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The Lead Sheet: Twin Cities Live Jazz, November 27-December 3

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We may be facing the darkest days of the year, but we are also facing one of the most jazz-packed weeks of the year. There's no intentional festival or organized music conspiracy, yet making choices, especially Saturday, will make your ears spin. But it's all good. Without the travel or expense, we can experience what might be normal for jazz fans in the Big Apple. So rest up on Thanksgiving and have an extra slice of pie—and let the jazz-a-thon begin!

Friday, November 27.

Kick-start your Black Friday shopping with brunch at Hell's Kitchen, music courtesy of smart and sassy vocalist Debbie Duncan. Come back early this evening (5-8 pm) after your shopping spree to hear East Side, with Reynold Philipsek, Matt Senjem and Jay Epstein, as they take you on a journey of 21st century swing. Sorry if I confused anyone (other than myself) last week regarding Patty Peterson's gig at Parma 8200. In truth, it is tonight! Sit back and enjoy one of the area's most popular singers in the pared-down company of brother Paul (bass) and nephew Jason DeLaire (keys and perhaps sax?).

Paul Harper's new “Chordless Quartet" launches at The Nicollet, with Paul on saxophones, Steve Kenny on FLUMPET, Tom Lewis on bass and young Matthew Buckner on drums. They'll be reinterpreting works by Henderson and Monk, and playing new works from Paul and Steve.

Vieux Carré 's double header features pianist Jeremy Walker for the early show, then the classy pizazz of Charmin and Shapira and Friends. Both vocalist Charmin and guitarist Joel have recently returned from global adventures, and due to Paul Harper's new band at The Nicollet, there will be a couple guests among the “Friends"— saxophonist Pete Whitman and bassist Pooch Heine. There's trouble at Jazz Central but it's “Good Trouble," a band of Appleton, WI musicians currently or formerly enrolled at the Lawrence Conservatory—Ben Phillips on trumpet, Will Fraser on alto sax, Carson Caldart on tenor sax, Sam Genualdi on guitar, Jonathan Fagan on piano, Jakob Heinemann on bass, and Jack Lussenden  on drums.  Plan to make it a late night as the student jam (10 pm) kicks off with the new Levi Schwartzberg Project. Led by U of M student vibes master Levi, the band includes similarly prodigious young lions—Thomas Strommen on tenor sax, Jackson Mullett on trumpet, Drew Stinson on bass, Ben Beyene on drums.

The Icehouse hosts a rare local appearance by The Gang Font, described as “math punk indie jazz noise prog post post modern contemporary instrumental pop rock," and featuring Dave King (drums), Erik Fratzke (guitar), Bryan Nichols (piano) and Greg Norton (bass).

Meanwhile, the usual suspects: Irv Williamscontinues to give old age the cold shoulder at happy hour at the Dakota; bassist James Buckley, this time with guitar wizard Tim Sparks, keeps dinner hour on edge at The Icehouse; JoAnn Funk and Jeff Brueske cover it all from Peggy Lee to Blossom Dearie in the Lobby Bar of the Saint Paul Hotel (now both Friday and Saturday through the holidays).

Saturday, November 28.

The gigs tonight could be blocks apart in New York. As is, there's a lot just blocks apart in St. Paul alone You don't even have to wait til evening for some hot jazz in St Paul. Bassist Adam Linz is curating an afternoon of music at his part-time job at Barley Brothers Records, noon- 5 pm. Surrounded by shelves of vinyl, four bands keep live music in the air, starting with the Dominican Crisis Quintet at noon, followed by Ted King, the “Pony Show Edition" of Le Percheron (Adam, Noah Ophoven-Baldwin and Levi Schwartzberg), and winding up with the first public performance of the new edition of the Dakota Combo. No cover and lots of temptations among the record sales.

Saturday Night Jazz at the Black Dog bills the two gigs as “opening" and “headliner" but that's not an accurate distinction tonight, although median age does distinguish Group 47 and Vector Families. Steve Kenny's Group 47opens at 7 pm, a welcome return of the band that played weekly during the final six months of the Artists Quarter and then found new hosts at Jazz Central, the Black Dog, The Nicollet, Icehouse, Vieux Carré and the Twin Cities Jazz Festival. It's a band that veteran trumpeter Kenny pulled together after his long-running Bastids ensemble completed its five-year tenure at the AQ, holding over bassist Adam Tucker and pulling in then very-young pianist Will Kjeer and nearly as young tenor saxophonist Thomas Strommen, along with UW-River Falls drummer Alex Burgess. Two years later, the band has a vinyl recording (Straight to Vinyl); Strommen has transferred from River Falls to the U of M, and Kjeer graduated from high school and is now studying at Cal Arts. Which means Group 47 gigs are limited to holidays and college breaks.

The “headline" band at the Black Dog is indeed a band of headliners. Formerly known as the PBR Street Gang, Vector Families features internationally renowned artists who happen to live in the Twin Cities—drummer Dave King and bassist Anthony Cox, along with local guitar legend Dean Granros and future legend, saxophonist Brandon Wozniak.

