March 20 Sunday Session @ A.G. Hall

This Sunday's jam/swing/blues/dance session is at A.G. Hall, 707 Huasna Rd,, Arroyo Grande. So don't goto the Pismo Vets Hall this Sunday! Else, the schedule is the same. 11AM: 3 Jam Sets; 1PM: Main Act Set 1; 2:30PM Intermission Act; 3:30PM Main Act Set 2.

This month's session will be a crowd pleaser. The Intermission Act is The Creole Syncopators, featuring Valerie Johnson. Their traditional jazz feel includes washboard. The Creole Syncopators are the main reason we won first prize in the 2015 Pismo Beach Clam Parade. Formerly of Big Brother & The Holding Company (after Janis Joplin), Valerie Johnson provides an old-school bluesy feel...you will think you are in New Orleans, not Arroyo Grande. Our main act is the ever-popular Dos Pueblos High School Band from Goleta, CA, directed by Les Rose. A truly professional act with a swing band feel. They played to rave reviews and standing room only at last year's Jubilee. This year we booked them for another set (last weekend in Oct. 2016!). Les Rose is a Grammy-nominated jazz educator in the Santa Barbara area for the past 23 years. Come to hear the music! At the Arroyo Grande Hall, 707 Huasna Rd.

https://www.facebook.com/events/600000626819616/

February 26 Sunday Session Summary: Double Bell Euphoria!

This month's sunday session provided a rare treat for us Basin Street Regulars. Cell Block 7 from Lodi brought three double bell euphomiums (or is it euphonia?). Here is an example of one of their tunes, a rather beautiful, unique sound. 

http://youtu.be/Bp8ZrWpEzdE

Our local Rag Bag Saints were the intermission act, entering from the crowd. Here is a link to Scott Andrews' video of this event. https://www.facebook.com/d.scott.andrews/posts/10154010454502059. Great show, great time! Hugh Robinson was back in action. He did $60 better than me from last month's raffle. God Bless Hugh!

January 31st Jazz: Jammer Extravaganza

This month's session on the last day of the month will surely entertain. Bye Bye Blues from Monterey is our headliner act. Cal Poly Jazz Band is the intermission act. The 1st Jam set begins at 11am. Bye Bye Blues from 1-2:15PM & 3:15-4:30PM. Cal Poly Jazz from 2:15-3PM. Raffle at 3PM: Hugh Robinson back in the saddle after his recent mishap?

Don Irving is the Leader of the Bye Bye Blues and has some very special ties to Pismo. The Stage Director of Bye Bye Blues is Dick Williams, who leads the jam sets for the Pismo Jubilee. Dick personifies our mission of encouraging young jazz people to play with a group of jammers. A great emcee, harkening back to the days of Vaudeville, Dick will also recognize veterans in the audience (appropriate at any Vets Hall). When Dick directs a group, I take careful notes. He also can play a mean cornet & sing lead. Here is an audio example of "Shake That Thing" from this year's Pismo Jubilee: 

http://youtu.be/odIOM56Ivvw 

This 9min jam features a stellar washboard solo (2:55) from scholarship recipient Steven Saavedra (wannabe architect and student of the wonderful "Washboard" Annie Abler) & Tom Dutart's infamous tuba solo (6:10, a personal favorite of mine). 

The Cal Poly Jazz Band is our intermission act, so Dick has a broad range of potential student jammers. Hence, the jam sets should be rather entertaining. If u r a Basin Street Regular jammer or a jam newbie, contact Rhonda at jwcardinal@msn.com Our goal is to preach the message of collective improvisation. We can jam if we want to...

The Bye Bye Blues Boys Band was founded by Don Pellerin, a Monterey Peninsula area music teacher, in the 1970's. Don was very active in the local music scene and had his "BBBBB" playing lots of local gigs. The band would vary in size and players as the engagement dictated. In the late 1990's Don was on the Board of Directors of the Dixieland Monterey Festival and the Festival found themselves in the position of having scheduled an out of town band for a Friday evening performance and the band's travel arrangements did not allow for the group to make it to Monterey in time for that Friday evening set; the Board asked Don if he could provide a group for that Friday evening performance and that group is the BBBBB. They played that one set and gave it everything they had as it was the only set for them during the Festival. After the set was complete, people were asking where they were going to play next - well, the next year the BBBBB had 8 sets at the Festival. They played for the Festival a total of 9 years and also some jazz club dates, private parties and even a couple of "Hot n' Cool" Festivals. Around 2008, Don Pellerin moved to Paso Robles to be closer to family and locally Don Irving kept the BBBBB alive by continuing the tradition of providing music for the Jazz Mass at the San Carlos Catholic Church on the Saturday of the Festival which had now changed it's name to "Jazz Bash By-the-Bay". The Festival asked Don to put the band back together for the March 2015 Festival and the result of that effort is the band we present for your dancing and listening enjoyment. This band is playing at a few of Northern California's jazz clubs and will once again be featured at the Jazz Bash By-the-Bay Festival in Monterey next March. The players are: Dick Williams, Cornet, Vocals, and on stage leader; Rich Owens, Piano and Vocals; Dr. Carl Reiley, Trombone; Don Irving, Soprano and Bass Sax, Leader; Carl Lunsford, Banjo, Guitar, Vocals (veteran from the Turk Murphy Jazz Band); Debera McIrving, Drums; Bert Robinson, String Bass, 

