Patricia Barber Photo by Andrea Canter

Typically January is our coldest month in Minnesota; while the days grow imperceptibly longer, we brace ourselves for the annual epidemic of "cabin fever." While some take great pleasure in overcoming the windchill on cross country skis or snowshoes, it seems so much easier, and a lot warmer, to just head for downtown Minneapolis and the gourmet and aural pleasures of the Dakota. The combination of great food and even greater music will warm the soul, and the hot jazz scheduled for the coming month will melt the most stubborn black ice off a Minnesota highway. Following an eclectic December that ranged from Ahmad Jamal to the Bad Plus, the January outlook is every bit as dramatic.

National Touring Artists

Erin Bode (January 3-4, 7 & 9 pm). One of the new generation of genre-jumping vocalists, Erin Bode spent her childhood in the Twin Cities before moving to St. Louis. Switching from classical studies to jazz in college, Bode rapidly built a local reputation that spread via radio, and soon she was opening for acts such as the Supreme's Mary Wilson, jazz/pop icon Michael Bublé, and hip Brit Jamie Cullum. With her big label debut for Max Jazz (Don't Take Your Time) and major venue bookings, Erin Bode's career is taking off as she returns "home" for two nights. Wrote Christopher Loudon in a recent Jazz Times review, "[she is] a country-folk-jazz hybrid boasting crystal clarity and flawless enunciation. She's part Norah Jones, part Jen Chapin, and a whole lotta Stacey Kent."

Todd Reynolds (January 10, 7 pm). Dubbed the "hardest working violinist/composer/ conductor/lecturer in showbiz" and "New York's reigning classical/jazz violinist," Todd Reynolds studied with the legendary Jascha Heifetz and earned degrees from the Eastman School of Music and SUNY Stonybrook. While working as Principal Second Violinist for the Rochester Philharmonic, he began exploring other genres, including jazz, rock, pop, and global music. He has appeared with the Chamber Music Society of London, on Broadway and film soundtracks, and on stage and/or recordings with Yo-Yo Ma's Silk Road project, Anthony Braxton, Uri Caine, Steve Coleman, Dave Liebman, Graham Nash, Greg Osby, Marcus Roberts, Wayne Shorter, and Cassandra Wilson. "Still Life With Microphone" is his own show, accompanied only by the full orchestration of his laptop, including animation, video, theater, electronics, and a wide range of musical styles. Other current projects include Ethel (21^st century string quartet) and Mahavishnu, dedicated to interpreting the music of John McLaughlin and the Mahavishnu Orchestra. In his "spare time," Reynolds leads master classes, improvisation workshops, delivers lectures, and generally promotes 21st Century concert music.

Patricia Barber (January 11-12, 7 & 9 pm). The first jazz musician to be awarded a Guggenheim grant, Patricia Barber is one of the most innovative artists on today's music scene. Switching from classical to jazz while studying music at the University of Iowa, Barber has been based in Chicago for the past decade-plus, a fixture at the Gold Star Sardine Bar and more recently a regular at the Green Mill. Acclaimed as both a unique interpreter of songs as well as a gifted composer, Barber has both vocal and piano chops to burn. Wrote Chicago Magazine, in voting her "Best Torch Singer" in 1999, "You've got to love a singer who can deliver Paul Anka ("She's a Lady"), Jim Morrison ("Light My Fire"), and e.e. cummings ("Love, Put on Your Faces") in a single set... a songwriter who gets Pierre Boulez, Bill Gates, and Karl Marx into the same smart lyric and still manages to give it a sexy groove." A consistent winner of Downbeat's "Talent Deserving Wider Recognition," her latest release, Live: A Fortnight in France (Blue Note), has garnered the raves that might make that crown obsolete. Noted Time, "Cross Diana Krall with Susan Sontag, and you get Patricia Barber, whose throaty, come-hither vocals and coolly incisive piano are displayed to devastating effect." And while it's easy to define Barber as a vocalist, don't be surprised if you find her to be the most innovative pianist you've heard in years.

Randy Weston and the African Rhythms Trio (January 25-27, 7 & 9 pm). Nearing 80, Randy Weston has contributed over five decades of globally inspired music. Living in Brooklyn, he was influenced early by Count Basie, Nat Cole, Duke Ellington, Art Tatum, and particularly Thelonius Monk. He made his first recordings with Kenny Dorham and Cecil Payne, and wrote many well-known compositions, including "Hi Fly." A long-time pioneer in linking American and African music, Weston moved to Morocco in the late 1960s, where he continued to investigate African music, compose, and perform. "I try to tell stories through music, stories about our heritage, so people can get a deeper understanding of who we are." In the 1990s, he won three Downbeat Composer of the Year awards; he has received the French Order of Arts and Letters, a Jazz Masters Fellowship from the National Endowment of the Arts, and residencies at Harvard and New York University. Wrote poet Langston Hughes, "When Randy plays, a combination of strength and gentleness, virility and velvet emerges from the keys in an ebb and flow of sound seemingly as natural as the waves of the sea." It is an understatement to say that this is a rare opportunity to see a true jazz giant (musically and physically, as Weston is 6'8"!).

