Jazzville, NJ

Jimmy Cobb’s “Kind of Blue” 50th Anniversary Tour Passing Through Red Bank This Weekend

// February 9th, 2011 // No Comments » // Jazz Events, News

It’s been two years since the world celebrated the 50th anniversary of Miles Davis’ seminal album “Kind of Blue” – an album so wide-reaching in its scope that musicians in both the rock and classical genres have cited it as an influence. Heck, according to Wikipedia, it’s still the best-selling jazz album of all time, certified quadruple platinum in 2008.

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Bobby Caldwell Opens The Great American Songbook For Centenary College’s “Jazz In January” Series

// January 23rd, 2011 // No Comments » // Jazz Events

World-famous singer Bobby Caldwell performed classic jazz standards for his home city of Hackettstown. PHOTO CREDIT: NJskylands.com

The JazzvilleNJ crew came out of hibernation this weekend to take a stroll down nostalgia lane courtesy of Bobby Caldwell and His 14 Piece Big Band. The world-famous singer appeared in his home city of Hackettstown on Saturday, January 22, as part of Centenary College’s Jazz in January series to perform the popular jazz standards that have come to be known as The Great American Songbook.

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Join Jazzville, NJ For Two Meetups This Week

// January 17th, 2011 // No Comments » // Blues Events, Jazz Events, News, Radam Schwartz, Robin's Nest, Linden, NJ

Master of the Hammond B3 Organ, Radam Schwartz will make his debut at Makeda Ethiopian on Thursday, Jan 20

Jersey jazz lovers: The weather outside is frightful, but don’t let that stop you from joining us this week at two live music events.

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An Early Christmas Present: Tia Fuller Quartet Jams at Makedas

// December 26th, 2010 // No Comments » // Jazz Events, Recaps & Reviews

Our view of The Tia Fuller Quartet at Makeda's on Thursday night!

The Jazzville crew wishes all of you a very Merry Christmas! We hope Santa was good to you this year, but then again, why wouldn’t he be? You cats are awesome!

We were lucky enough to get an early present from Old Saint Nick this past Thursday, December 23rd in the form of The Tia Fuller Quartet. They jammed for a pretty big crowd at Makedas, an Ethiopian restaurant in New Brunswick. Nothing was more inviting than the smooth and ubercool melodies of four insanely talented musicians beckoning us inside from the freezing temps we’ve been experiencing lately.

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Age Is Just A Number: 90-Year-Old Dave Brubeck Jams At Tarrytown Music Hall

// December 6th, 2010 // 2 Comments » // Jazz Events, News, Recaps & Reviews

Legendary jazz pianist Dave Brubeck continues to tour and compose music for devoted fans. PHOTO CREDIT: berklee.edu

He was declared a Jazz Master by the National Endowment for the Arts in 2000. The Kennedy Center presented him with the Living Legacy Jazz Award in 2007. But if you ask me what comes to mind when I think of Dave Brubeck, I’d say he’s an adorable and charming man who you simply can’t look away from.

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Book Release + Poetry Reading With Live Jazz Intermissions

// November 27th, 2010 // No Comments » // Jazz Events, Poetry Events

Save the date, folks: Saturday, December 18th from 3-6 pm. Come to Columbia University to celebrate the release of Sarah Valerio’s first book, a collection of poems entitled Soledad Narcotica. The performance is free and will be punctuated with live jazz during the intermissions. It is sure to be a great time.

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Medeski, Martin & Wood: An Avant-Jazz Experience

// November 16th, 2010 // No Comments » // Jazz Events, Recaps & Reviews

Medeski, Martin & Wood played two sets, nearing a 3 hour show, at Tarrytown Music Hall on Sunday, November 14th, 2010.

OK, don’t blow a head gasket when I say this, but before November 14, 2010, I didn’t know who Medeski Martin & Wood were. But that definitely wasn’t the case this past Sunday night at Tarrytown Music Hall. There were tons of people there who were more than familiar with these three musicians, and they definitely made their passion (dare I say fanaticism, bordering on obsession) for them known.

The hall was buzzing with excitement as we waited for the band to take the stage. Had I known what would be in store for me, I would have been just as antsy to get started as everyone else around me.

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An Afternoon of Jazz – November 14, 2010

// November 7th, 2010 // No Comments » // Jazz Events, News

Howdy Jazzville readers! Hope you’re all having a jazzy weekend so far. Just wanted to call your attention to this really cool event to raise awareness about the 2,771 abused and neglected children in Essex County.

With the holidays coming up fast, why not take time out to unwind with some great jazz music from the Bob Cunningham Ensemble and enjoy a lovely spread, all while helping out a great cause? Here are the details. For more information, please visit http://www.casaessex.org/jazz.aspx, but do act quickly – reservations must be made by November 9th.

What:  An Afternoon of Jazz

When:  Sunday, November 14, 2010 (3:00 – 6:00pm)

Where:  Van Gliek House & Gardens, 21 Van Vleck St #12, Montclair, NJ

Celebrating Dizzy Gillespie’s Birthday With A Google Doodle

// October 21st, 2010 // No Comments » // Commentary, History, Jazz Events, News

Google displayed a stylized version of its logo on Thursday, October 21, 2001, in honor of jazz trumpeter Dizzy Gillespie's birthday.

Having been sick for the last few days, I came home from work early today to fight off the last remnants of a nasty cold. At 5pm I downed a dose of NyQuil in an attempt to get some sleep, and boy did it help! I slept almost until midnight, or “Round Midnight” as may be apropos to say at this moment. Upon waking up, I logged on to the computer and was super excited to find that Google decided to honor what would have been Dizzy Gillespie’s 93rd birthday with a stylized Google Doodle.

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Trenton International Jazz & Blues Festival Controversy

// October 15th, 2010 // No Comments » // Annette Njie, Commentary, Jazz Events, News

The website for the 2010 Trenton International Jazz & Blues Festival lists various sponsors, but problems paying the performers have left a negative mark on the event in the eyes of many.

I once heard a wise saying that went something like this: “Smart people learn from their mistakes; smarter people learn from the mistakes of others.”

Sadly, in the NJ jazz world we have an opportunity to learn from the mistakes of Annette Njie, the Trenton promoter who created the Trenton International Jazz & Blues Festival that ran earlier this year from September 17-19 at various venues around Trenton. The festival itself went off without a hitch, but when it came time to pay the two dozen acts, most were left high and dry, receiving partial payment or none at all.

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