and Notes
Original image by Plastic Sax.
*Logan Richardson chatted with Steve Kraske on KCUR’s Up To Date program.
*An award-winning high school band from Washington that fared well at the Kansas City Jazz Summit is the subject of a news feature.
*Tweet of the Week: Lina- Sistrunk’s phone was the only one amongst us that could get a halfway decent selfie in the dark that is the Green Lady Lounge. (photo)
Album Review: Rod Fleeman- Saturday Afternoon at Green Lady Lounge, Volume 2
Many people would agree with the proposition that the most delightful hours of the week transpire on Saturday afternoon. Looking back on Friday night’s fun while anticipating the impending evening’s revelry often results in several carefree hours.
An astute group of discerning jazz fans in Kansas City savor Saturday afternoons for an additional reason. Rod Fleeman, the elite Kansas City guitarist named Plastic Sax’s 2021 Person of the Year, leads a trio every Saturday afternoon at Green Lady Lounge.
Partly because Ray DeMarchi replaces drummer Todd Strait, the new Saturday Afternoon at Green Lady Lounge, Volume 2 has a slightly jauntier feel than the first volume. The impeccable bassist Gerald Spaits appears on both sets.
Although all 13 selections are original compositions, much of the fun consists in hearing Fleeman weave in, out and around famous riffs, licks and melodies. His quotes range from Duke Ellington to The Beatles. Yet Fleeman isn’t a mere punster.
While playful, the references are just one element in the pretense-free, good-time music that just incidentally happens to be magnificent art. The effervescent Saturday Afternoon at Green Lady Lounge series makes that undiluted joy accessible anytime and anywhere.