MARCHING INTO SPRING
This week New Orleans will come alive with music and parades and along with much of the world folks will go outdoors and into the streets to party.
In Michigan our march into Spring can feel a little different.
Scene from Game of Thrones
March
is one crazy month. Named for Mars, the god of war. It was the time that armies could gear up and return to battle after a long pause for winter. It is the start of Lent when we are asked to give up something we like very much, just after we have overindulged on Fat Tuesday/ Mardi Gras.
I have spent some time in New Orleans. They take March more seriously because they are asked to give up more than we do in Michigan. We can give up our winter overcoat, galoshes or hot breakfasts. They have more to lose so they make up for it by having a fun fest for several weeks leading up to Fat Tuesday. I have noticed that they seldom give up their music for Lent , nor do we.
In Michigan we will still have snow and freezing rain. It is a confusing month. Flowers and critters poke their heads up and don’t know what to think. The best thing we can do is just get through this month. We must remember all the disappointments in past years when we had that one warm day followed by our biggest snowstorm of the year. We will have to walk through the snow to retrieve the snow shovel that we just put in the garage attic.
Uncertain and severe whether can make us stronger. We develop character traits that come in handy when March rolls around. We tell ourselves that things can’t get any worse and learn to appreciate what we have.
After all in only six months we will have the return of cool nights and Labor Day weekend with Detroit’s Jazz Festival to shake us out of our summer doldrums. Meanwhile Detroit’s jazz artists will be informing us of all the things that they have learned while holed up all winter. Michigan will bloom again better than ever. Anyway this is what Willie Jones tells me.
Willie Jones
is one of those people who get things done by nudging everything and everyone around him in the right direction. Anyone lucky enough to spend time with Willie knows that there will be little small talk and plenty of optimism. Through the force of his calmness things will get better and problems will get resolved. Here is Willie’s message this month.
The Dirty Dog is poised to bring in this spring and summer season with a bang. March will be highlighted by hometown favorites such as drummers Skeeto Valdez and RJ Spangler, along with vocalist Kimmie Horne and Trumpeter Rayse Biggs. April will showcase pianist Johnny Oneal, drummer Pete Siers and Detroit’s very own all-female group Straight Ahead. May will bring in vocalist Kathy Kosins, saxophonist Dave McMurray, drummer Sean Dobbins and the youngest musician ever to headline at the Dog, Trurino Lowe.
With that kind of a line-up coming at you, I won’t begin to tease you with the line-up slated for June, July and August, as we creep toward the mega jazz event to close the summer, The Detroit Jazz Festival. Of course, with all this talk about great Detroit jazz, the Dirty Dog is more than that. We hope to continue to deliver what we are known for, great jazz, good food, good company and an overall experience that you won’t find anywhere in the United States.
Keep an eye and ear out for our annual collaboration with the Detroit Jazz Festival as we will host an evening with the yet to be announced 2019 Detroit Jazz Festival Artist in Residence.
Willie Jones
THIS MONTH AT THE DIRTY DOG JAZZ CAFÉ
March 6 – 7
SKEETO VALDEZ AND MIGHTY FUN HOUSE
THE LOVABLE SKEETO VALDEZ WILL BE COMING BACK TO THE DIRTY DOG
Skeeto Valdez will return this week leading one of his Fun House Bands. He will bring his unabashed good nature and solid drumming. Get ready to call the roof repair guys!
Skeeto Valdez will bring his unbounded energy and uplifting smile. Wear your most comfortable shoes for tapping.
March 8 – 9
EMMET COHEN
Multifaceted American jazz pianist and composer Emmet Cohen has emerged as one of his generation’s pivotal figures in music and the related arts. A recognized prodigy, Cohen began Suzuki method piano instruction at age three, and his playing quickly became a mature melding of musicality, technique, and concept. Downbeat observed that his “nimble touch, measured stride and warm harmonic vocabulary indicate he’s above any convoluted technical showmanship.” In the same spirit, Cohen himself has noted that playing jazz is “about communicating the deepest levels of humanity and individuality; it’s essentially about connections,” both among musicians and with audiences. He leads his namesake ensemble, the “Emmet Cohen Trio,” is a vibrant solo performer, and is in constant demand as a sideman. Possessing a fluid technique, an innovative tonal palette, and an extensive repertoire, Cohen plays with the command of a seasoned veteran and the passion of an artist fully devoted to his medium.
March 13 -16
KIMMIE HORNE
The second week of March Detroit’s own Kimmie Horne will bring her alto voice back home. Kimmie may be home grown, but she isn’t a secret to to her jazz and R&B fans around the world. This local girl, an internationally acclaimed singer, is in town and will be singing for us at the Dirty Dog.
It is recommended that you make your reservations as soon as possible. Kimmie Horne is fast becoming a Detroit legend. Put off your spring vacation this week.
March 20 – 23
RAYSE BIGGS
Rayse Biggs will bring his gravity defying music to the Dirty Dog Jazz Café for four nights of authentic Detroit jazz. Rayse has always attracted talented musicians to play alongside him. Come and hear why.
March 27 – 30
RJ SPANGLER / PLANET D NONET
RJ Spangler will give us an in depth description of the sources for the music before Planet D Nonet plays each tune. RJ Spangler will speak to the roots of the tunes, and then Planet D Nonet will play their music in a way that we will be able to feel the life of the time each tune was written. RJ and most of his bands have a serious appreciation for the jazz artists who wrote music that reflected the lives, the times and the places that these pioneers passed through. Stories of America’s music never stop inspiring us.
Comments