Steve Cardenas Trio at The Blue Room

I remember him with wild hair, sticking way out, playing guitar with Ida McBeth downstairs at The Point. Someone else at The Blue Room on Friday night remembered taking guitar lessons from him, probably a quarter century ago.

Steve Cardenas moved to New York a couple decades back. There, he’s built a sterling reputation and performs with the jazz elite. But last week he returned to his hometown for shows at Take Five and The Blue Room. He played some Monk and an Ornette Coleman composition, but mostly he showcased his own music, contemporary jazz that pulls and engages. Listen and, more than once, you could still hear those Midwest roots.

Accompanying Cardenas to KC was acclaimed New York bassist and composer Ben Allison, They were joined by KC drummer Brian Steever. At The Blue Room, Matt Otto and Stan Kessler each joined a couple numbers.

Below are photos of how Friday at The Blue Room looked. As always, clicking on a shot should open an larger version of it.

Steve Cardenas on guitar

Ben Allison on bass

Brian Steever on drums

The Steve Cardenas Trio at The Blue Room

Cardenas, Allison and Matt Otto

Steve Cardenas

Ben Allison

The trio plus Stan Kessler on trumpet

The trio plus Matt Otto on tenor sax

Brian Steever

Ben Allison plays

Steve Cardenas in The Blue Room

Bobby Watson and Horizon at The Blue Room

We can say definitively that the roof of The Blue Room is firmly attached. Because if it was ever going to come off, that would have happened during one of Terell Stafford’s solos a week ago Friday.

Bobby Watson on alto sax, Terell Stafford on trumpet, Edward Simon on piano, Essiet Okon Essiet on bass and Victor Lewis on drums reunited on Friday, February 21st at The Blue Room to celebrate 30 years of Bobby Watson and Horizon. You will not find an ensemble where every player knows and responds to each other more instinctively, more naturally, or more imaginatively or more expressively, than this one. The musicians who make up Horizon may have evolved over the years. They may not reunite as an ensemble all that often anymore. But you will not hear five more talented jazz musicians sharing a stage in 2014. This is jazz at another level.

Especially when Terell Stafford is on fire, and this Friday, he was.

If you missed it, below you can see how the evening looked. As always, clicking on a photo should open a larger version of it.

Horizon. Left to right: Edward Simon on piano, Bobby Watson on alto sax, Essiet Okon Essiet on bass, Terell Stafford on trumpet, Victor Lewis on drums.

Bobby Watson on alto sax

Terell Stafford on trumpet

Bobby and Terell

Edward Simon on piano

Essiet Okon Essiet on bass

Victor Lewis on drums

Bobby Watson, Edward Simon and Terell Stafford in The Blue Room

Terell Stafford

Bobby Watson

Admiration

Bobby Watson's 18th and Vine Big Band at The Blue Room

About a month and a half ago, when they performed with The Kansas City Symphony, they wore tuxedos. This time, Bobby said, they were wearing their slippers.

I didn’t actually see anybody in slippers at The Blue Room last Saturday night. But with Bobby Watson’s 18th and Vine Big Band, I saw a stage filled with a who’s who selection of some of Kansas City’s best jazz musicians. I saw jazz legend Joe Chambers play vibes then drums. And I heard Bobby Watson swing a big band to rival any since Basie left town.

Face it: When you look over a stage and see musicians like Horace Washington, Steve Lambert, Charles Perkins, Gerald Dunn, Jason Goudeau, Hermon Mehari, Al Pearson, Roger Wilder, Bob Bowman, Ryan Lee – I’m not naming everybody – and Bobby Watson out front, you’re seeing a premiere mix of young and veteran Kansas City jazz talent in 2013.

You’re about to hear the big band Bobby assembled to play with the Symphony.

And then they start swinging a packed Blue Room with Kerry Strayer’s arrangement of Satin Doll.

Follow that with a version of Corner Pocket that may make you wonder if the roof’s coming off.

And that’s just the appetizer, because then Joe Chambers joins the band.

