Jason Brock: Jazz in the City

Flutists Gerald Beckett and Chip Shelton play San Francisco

2009-08-16T23:04:00.000-07:00

I had the pleasure of hearing the amazing, incredible, blow-me-away flautist, Gerald Beckett, play recently in an intimate setting. He was joined by fellow flute player (and sax player), Chip Shelton - from New York City.

The show was fabulous. I am always struck with awe and admiration when I see Gerald play. No matter where he is or what he's doing, he brings such creativity and professionalism. I think anyone who hears Gerald is immediately challenged to do their best, because they are being presented with such high quality art.

Thank you Gerald - for all that you do in jazz and for making us realize how great someone can truly be at what they do! Such a great role model for all of us jazz musicians.

Please take a look at this video of Gerald performing in NYC with Chip a month or so before their San Francisco show:

Kurt Elling w/Ernie Watts at Yoshi's San Francisco

2009-07-14T20:16:00.000-07:00

I had the pleasure of seeing Kurt Elling and band (featuring Ernie Watts!) at Yoshi's San Francisco last weekend. It was quite an experience. We had dinner at Yoshi's before the show - good food and atmosphere - light fare (keep in mind) at a big price - but really good food. :)

Kurt Elling is very talented in his abilities to scat and produce percussive sounds. Also, he does a really nice and heartfelt ballad. I can see why people like him so much. The show was really varied - many different styles of songs and some funny, quirky stuff on stage from time to time; however, it's my personal feeling that Kurt's voice isn't quite my cup of tea, generally. It reminds me of Sinatra or someone in that vein... although that's not a bad thing - I'd like to hear something different. Of course, my friend David Navarro (below w/Kurt) and a slew of other fans don't feel the same as me.

Now about the quite extraordinary Ernie Watts!!! I can't say enough about this guy and how he just freaking blew me away. I don't know know how else to put it. You have to hear him. It's worth whatever you have to pay to get that chance. This guy does things I've never even heard done with a sax - hits those really high notes and just stays there at the right times... goes all over the place with his fingering ... wow.

Last but not least, I must talk about the band... they were AMAZING! Especially the pianist, Laurence Hobgood - "one of the most incredible pianists I've ever heard," Dave Brubeck said. I can see why Brubeck would say this - he was amazing on the keys... really feeling it and very creative. The other band members I couldn't locate names for, but they weren't the ones Kurt usually plays with, from what I could tell.

Overall - worth seeing for me - great show! And of course, it was at Yoshi's - can't go wrong with that venue. :)

Fillmore Jazz Festival

2009-07-09T16:30:00.000-07:00

Fillmore Jazz Festival was a great time for me and my friends. This is the second consecutive year I've gone - and it was even better this year! I attended with my fabulous friends and fellow musicians (in no particular order) Dina Rao, David Navarro, Gerald Beckett and Aaron Walz. We had great food and heard great music, too - I love the barbequed oysters, personally - but we found this red velvet cake that was to die for!!

As for the music, the first group I noticed (and really enjoyed) was a trio called Farzad. They had a Spanish/jazzy sound to me, but they actually have a name for thier unique style: Fazz. This is like, a combination of Flamenco & Jazz... Cool idea. Check them out.

After listening to these guys a little while, we mozied on down to hear Tia Carroll. She was great! Totally the kind of stuff I really dig... very jazz - very soulful. I would definitely see her again - she's in Lafayette, CA on Friday, July 17th, if you get out that way.

Later on we heard the talented Sam Reider (actually, someone who started in the Bay and moved to New York) performed, and I thought he was pretty solid. My friends had seen him perform as a kid, actually, and they notice how far he had come since then. Apparently he was a child prodigy with the piano. He did some modern stuff along with original jazzy compositions.

And that pretty much sums up the highlights of my day at Fillmore Jazz Festival. It was great - and I recommend checking it out next year for the great music and food.

Open Mic at Rassela's Jazz Club

2009-07-02T21:20:00.000-07:00

Well, this is currently my favorite spot in the city for jazz - Rassela's! I've been going here for over a year, and people have always been so nice. Very talented musicians are always dropping by (some very famous ones who are playing at Yoshi's just down the street).