From George Smith: MATRIMONY ON STAGE AT THE VETS BUILDING! The January 31st Sunday Session Guest Band will be the Bye Bye Blues Boys Band from Monterey. The leader of the band, Don Irving, reeds, married the drummer, Debera McIrving, on stage at the Pismo Beach Vet's Building at a Sunday Session, so many, many years back that I don't remember which year it was. I first met Don and Debera at the Sacramento Adult Jazz Camp, again, long ago. So now they return for yet another joyous, if not matrimonius musical encore. Wow. And isn't it timely that Don, a Cal Poly graduate, will be able to hear the Cal Poly University Jazz Band at this same session? Don is an alumni from this band. Dick Williams will be the on stage leader of the band. Dick is here every year at the Jubilee conducting the jam sets and has been here with the Mission Gold band from the Bay Area. Don runs the jam sets at Monterey's Bash By the Bay in March.

The Cal Poly Jazz Band program combines the professionalism of a working big band with the academic rigor of cutting-edge big band repertoire. The University Jazz Band #1 has been professionally contracted to perform at the world’s largest jazz festival (the Sacramento Jazz Jubilee), the San Jose Jazz Society’s Sunday jazz series, a swing dance series in Santa Barbara, the Morro Bay Jazz Festival, the Jazz Jubilee in Pismo Beach, and as an opening act for Don Byron and comedian Bob Newhart. The band also regularly performs at swing dances on the Cal Poly campus. The Cal Poly jazz bands perform specialized repertoires, including modern big band concert compositions, swing dance, world music (including Ethiopian pop), heavy-metal (music from Pat Boone's In a Metal Mood big band album), TV themes, and jazz for cartoons. Guest artists that have performed with the University Jazz Bands include DJ Logic, Taylor Eigsti, Mary Fettig, Arturo Sandoval, Bill Watrous, Mel Martin, Bobby Shew, Clark Terry, Red Holloway, Louie Bellson, Billy Childs, Kevin Mahogany, Thelonious Monk, Jr., Bruce Forman, and James Carter. The University Jazz Bands have received unanimous superior evaluations at collegiate jazz festivals, and was rated as the best four-year collegiate big band at U.C. Berkeley's Pacific Coast Collegiate Jazz Festival.

December 13 Sunday Session - Mark ur Calendars!

Hot Swingin' Jazz presented by the Basin Street Regulars Jazz Society. Jam session starts at 11 AM (bring your instrument & join in!). Two professional bands start at 1 PM. @ Veterans' Memorial Building 780 Bello Street Pismo Beach, CA 93449. 11 AM-4:30 PM. $5 members, $10 non-members. Food for everyone! Drinks & dance floor onsite.

 

December 13 Bands: 

Royal Garden Swing Orchestra

http://rgso.net/2.html

Pacific Swing Band

www.reverbnation.com/pacificswing

The Royal Garden Swing Orchestra is made up of professional musicians from the San Luis Obispo County area and is celebrating its 28th year performing the swinging sounds of the Big Band Era. This nine-piece band sounds bigger than the average big band. Over 200 special arrangements make up their library of memorable tunes from the Swing Era to modern classics. One newspaper reviewer stated, “This is an orchestra that harkens back to a bygone era when musicians wore tuxedos and had an air of elegance about them. They are true professionals who really understand group synergy.”

Pacific Swing has been jazzin’ it up on the Central Coast of California since 2008. These local, accomplished musicians have joined forces to have a fun time while sharing their love of the jazz genre. Whether it’s traditional, swing, bee bop, Latin, you will want to be on the dance floor. They were a swingin' hit @ the Jubilee this year.

CU there, don't be square. Bring your swingin' shoes...

Nov. 22 Session Summary

Our pre-Thanksgiving session had a smaller turn out, but did not disappoint! The Basin Street Regular Jammers set the stage, led by our venerable Jazzmaster, Del Gomes. We introduced a new tune, Jeepers, Creepers. It went surprisingly well, even with me on vocals (lol). Sandy Smallwood represented on Blue Moon, Goody Goody (her signature tune), & Georgia (audio clip below). George Smith and Richelle Cross-Smith closed the last set w/ a stirring rendition of "Old Man River." We need more like this...onto the featured acts...

