"I can take it anywhere it goes, right? I love to play inside, outside...but the organ swings best when it swings, doesn't it? That's what that organ is good for. You could try to play hip all you want, but when you swing that thing, there's no other feeling like it." - Doctor Lonnie Smith

Dr. Lonnie Smith © Andrea Canter

Dr. Lonnie Smith will celebrate his 67th birthday with a rock-solid trio including Peter Bernstien on guitar and Bill Stewart on drums. Dr. Lonnie Smith is one of the last of the old-school Hammond B3 maestros, and  he has been delivering the funky jazz since breaking in with George Benson half a century ago. Also a master showman, Dr. Lonnie Smith has been thrilling audiences since the 1960's. Smith's 1968 debut with Bluenote, Think is solid soulful jazz and his long association with Lou Donaldson resulted in some of the most iconic soul-jazz statements of the era (including Alligator Bogaloo).  You can catch his birthday gig at Smoke Jazz and Supper Club in New York on Friday, July 3rd through Sunday, July 5th with sets at 8, 10 and 11:20 pm.

Off the Cuff

A unique sense of harmony, movement and drama has characterized the music of pianist Rick Germanson since his first recording, Heights (Fresh Sounds/New Talent, 2003). Noted Bill Donaldson (Cadence), “Without ostentation and with clearly conceived logic… Germanson makes clear to his listeners the narratives of his music. Indeed, one of Germanson's trademarks seems to be his transitioning between tempos to add interest to his arrangements.” Named “Best New Talent New York” for 2004 by All About Jazz New York, the Milwaukee native and winner of the 1996 Grand Prize in the American Pianist Association Jazz Piano Competition followed in 2005 with You Tell Me, again on Fresh Sound/New Talent. This set of mostly original compositions further highlighted the richly textured ideas of an ever-evolving pianist. Germanson’s more recent itinerary has included extended tours with Pat Metheny and Louis Hayes’ Cannonball Adderley Legacy Band, and finally he found time to record with Hayes and fellow Milwaukeean, bassist Gerald Cannon. Off the Cuff (2009, Owl Studios) is his strongest effort yet.

Charles Lloyd

One of the most eagerly anticipated modern jazz events of 2009, Charles Lloyd’s “New Quartet” appears at the Dakota Jazz Club in downtown Minneapolis for just one night, July 2nd. An early cohort of Jack Dejohnette and Keith Jarrett, multi-reed specialist Lloyd is a longtime recording artist for ECM, which released his acclaimed Rabo de Nube in 2008, featuring the current ensemble of Jason Moran (piano), Reuben Rogers (bass) and Eric Harland (drums).