The stars above St Paul are certainly casting a wide beam tonight. Two short blocks from the Black Dog, vocalist Peg Carrothers and her better-known spouse, pianist Bill Carrothers, celebrate Peg's new recording, Edges of My Mind, as well as the opening of a new Jazz at Studio Z concert season. Starting at 6 pm with a “master class" on jazz singing, Peg and Bill then join forces with the artists on the recording— Dean Magraw on guitar and mandolin and Billy Peterson on bass—for a concert that takes us through the ethereal music of the CD, songs that stretch in time from Stephen Foster to the Rolling Stones and Aerosmith.

And less than a mile away, Vieux Carré hosts an unusual “homecoming" for saxophonist and St Paul native Pat Mallinger, a long-time cohort of Bill Carrothers. For years since he relocated to Chicago, Pat returned for holiday gigs at the Artists Quarter, playing his last with Carrothers on Thanksgiving weekend 2013. Now he's back to the same space, new club, and he even has drummer and AQ owner Kenny Horst in tow to handle the drum duties. With his usual bandmates Bill Carrothers and Billy Peterson otherwise occupied at Studio Z, he'll be joined by Chris Lomheim on piano and Andrew Foreman on bass.

In South St. Paul, there's a very special evening planned at the Croation Hall, where vocalist Charmin Michelle teams up with guitarist Sam Miltich for a dinner and music night. Augmenting the buttery voice of Charmin and the hot club swinging swagger of Sam's guitar will be sax giant Dave Karr, Sam's dad Matthew Miltich on bass and Nathan Norman on drums. There's an optional dinner buffet to complete the evening.

Jazz in the Lobby Bar with JoAnn Funk and Jeff Brueske, Benny Weinbeck Trio at Parma 8200, Sophia Shorai at Hell's Kitchen, Talking Strings at Loring Pasta Bar, and Tim Sparks (dinner sets) at the Icehouse offer more choices for Saturday night jazz fever.

Sunday, November 29.  In case you are tired of leftover turkey or managed to wipe it out, you might be up for jazz brunch — the Andrew Walesch Trioat Crooners, Patty and the Buttons at the Aster Cafe, Robert Everest at Maria's. Or plan an evening away from leftovers at the Riverview Wine Bar with the Zacc Harris Trio.

Monday, November 30. It's been a long time since guitar master Pat Martino was in town, but the durable virtuoso finally returns for one night at the Dakota, bringing in his smoldering organ trio with B-3 hot-handed Pat Bianchi and sleight-of-hand drummer Carmen Intorre. Already a star when a brain aneurysm left him unable to play, Martino famously relearned every lick and returned to star-level performing in one of the greatest comeback stories in music.

Vocalist Charmin Michelle is back at Crooners Lounge, this time in prime time with a quartet of feisty swingers— Denny Malmberg on accordion, Steve Pikal on bass, and Jay Epstein on drums.

Jazz Central Studios welcomes Winston-Salem, NC-based keyboard monster Abebi Stafford to the Spotlight series. A Minnesota native, Stafford headlined the Twin Cities “Hot Sumer Jazz Festival" back in 2002, and in 2004 won the Future of Jazz Competition with his band Bayorhythm. He's toured internationally and is working on his fourth album.

Happy Hour at Crooners will feature vocalist/pianist Andrew Walesch all week, starting tonight. That's a cool way to start your evening, whether you plan to stay on for dinner and more music or just chill out before heading home. JT's Jazz Implosion at the Icehouse will feature the Bates Brothers (JT on drums, Chris on bass) “plus guests." Around here, those guests could headline any club in New York. Enjoy the surprises!

Tuesday, December 1. Vieux Carré hosts two of our finest jazz women tonight, starting off with Mary Louise Knutson on solo piano, followed by Maryann Sullivan's Corner Jazz— Maryann on vocals with Javi Santiago on piano, Steve Pikal on bass, and Trevor Haining on drums.

It's the First Tuesday, meaning Dean Magraw and Davu Seru create guitar/percussion mayhem at The Black Dog, while the Bill Simenson Orchestra holds its monthly bash at Jazz Central.

And it's instrumental jazz night at Crooners, with the Steven Hobert Quartet on stage. Inventive and eclectic, Hobert appears with strong support from saxophonist Brian Gallagher, bassist Yohannes Tona and drummer Pete Hennig.

Wednesday, December 2. It's a long-awaited return of Grammy-winning vocalist Diane Schuur, back at the Dakota tonight for two engaging sets. Her voice has covered nearly every corner of American music, and her sets are as entertaining as they are musical. And her band will be filled with first-call musicians.

At Hell's Kitchen, the Wolverines Trio (Rick Carlson, Steve Pikal, Jendeen Forberg) return with some devilish sets. And Lila's Jazz Triangle returns to the Tangiers for Jazz After Work, now at a new time to attract the after-work crowd (6-9 pm). Lila Ammons heads this trio, bringing her natural talents and experience touring in Europe, to say nothing of her legacy —granddaughter of boogie-woogie master Albert Ammons and niece of hard bop saxophonist Gene Ammons.

Thursday, December 3. Crooners is starting a special duo series on the First Thursday of the month, dubbed “In the Crook"— singers and pianists. Tonight enjoy two of the hardest swinging musicians in town, vocalist Charmin Michelle with pianist (and every singer's best friend) Rick Carlson.

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