Hot Weekend Gigs

Charmin Michelle (January 7, 8 pm). Popular chanteuse Charmin Michelle delivers "taste and understatement; swing and savoir faire; grace and grooves; intimacy and panache" (TCMusic.net). From ballads to blues, her voice hints of Nancy Wilson and a gentle Billy Holiday. "I choose tunes where the lyric and melody has a lot of meaning," she says. "That way I can express a lot of feeling without having to shout it out." A native of Birmingham, AL who moved to Minnesota as a youngster, Michelle gained international touring experience entertaining U. S. Troops. More recently she has toured Europe with Mulgrew Miller, Kirk Lightsey, and the Senders, as well as with European musicians on the concert and festival circuit. In addition to performing with her own trio, Michelle regularly appears with guitarist Joel Schapira and with Doug Haining's Twin Cities Seven. Of her third CD, Hot, reviewer Tom Surowicz noted that Michelle "gently seduces the listener time after time, whether the fare is ageless blues, warm bossa, intimate love song, or upbeat novelty. She's a flower, a lovesome thing." Hear one the Twin Cities' most readily identifiable, and simply beautiful, voices.

Photoby Andrea Canter

Alicia Wiley (January 8, 8 pm). Pianist, singer and songwriter Alica Wiley discovered her love of music and jazz as a child growing up in the Twin Cities. Performing in her first piano recital at age six, she went on to study classical music until her first jazz workshop inspired her to study jazz at the McPhail School of Music. She later enrolled at Music Tech, where she studied with such local virtuosos as Peter Schimke, Sue Tucker, Judi Donaghy, and Billy Peterson, graduating in 2002. In the past two years, Wiley has performed at venues across Minnesota and the metro area, including the Dakota, Artists Quarter, Jazzmines, the Times, and regularly at Rossi's, demonstrating her multiple talents to high praise. Noted WELY ("End of the Road Radio," Ely, MN): "To listen to Alicia is to go on a journey. Her rich and textural vocals immediately embrace you, taking you through heartfelt and passionate emotions, and at the end, leave you wanting more." Wiley appears regularly with jazz masters Jeff Baily (bass) and Kevin Washington (drums), who joined her on her self-titled debut recording, named winner of Minnesota Music Awards Best Self-Produced Album. Wiley was also named winner of MMA's Best Female Vocalist Award for 2004. This is a young star rising like a comet.

Debbie Duncan (January 9, 7 pm). Perhaps the best known local diva, Debbie Duncan "is blessed with a large, full, yet feathery voice and stylistic subtlety ranging from gospel to jazz and pop" (Jazziz). With a background rich in jazz, gospel and Motown, Detroit native Duncan has opened for Miles Davis, Herbie Hancock and Stephane Grapelli, and won the Minnesota Music Award for "Perpetually Outstanding Performer." Her recording credits include work with Oleta Adams, Jimmy McGriff, pop bands Iffy and B-3, and local jazzers Fat Kids Wednesday, as well as her own recordings, including her recently released Travelin' at the Speed of Love. Local gigs include frequent appearances at the Artists Quarter, Times, and Dakota, popular performances with "The Girls," and teaching at MusicTech. Notes her Artists Quarter press release, "On stage, she can crack you up and break your heart over the course of one verse." If she didn't sing, this would still be pure entertainment. But of course she sings like no one else.

Alicia Rene and Jon Weber (January 14-15, 8 pm). If this partnership delivers anything close to the combustion of their August weekend at the Dakota, expect smoke detectors to be activated within a mile of downtown. The pairing of rising supernova vocalist Alicia Renee and the always-inventive, encyclopedic sage of the keyboards, Jon Weber, is a logical culmination of the careers of two child prodigies born a generation apart, first meeting at the Twin Cities Hot Summer Jazz Festival about five years ago. Still in high school, Renee impressed Weber and ultimately worked with him on her debut recording (Wait for Me, Summit), released in 2002.

Now 21, Renee (her middle name) moved from South Dakota to Minneapolis as a young child, and grew up listening to music and her father's jazz band. "I don't remember a time not loving music, not singing," she says. Even before starting school, she was singing standards with perfect pitch. She studied voice, piano, and composition throughout her school years in St. Paul, participated in music programs at Como Park High School and Walker West Music Academy. At 17 she attended a Berklee College of Music summer program in Boston, where she won a songwriting contest. After graduating from high school, she has continued her music studies, working as a singing server at a downtown restaurant, performing a tribute to Judy Garland, and captivating audiences at such venues as the Artists' Quarter and Dakota. Renee's pure tone and ability to draw out a phrase or just belt it out as best suits the material will be sure to please any fan of good music.

