Jazzin'

By Tim Roberts

Jazz is icumen in

Lhude sing be-bop

Bloweth sax and strummeth axe

And doth thu navur stop

Sing be-bop!

With apologies to the anonymous author of the Middle-English poem "Sumer is Icumen In," we begin the full summer of Louisville Jazz (and just in case you're wondering about the actual words to the poem, it goes: "Sumer is icumen in / Lhude sing cucu. / Groweth sed and bloweth med / And springeth the wulde nu. / Sing cucu!" Class dismissed.)

The first big event is, of course, Jamey Aebersold's Summer Jazz Workshop from Sunday, July 4 through Friday, July 9 at the University of Louisville School of Music. These improvisation workshops are for young and old, regardless of level of skill.

On Monday, Tuesday and Thursday nights in the main recital hall, you can catch a free concert featuring the workshop's faculty. On Wednesday at 8 p.m. at Masterson's on Third Street, the Louisville Jazz Society holds its Jazz in July concert in conjunction with the workshop. It will feature three separate groups of workshop faculty members: Group One will contain Bobby Shew on trumpet, Rich Perry on tenor sax, Rick Simerly on trombone, Mark Levine on piano, Rufus Reid on bass, and John Riley on drums.

Group two will have Hank Marr on organ, Fred Hamilton on guitar, Gary Campbell on tenor sax, Gene Walker on tenor sax, and Tom Taylor on drums.

The final group will feature Jim Snidero on alto sax, Barry Ries on trumpet, Louisville-native Don Braden on tenor sax, Andy LaVerne on piano, John Goldsby on bass and Steve Davis on drums.

Plus Jamey says there's the possibility of a "real special guest" to show up and play. Who is it? Stop by Masterson's on Third Street (close to the U of L campus) on Wednesday, July 7 to find out! Admission at the door is $7.00 for LJS members, $10.00 for non-members. This is a non-smoking event.

You can still find out more about the workshop up to the first day of class. Visit www.jajazz.com, or call 1-800-456-1388.

Our next exhibit is the Louisville Jazz Festival at the Water Tower Friday, July 9 and Saturday, July 10. This second year of the festival brings a variety of sounds. On Friday night, catch Splatch from 6 to 8:30, the stay for The Ron Hayden Group from 9 to 11:30. On Saturday, you can hear The Jerry Tolson Quintet from 5 to 6:30, The Dick Sisto Quintet from 7 to 9, where Dick will bring with him some of the faculty from the Aebersold workshop, and the evening will finish with The Ron Jones Quartet from 9:30 to 11:30.

Admission for both nights will be $5.00 before 6 p.m., $8.00 after 6:00. Gates open at 5 p.m. on Friday, and 4 p.m. on Saturday. Get there early for the best ticket prices. The Water Tower is the tall white thing at Zorn Avenue and River Road.

Todd Hildreth wants to see you at the Twice Told Coffee House on Mondays. He and the E trio, which includes Todd on piano, Gary Claude on drums and Chris Fitzgerald on bass, will be there every Monday night starting at 9 p.m.

Young area jazz saxophonist Michael Thomas has released his debut CD The Way I Feel. A current resident of Cecilia, Kentucky, a few miles south of Elizabethtown, Michael played and arranged horn parts for The Jive Rockets, wrote or co-wrote all the songs on the CD and co-produced the package with his keyboardist, Bobby Lanz. A review of The Way I Feel appears later in this issue.

Tim Roberts claims he's the inspiration for the character David Duchovny played in every episode of Red Shoe Diaries. Send him your important jazz-related and not-so-jazz-related stuff to tim@troberts.win.net, or to his attention to the extraordinary periodical you are now reading. DO NOT begin your message with "Dear Red Shoes. . . ."