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Zanzibar Blue, etc.
My review of vocalist Melissa Walker with Christian McBride’s trio, in today’s Inquirer. This was the final big engagement at Zanzibar Blue, one of Philly’s top clubs. I have to add a word about Ari Hoenig’s unbelievably tight group “Punk Bop,” which played Chris’s Jazz Cafe the same night. Hoenig on drums, Joel Frahm on tenor, Gilad Hekselman on guitar
Strained metaphor dept.
This is a few days old, but Edward Wong’s NYT analysis of the political machinations of Moktada Al-Sadr builds up to the following line: He has become a great improviser, the Miles Davis of the war. Wong in no way means to glorify Sadr or validate his positions. But coming on the heels of Gilad Atzmon’s latest call to jihad,
Gere’s “offense”
As you’ve heard, a warrant for Richard Gere’s arrest was served in India, in response to his public kissing of Bollywood actress Shilpa Shetty. Seeking to defuse the controversy, Gere has apologized for giving offense. Too bad — his initial response, that this was a publicity-seeking move by a fringe group of Hindu fundamentalists, was the correct one. On NPR
Rosenwinkel in Philly
Guitarist Kurt Rosenwinkel is playing two nights in Philly at Chris’s Jazz Cafe. Last night’s two sets were marvelous — he’s got Mark Turner on tenor, Aaron Parks on piano, Joe Martin on bass and Rodney Green on drums. Plenty of new material, plus heated renditions of “Zhivago,” “Use of Light,” “A Life Unfolds” and others. Kurt is no longer
Our hopeless war debate, cont.
The only thing more frustrating than the debate between Congress and the White House on this war funding bill is the mainstream media’s complete ineptitude in reporting about it. Andrew Sullivan points us to this comprehensive post by Marty Lederman. The background: In budget request after budget request over the past few years, the President has failed to ask Congress
Philly live
I’ve made my peace with the fact that I’m missing tons of great live music in New York. But I’ll tell you, the Philly calendar is nothing to sneeze at. Last night, Ethan Iverson and David King of The Bad Plus met two prominent avant-gardists, violist Mat Maneri and saxophonist Tim Berne, in a quartet they call Buffalo Collision. Iverson,
Balkan Beat Box
My review of Balkan Beat Box’s Philly show, in today’s Inquirer.
The “peace” train
Sitting in heavy traffic on Route 76 yesterday, I had the compounded misfortune of hearing Deepak Chopra’s Wellness Radio, broadcast on Sirius. Chopra, a millionaire many times over, admonished us all to rid ourselves of personal demons, the kind that tell us money is important. But what struck me most was a guest appearance by Jonathan Granoff of the Global