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Tag: Detroit

David Janeway Stands On Detroit Piano’s Higher Ground

Published 11 June, 2024 By John Chacona

For more than a century Detroit’s factories have sent tens of millions of vehicles into the world. That’s remarkable, but so too is the city’s assembly line of great jazz pianists: Hank Jones, Barry Harris, Tommy Flanagan, Alice Coltrane and Geri Allen. Lesser-known, but equally polished are figures such as Terry Pollard, Johnny O’Neal, Bob Neloms and Kirk Lightsey. Add 69-year-old David Janeway, who will appear at BOP STOP on Friday with Robert Hurst and Billy Hart, to that distinguished list.

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Lynne Arriale’s Jazz Of The Spirit Comes To BOP STOP

Published 21 May, 2024 By John Chacona
Lynne Arriale
photocredit: Andrea Canter

The term “spiritual jazz” seems to be everywhere these days. It’s a label that has more value for marketers than for music fans, an empty coinage that’s more meme than meaningful. It might be easier to say what “spiritual jazz” is not, for instance the music made by pianist and composer Lynne Arriale, who comes to BOP STOP Saturday night.  

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Restless Traditionalist Jim Snidero Returns To BOP STOP For A Blackberry Winter Date

Published 12 March, 2024 By John Chacona
photocredit: John Rogers

On his new recording, For All We Know (Savant, 2024), Jim Snidero leaned heavily on the classic repertoire: “Love For Sale,” “Willow Weep For Me,” “My Funny Valentine” and the title cut. But midway through, he throws in an unexpected selection, Alec Wilder’s “Blackberry Winter.”

“Well, I love the melodies,” Snidero said by phone, “One of the prettiest melodies I’ve ever recorded is ‘Blackberry Winter.’ I’m trying to stay true to that melody and still be interesting at the same time. It’s always a balance between knowing and not knowing. For me anyway, I’m trying to have a grounding when I’m playing, but still have surprises and still keep people interested and not sure about what’s going to come next.”

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Pianist Theron Brown Keeps Things Going with a Free Concert at Cleveland’s Public Library

Published 5 August, 2022 By John Chacona

Theron Brown

If your idea of a library is a place of hushed reverence, by all means stay away from the Downtown Branch of the Cleveland Public Library tomorrow afternoon where silence will be in short supply thanks to pianist Theron Brown and his trio of Jordan McBride on bass and drummer Zaire Darden. Reverence, on the other hand, will be abundant since these three players are among northeast Ohio’s most persuasive advocates of improvised music in the Black American tradition.

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Jazz Weekend: May 20-21

Published 18 May, 2022 By John Chacona

Friday: Jonathan Barber and Vision Ahead at Bop Stop

One of the most talked about releases of 2021 was put out by Philadelphia-born drummer Johnathan Blake, son of jazz violinist John Blake. But Blake isn’t the only drummer named Jonathan with the initial B. and a new release. The other drummer is Jonathan Barber will play Bop Stop on Friday with his Vision Ahead band to support “Poetic” released last Friday.

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