Weber had a two-decade headstart, but similarly prodigous beginnings. As a toddler in Milwaukee playing a toy organ, it was soon apparent that he had both perfect pitch and memory; by age 6 he had memorized 2,000 songs from his grandmother's old piano rolls. A self-taught musician, Weber took off two years from piano during his teens to develop counterpoint in his left hand by playing guitar. Returning to the piano, Weber and his quintet opened for Pat Metheny, Buddy Rich, Freddie Hubbard, and Stanley Turrentine at major summer jazz festivals. Moving to Chicago in 1987, his career has since sent him around the world and into the recording studio. In addition to his remarkable chops, Jon Weber is well known for his incredible music knowledge. His most recent release, Simple/Complex (Second Century Jazz, 2004), has received rave reviews, including comments from the Australian Age: "The tunes are mind-bendingly complex with overlapping time signatures, accent shifts, and rhythmic feels that swerve from Cuban montunos to Indian tabla patterns to straight-ahead jazz at the blink of an eye."

Photo by Andrea Canter
On hand to aid and abet the fire will be bassist extraordinaire, Gordy Johnson (see below), my pick for the metro's top drummer, Kevin Washington, and teen guitar wizard Jack Callahan.

Gordy Johnson CD Release (January 16, 7 pm). Although best known throughout the region for his sublime acoustic bass, Gordy Johnson graduated from the Eastman School of Music with a major in flute. He toured with Maynard Ferguson, Doc Severinsen, and the Paul Winter Consort, has appeared on over 50 recordings, and has kept time for most local and many visiting artists, including his recent appearance with Bill Carrothers at the Dakota. Johnson has released two albums featuring trios with different combinations of pianists and drummers (Trios, Volumes 1, 2) and will be releasing a magnificent Trios, Volume 3 at this CD Release Party. When he is not holding down rhythm sections with his bass lines, Johnson can often be found inside the piano, tuning it up at the top clubs and concert halls in the Twin Cities. In celebration of the new CD, Gordy will be joined by Chicago pianist Jon Weber (see above), who is one of four pianists featured on the new recording.

Bruce Henry (January 21-22, 8 pm). Bruce Henry "possesses a three and one-half octave range, a pure voice with versatility and depth that few can match" (CD Baby). Studying at the Chicago Conservatory of Music, Mississippi native Henry was inspired by the music of Nina Simone, Al Jarreau, and John Coltrane. Absorbing eclectic styles of vocals and composition while touring the world, Henry has garnered a large following in France and the Far East, and has been heard live on the BBC as well as on movie soundtracks. Now living in Minneapolis, he maintains a nonstop schedule of performing, recording, and teaching. His most recent recording is Connections (2003, Bahlove Productions). Says noted educator and historian Mahmoud El-Kati, "At the bottom, the real genius of Bruce Henry's music is his gift for marrying life experiences to musical ideas." Backing Henry will be the premiere rhythm section of pianist Peter Schimke, bassist Jay Young, drummer Kevin Washington, and percussionist Daryl Boudraux.

Blowzone (January 23, 7 pm). With one of the best horn sections around, the aptly named Blowzone will indeed blow you away with their soulful funk jazz. On horns, area veterans Kelly Rossum (see below) and Ray Vasquez share trumpet duties while Greg Keel and Brad Callahan (bari) hold down the sax section. The rhythm team features Lee Blaske (piano), John Dellaselva (guitar), Mark Weisberg (bass), and Mark Morse (drums).

Nachito Herrera and the Cuban All-Stars (January 28-29, 8 pm). Every month at the Dakota, we can count on the blistering Afro-Cuban piano grooves of Nachito Herrera. A child prodigy who studied classical music in Havana, Herrera went on to serve as music director for several bands before leading Cubanissmo! His travels to the US caught the eye of potential sponsors, including the Dakota's Lowell Pickett, and with some wrangling with state department redtape, this amazing musician found himself in Minnesota. After his inaugural band Puro Cubano recorded Live at the Dakota, Herrera developed another great ensemble featuring Cuban musicians (The Cuban All-Stars) who converge in Minneapolis for this monthly gig. Heavy on percussion and vocals (often featuring young Mirdalys Herrera), this band is so hot that it challenges the Dakota's "no smoking" policy. Noted Michael Dumbrow (Urban Pioneer), "His hands move at a blinding pace over the keys, trilling not only with his dominant hand but with both, turning the piano keys into an extension of his very self." Where classical structures merge with native Cuban rhythms, where dexterity and fluidity merge with passion and joy, this is the intersection that is home to Nachito Herrera.

Regina Williams (January 30, 7 pm). Regina Williams drew plenty of attention for her acting and singing skills portraying Dinah Washington in Penumbra Theater's hit production, Dinah Was. A veteran of numerous productions at Mixed Blood and Penumbra Theaters, Williams'other credits include Seven Guitars and Two Trains Running at Penumbra, as well as two productions of Black Nativity; Mixed Blood Theater's Two Queens One Castle, which was also performed for the National Alliance of Musical Theatres' Festival of New Musicals in New York City; a one-woman show, Jump at the Sun, for the Jungle Theatre; the one-woman touring show, Daughters of Africa; and she is a former member of the Grammy award-winning Sounds of Blackness.