If you’re sorry you missed it, well, you should be.

But at least I can show you how a bit of how it looked. Below are photos from last Saturday night at The Blue Room with Bobby Watson’s 18th and Vine Big Band. As always, clicking on a shot should open a larger version of it.

Bobby Watson with his 18th and Vine Big Band, plus Joe Chambers on vibes

Joe Chambers

Bobby Watson

Charles Perkins

Al Pearson

Gerald Dunn

Hermon Mehari

The 18th and Vine Big Band

Watching Joe Chambers solo

Bobby Watson's 18th and Vine Big Band

In Lieu of 1000 Words: Benny Golson at The Blue Room

If you know jazz, you know his compositions: Killer Joe, Along Came Betty, I Remember Clifford. And even at age 83, he bounces onto the stage like some musician just starting his career. But then he tells you stories about childhood friends, like John Coltrane, and he starts to play, and you know you are hearing a jazz legend.

Benny Golson took The Blue Room stage Saturday night, February 25th. And, with Sharp Radway on piano, Jim Anderson on bass and Kansas City’s Tommy Ruskin on drums, he took The Blue Room. A standing room only audience hung on every word – Benny tells you stories from his past between songs – and on every note. Because we were in the presence of jazz history.

Here’s how being in the presence of jazz history looked. As always, clicking on a photo should open a larger version of it.

Benny Golson

Benny Golson's quartet at The Blue Room. Left to right: Sharp Radway, piano, Jim Anderson, bass, Tommy Ruskin, drums, Benny Golson, saxophone.

Benny Golson on sax

Sharp Radway on piano

Benny Golson talks about his friend John Coltrane

Jim Anderson on bass

Benny Golson blows

Tommy Ruskin first drummed for Marilyn Maye fifty years ago this year. He's still drumming for the best in jazz.

Benny Golson talks

Bass, drums and sax

Benny Golson in The Blue Room

In Lieu of 1000 Words: Ernie Andrews and Bobby Watson at The Blue Room

I heard some spectacular jazz that you didn’t. I can say that to all but about 80 people in the world.

Because about 80 people is all who turned out to hear Ernie Andrews and Bobby Watson at The Blue Room on July 9th. But, in fairness to jazz fans, that wasn’t entirely the fans’ fault. The Blue Room had the show on their online calendar as happening a week earlier. The Kansas City Star even printed some copies with the wrong date – because that’s when The Blue Room said it was happening – before correcting it. The club eventually changed the online schedule.

So I blame the venue for the small crowd. And I credit the venue for booking a fantastic show.

83-year old singer Ernie Andrews is still swinging the blues hard. He bathed The Blue Room with KC style and sass. Ernie’s on record with the likes of Cannonball Adderley, Benny Carter and Jay McShann. He’s absorbed all the rough edges and sings them out with energy, class and rousing joy like you just don’t hear anymore.

Now add internationally-renowned super-saxophonist Bobby Watson, blowin’ his best. Then back the superstars with a selection of Kansas City’s finest: Jason Goudeau on trombone, Roger Wilder on piano, Jeff Harshbarger on bass and Michael Warren on drums. The result? A night that could raise the ghosts on 18th and Vine.

Too bad you probably didn’t know when to show up for it.

Here’s a little help. I can show you what you missed. Clicking on a photo below should open a larger version of it.

Ernie Andrews

 Bobby Watson

Left to Right: Roger Wilder on piano, Jeff Harshbarger on bass, Ernie Andrews, vocals, Michael Warren on drums, Bobby Watson on alto saxophone, Jason Goudeau on trombone

Jason Goudeau on trombone

Ernie Andrews sings

Roger Wilder on piano

Michael Warren on drums

Bobby Watson and Jason Goudeau

Ernie Andrews belts out the blues

Jeff Harshbarger on bass

Roger Wilder, Jeff Harshbarger, Ernie Andrews, Bobby Watson

Bobby Watson on alto

Ernie Andrews at The Blue Room