I was here last Monday night (Open Mic is every Monday at 9pm) with my friend Halle Elwell, and we got to sing a few songs. It was really great! Robert Zuckerman was playing saxophone and Vincent Rillera was on bass, among others. Robert and I had a nice duet/scat sort of thing going on.

Dr. Dee Spencer leads the jazz trio there. She's a talented pianist and leader - but she also makes people feel very welcome and comfortable. Dee has done a lot for jazz in San Francisco, and I don't know what we'd do without people like her.

Of course, Rassela's wouldn't be Rassela's for me without the very special and lovely, Israel - bartender and part of the family that owns the place. She is so great! You'll see - and she makes great drinks, too! Below is Israel with another friend and singer, Darryl.

Anna's Jazz Island - Meeting the Incredible Anna

2009-06-27T14:13:00.000-07:00

Last Tuesday was a real pleasure for me. I went to Anna's Jazz Island for the first time (yes, my first time... after being here about a year!)

I walked in and immediately felt comfortable. It's kind of dark, but in a good way.. nice and cool (I mean the air, as well as the vibe), and the club is located in a great neighborhood in Berkeley.

So, I ordered some food and drink and started listening. Some talented people, for sure. The band was awesome! The drummer Joseph Earl and pianist John Burr and bassist - who was so good, but I got interrupted before getting his name.

Anna performed and I discovered why she has her own jazz club. :) She has a real talent for pulling those words all over the place while she's singing. I like the dramatic way she phrases... it was a pleasure hearing her and meeting her near the end of the evening.

People seemed really interested in hearing more of me, so I hope to stop by again soon! I performed "Don't Worry Bout Me" (one of the songs on Anna's new album, it turns out!) and "Glory of Love."

Yerba Buena Gardens Festival - Photo Shoot and Realistic Orchestra (a Jazz Band)

2009-06-19T15:45:00.000-07:00

Today Jason & the Argonauts (my band) did a photo shoot in Yerba Buena Gardens - such a beautiful spot - with our photographer Bobbie. We got some great shots (see the new photo gallery on Jason Brock Jazz), but we also heard and saw a cool jazz group while we were in the park.

As I have discovered, there is something called the Yerba Buena Gardens Festival that is going on pretty much all year round - and it's free! They are doing many different kinds of perfomance art there, but jazz is featured quite frequently! While we were there, Realistic Orchestra was playing.

They sounded pretty good to me. I wish I could have heard more! People were really into checking them out though, and there were lots of people just chilling in the grass watching the band perform. Looks like something I'm gonna check out again.

Jazz in Monte Rio

2009-06-08T09:48:00.000-07:00

We, Jason & the Argonauts, performed at Café les Jumelles recently. It was a cool place - very relaxed and not a jazz club - more a restaraunt that serves incredible food (see the Yelp reviews) and a bar. Very casual and comfortable.

As you can see I made it to the gig in a sling... I really hurt my arm just a couple of days before - owww!!!

Also, we opened for a rock band called Hell 69! Wow... that is awesome. Their drummer (Drummin' Dave) actually sat in with us, too. Thanks for the help, Dave!

We may be showing up in Monte Rio sometime soon to perform again, but if you're wondering who else you might find performing jazz there, we hear that the Pink Elephant has jazz from time to time, too. And nearby Healdsburg has a lot going on - even the annual Healdsburg Jazz Festival!

An Evening at Savanna Jazz on Mission

2009-06-01T14:07:00.000-07:00

So, I went out to Savanna Jazz with a fellow musician friend of mine, Gerald Beckett (He plays flute like no other!). We listened to the band led by a guy named Michael Jones - they were pretty tight, actually. They had a really young guy playing piano & sax there, too - he said he'd been playing there since he was even younger - cool! He was pretty good.

Gerald and I got a chance to play toward the end of the jam session there. I did Too Late Now and Autumn Leaves. It went pretty well. I know they work with all kinds of vocalists there, and they didn't know what to expect from me, but I think they were pleasantly surprised (I hope anyway!).

The amazing Gerald did a great song that I didn't know as well - and I'm having a total blank on the name of it! Anyway, great stuff and people were blown away by his talent, as usual. The audience appreciated my stuff as well, and asked us to return on Thursday night, when there will be another Open Mic/Jam Session that is more vocalist-centric.

I think I'll we'll be there.