Ulysses Jasz Band from Santa Barbara showed us the style that makes them popular at The James Joyce. A very upbeat traditional jasz group, they played many popular favorites to the delight of our audience. Rhonda Cardinal provided a nice video on their story (see below link). And yes, we did have a participatory parasol parade! (even w/o Linda Shorb, who is on vacation). We can dance if we want to...surpassing the parasol parade critical mass. Thanks to all of our paraders...we needed every one you!

The Cool Notes from nearby Cuesta College really wowed the crowd, a surprisingly effective intermission band. Great energy, great music. They chose their set with us in mind. Personally, they made me proud of our mission in helping kids pursue jazz. They were stoked to get some of our spare music books. Local sensation Talia Ortega, their senior member at 21, said it best: "We love and live jazz, thank you so much for having us." Many of the regulars expressed bringing these kids back. :)

Below are some highlights from the show: (1) audio link to Georgia; (2) Ulysses Jasz story; (3) Cool Notes 3-minute video: Don't Get Around Much Anymore; & (4) random fotos & captions. Next show = 12/13. Mark ur calendars. Royal Garden Swing Orchestra & Pacific Swing! Bring ur dancing shoes...

Georgia

http://youtu.be/O12uzZVLGco

Ullyses Jasz

http://youtu.be/XzJ7dmI-61o

Cool Notes

http://youtu.be/zTUCTVrQ5VQ

Random Fotos & Picture Captions:

Got my axe, got my jazz hat!

Ulysses in the house!

The line up...

Once again, we got first place in the Clam Festival Parade. Special parade kudos go out to The Creole Syncopators,  Hugh Robinson, Rhonda Cardinal, & your truly. I wanna be like Hugh when I grow up. God Bless.

 Next show. C u there.

November 22 Jazz Session

Basin Street Regulars Sunday Afternoon Session Presents Ulysses Jasz from Santa Barbara
November 22^nd 1:00 pm to 4:30. Jam session starts at 11:00 am

ULYSSES JASZ is the Basin Street Regulars featured band on November 22, at the Pismo Vet’ Hall. Ulysses plays spirited New Orleans Jazz and pop songs from the 1920's and 1930's that are largely selected from the compositions of Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington, Jelly Roll Morton, Jerome Kern, Irving Berlin, Johnny Mercer, Kurt Weill, and Hoagy Carmichael. 

ULYSSES plays this material with an infectious rhythm and spirit, characteristic of the Golden Age Jazz.  Traditional Jazz lovers love this unique Santa Barbara band.

The band consists of seven instrumentalists, a vocalist, and their own sound-man. CURT SLETTEN plays lead cornet and reminds audiences of the big bands like those of Glenn Miller, and Harry James with whom he has played. LARRY JONES is well known in jazz circles as one of the best trombonists around. BOB EFFORD on clarinet and tenor saxophone plays his clarinet weaving in and out with incisive counterpoint harmonies. DEAN DODS is on string and tuba bass.  Swinging keyboardist JOHN LEONARD has carefully acquired early styles such as Harlem Stride, and a vast repertoire of ragtime and popular pieces.  HANNA, is their jazz vocalist.  She has developed her own dynamic style from Bourbon Street to Broadway with a fresh approach.

This month’s intermission band is the Cool Notes who started as part of the award-winning Cuesta Community College Combo Program, like many popular groups in the area. They are a very adaptive group of jazz musicians and with musical stylings ranging from Jazz to Blues. The Basin Street Regulars regularly supports groups like the Cool Notes, who all grew up in the area.
 
Cool Notes features Flutist/Vocalist Talia Phillips. Duncan Green plays Tenor Sax, Matthew J. Evans on Upright Bass/Vocals, Madison Scott on Keyboard/Vocals. The drummer, Tom Brown, was sponsored by the BSR at the 2015 Cuesta College Jazz workshop.
 
Check out the Cool Notes from 2-3 pm and discover a very sophisticated, toe-tapping, brand of jazz that will leave you wondering, "How old are these kids?"

Pismo Veterans' Memorial Building, 780 Bello St. Pismo Beach CA 93449.

$10 or $5 for members.

Sandy Smallwood 773-3750 

2015 Jubilee By The Sea - Audio/Video Playlist

Below is a YouTube (unlisted) playlist link to some tunes I recorded at the Sea Crest Banquet Room (Jubilee by the Sea Crest, lol). So this is the first place to hear these tunes. Email me w/ comments. