Following the previous evening’s disappointing excursion to watch Terence Blanchard, I headed back to SMOKE’s Monday night Jam session in search of something to cheer me up. Tonight, the special guest was another of my favourite contemporary players; Jim Rotondi.

As with the previous week, when I caught Eddie Henderson’s set here, SMOKE proved to me why it is one of the hottest places to be in New York on a Monday night. I arrived at about 9.15pm, just in time to catch the last tune by trumpeter Jeremy Pelt’s Electric Quartet who were playing an early set before the regular festivities. Apparently, I didn’t read the advertising carefully enough!! When they were finished I grabbed a seat next to the stage and got settled for the forthcoming set.

The band were in fine form. The line-up was the same as the previous week with the exception of pianist Harold Mabern, a veteran who has played with many of the greats including John Coltrane and Max Roach. This proved apposite as the band dedicated their set to Mr Roach who, as it turned out, was celebrating his 81st birthday that day. In tribute, they opened with the Clifford Brown/Max Roach arrangement of "I Get A Kick Out Of You". This got them off to a roaring start and set the tone for a wonderful 85 minutes of music featuring the crackling trumpet of Jim Rotondi and his cohorts.

Jim Rotondi is an absolute master of his instrument. He plays very much in the hardbop style and reveals the influence of such Trumpet greats as Freddie Hubbard, Booker Little and Woody Shaw. He has a sumptous tone and tremendous facility which allow him the freedom to express his melodic concept in his characteristically energetic fashion. I have collected his many CDs on the Criss Cross and Sharp Nine labels and they have documented his musical development well. He has also recorded numerous albums as a sideman with his contemporaries such as Eric Alexander, Joe Farnsworth, David Hazeltine, Steve Davis, Mike DiRubbo and larger groups like the Carnegie Hall Jazz Band and Toshiko Akiyoshi Jazz Orchestra. Add to that his recordings with such luminaries as Ray Charles, Lionel Hampton, Slide Hampton, organist Charles Earland and bop legend Cecil Payne and you have an idea of the depth of his talent and appeal.

On this evening, we were presented with a first-class display of straight-ahead Modern Jazz. On a selection of tunes ranging from standards; Irving Berlin’s "They Say It’s Wonderful" and Gershwin’s "Isn’t It A Pity", to originals from Rotondi, Mabern and saxophonist John Farnsworth, the audience were treated to electrifying solos from all involved. Harold Mabern was in great form, alternating blistering bop lines with extraordinary block-chord assaults on the harmony. I can only encourage anybody who is not familiar with his playing to get some of the many records on which he features or go and see him live while you have the chance. He is a part of the Jazz generation who are slowly but surely dying out – such is the passing of time – and it is a joy to see such experience revelling in the company of his younger peers. Joe Farnsworth was also quite wonderful. He is a Drummer to match any of your current favourites, combining a light touch and driving, swinging feel to give the impression that, somehow, his sticks dance over the drumkit and cymbals of their own accord. John Webber, on Double Bass, laid everything down in the solid and unfussy fashion which, in my opinion, is the mark of the very best Bass players. His time, swing and harmonic contributions were all impeccable. Jim Rotondi was simply out of this world. There is little more that can be said about him than that. He combined his many facets to create some of the most exciting Jazz I have ever heard. I can’t praise him highly enough.

Following this fantastic gig, as if anything could, was the Jam Session. There were some great (and not so great) local musicians playing and I even had a chance to get up on a tune myself. I particularly enjoyed listening to Norbert Stachel on Tenor Sax. At first, when they announced him, I couldn’t place where I had heard his name before. I then remembered that he was with Tower of Power in the late ’90s. I guess you never know who you might see at a Jam. What distinguishes SMOKE from many other New York clubs is the fact that so many great musicians choose to hang out there. I spotted Lou Donaldson, Eddie Henderson, David Hazeltine and Peter Washington amongst others just chatting and having a drink. Apparently, Cecil Payne is also a regular! Now that doesn’t happen in Leeds!! The other great thing was that, potentially, the club was open until 4am. I left at 2am and it seemed to be winding down so I doubt it went past 3 but it still beats the UK licensing laws.

Location:

SMOKE, Broadway & 106th St, New York

Musicians:

• Jim Rotondi – Trumpet.
• John Farnsworth – Tenor Saxophone.
• Harold Mabern – Piano.
• John Webber – Double Bass.
• Joe Farnsworth – Drums.

On a chilly Sunday night we headed downtown towards Times Square. Our destination for the evening was to be the Iridium Jazz Club in it’s most recent incarnation at Broadway and 51st St. It promised to be a special occasion. We were going to watch Terence Blanchard on the last day of his first New York engagement in a few years.

