Barbara Morrison © Andrea Canter

The Minneapolis weekend kicks off Thursday night on Peavey Plaza with Big George Jackson’s Chicago Blues at 5 pm, followed by a special Tribute to Duke Ellington concert at adjacent Orchestra Hall at 7:30 pm, presented by Delfeayo Marsalis and his octet, featuring brother Branford. (Click here for more information about this concert. )

Ginger Commodore © Andrea Canter

The Jazz Police will provide daily highlights (see the Friday schedule below). Full information and schedules are available on the festival website at www.hotsummerjazz.com.

Friday, June 29^th, 4:30 – 10 pm (Peavey Plaza, Caribou Coffee Main Stage)

4:30-5:30 pm, Ginger Commodore. Last summer’s festival performance was so successful that it became Ginger’s live recording, released last winter (Live at the Hot Summer Jazz Festival). A founding member of Moore by Four and Women Who Cook, and alum of Sounds of Blackness, Ginger has one of the most celebrated voices in the Twin Cities. Noted Britt Robson in City Pages, “Ginger possesses some of the sweetest and most clarion pipes in town.” Be it blues or ballad, Ginger delivers. And her band is always in top form—pianist Lee Blaske, bassist Mark Weissberg, drummer Bobby Commodore, and saxy lady Kathy Jensen.

Dan Kusz © Andrea Canter

7:30-8:30 pm, Grace Kelly. Barely 15, saxophonist/vocalist Grace Kelly is already creating a buzz throughout Jazzland. The Brookline, MA teen has already won multiple Downbeat Magazine Student Music Awards and the 2007 ASCAP Foundation Young Jazz Composer Award. She’s impressed alto great Phil Woods, who noted after playing with Grace, "I gave her my hat! That is how good she sounded! She is the first alto player to get one." And alto legend Frank Morgan, who has become her mentor, shared the stage with Grace a few weeks ago at the Jazz Standard in New York. This festival typically presents generations of sax talent each summer, and this year is no exception—and Grace Kelly is the younger, and perhaps the most exceptional yet.

Grace Kelly

9:00-10:00 pm, Barbara Morrison. Few artists in recent memory have commanded the attention and adulation of local jazz audiences as has vocalist Barbara Morrison. Her multiple appearances at the Dakota in the past few years were highlighted by a live recording session, released in 2005 on the Dakota Live label. For nearly 30 years, Morrison has performed with a virtual "who's who" in jazz and blues, including Dizzy Gillespie, James Moody, Ron Carter, Etta James, Jimmy Smith, Johnny Otis, Dr. John, Kenny Burrell, Terence Blanchard, Joe Sample, Cedar Walton, Nancy Wilson, Mel Torme, Joe Williams, and Tony Bennett. She’s appeared on more than 20 recordings from mainstream jazz to blues to gospel and pop. She can belt out the blues, torch a torch song, and squeeze the soul out of soul, and along the way, she’s a dazzling entertainer and comedienne. Said Rob Adam (Glasgow Herald), “She makes an audience feel good, like we're all ’round at her place and she's feeding us in the kitchen.” Barbara returns to the festival for the second straight year, a performance sponsored by the Dakota Jazz Club.

At the Dakota Jazz Club

More jazz awaits you down the street at the Dakota Jazz Club. The evening sets feature New Orleans Soul/R&B singer Willie West ($15 cover), and a late night festival jam begins at 11:30 for a $3 cover and bargain menu options.

Highlights, Saturday and Sunday

Stay tuned to the Jazz Police for details about the Saturday and Sunday schedules! Saturday will feature youthful and veteran performers—the Minnesota Institute for Talented Youth Jazz Band and young (19) Alex Han’s return to the main festival stage, Han in the company of the great drummer Paul Stubblefield; and at noon the Dakota Foundation for Jazz Education stage gets underway. The Air Force Notables will also be on hand, all leading up to the first festival appearance of Charmaine Neville. Sunday features the Singers Showcase at the Dakota Jazz Club, the second day at the Dakota Foundation stage, and the local talents of Triplicate, Charanga Tropicale and Nachito Herrera on Peavey Plaza. A special event Sunday night will be the Dakota Jazz Club presentation of saxophonists Frank Morgan, Irv Williams, and Grace Kelly!

Visit the festival website at www.hotsummerjazz.com for more detailed information and schedules for the weekend. Visit the Dakota Jazz Club site for a calendar and reservations, at www.dakotacooks.com.