Terence Blanchard is a Trumpet player, originally from New Orleans, who came to prominence in the 1980s as a member of Art Blakey’s Jazz Messengers. He blazed a trail during the late ’80s and early ’90s proving himself a fiery Hardbop soloist in a variety of groups, both under his own name and in tandem with Alto Saxophonist; Donald Harrison. During the ’90s he stepped back from the Jazz scene and instead forged a parallel career as a Film Score composer for many movies including most of Spike Lee’s, beginning with the well renowned "Mo’ Better Blues". In the last few years his work as a Jazz musician has seen something of a renaissance and has culminated in a new record deal with Blue Note Records. His first Blue Note release; "Bounce", was one of my favourite CDs of 2004 and features Terence and his young band burning through a selection of intricate yet soulful Modern Jazz. It was with suitable anticipation that we took our seats at the Iridium.

Unfortunately we were to be disappointed. While technically able, Terence Blanchard’s young musicians produced what can most politely be described as tepid "groove-jazz". There was nothing exciting about the performance and very little that was even interesting. Most disappointing was that Mr. Blanchard himself hardly played, at least comparatively to his sidemen. When he did play he displayed the musical characteristics we grow to expect from him; he has a beautiful sound on the Trumpet and an impressive facility coupled with a vocabulary of bluesy smears and swoops. He was at his best of the set during the ballad "Memory of a Flame", written by pianist Aaron Parks who also contributed a pleasant introduction but, in general, left me wanting much more by the end of the evening.

During the course of introducing the band (who are listed below), Terence Blanchard mentioned that they had recently completed their 2nd Blue Note CD. If, as he suggested, the music we heard and watched on this occasion is indicative of the content of this new album I, for one, will not be wasting any more money on it. This gig surprised and saddened me. After so many years of enjoying somebody’s music on record, there are few things worse than being so let down by their live performance.

Location:

"The Iridium", Broadway & 51st St, New York

Musicians:

• Terence Blanchard – Trumpet
• Brice Winston – Tenor Saxophone
• Lionel Loueke – Guitar
• Aaron Parks – Piano
• Derrick Hodge – Double Bass
• Kendrick Scott – Drums

SMOKE is a great although little-known club situated at the southern end of Harlem in New York City. Formerly known as Augie’s, it’s located on Broadway between 105th and 106th Streets. They hold a regular Jam Session on Monday nights as part of a programme of regular events which features the same nights Sunday-Wednesday with different groups headlining on Thursday-Saturday. Each week, as with many similar venues around the world, they feature a special guest artist with the house band. When I arrived in New York on Jan 1st and checked the local listings, I was delighted to see that this week it was Eddie Henderson.

For those not familiar with him, Dr Eddie Henderson is a great Trumpet player who is probably best known for his work with Herbie Hancock in the late ’60s and ’70s. While known for this Jazz-Fusion work his playing is actually deeply rooted in the Hard-bop tradition. He has developed a quite unique style; certainly for a Trumpet player, combining remarkable rhythmic and harmonic flexiblity with a driving swing to create melodic lines which are simultaneously beautiful and mind-boggling!!

On this occasion, he was backed by a terrific band featuring some great musicians from the New York scene. Led by jam session host; John Farnsworth on Tenor Saxophone, the band comprised pianist Mike LeDonne, John Webber on Bass and one of my favourite Drummers; Joe Farnsworth. While these may not be familar names to many, I have enjoyed them for years in their many various recordings on smaller record labels such as Criss Cross and Sharp Nine. Seeing these guys live for the first time, I was not disappointed.

The gig opened up with a Wayne Shorter tune; "Black Nile". During the evening we were also treated to renditions of other tunes ranging from standards such as "Surrey With The Fringe On Top" to Freddie Hubbard’s classic "Hub Tones". There were particularly notable solos from LeDonne and Joe Farnsworth. Eddie Henderson was simply wonderful all night but a highlight was his exquisite reading of "What’s New?" which rendered a somewhat talkative audience speechless. The weak link in the proceedings was saxophonist John Farnsworth who seemed, frankly, out of his depth in these musical surroundings but that did little to distract from the great music being made by the other performers.

All round, this was a great gig. Unfortunately as the opening of a Jam Session, they only played one set but it was a good 75 minutes of music. I was pleased to note that Eddie Henderson is there again on the 14th and 15th of January with his own Quartet so I’ll have an opportunity to listen again at greater length. As for the Jam session, I didn’t stay. I was still acclimatising to New York time and so by 11.15pm local I was somewhat tired. Still maybe next week – another of my favourite Trumpet players; Jim Rotondi, is guesting!

Location:

SMOKE, Broadway & 106th St, New York

Musicians:

• Eddie Henderson – Trumpet & Flügelhorn.
• John Farnsworth – Tenor Saxophone.
• Mike LeDonne – Piano.
• John Webber – Double Bass.
• Joe Farnsworth – Drums.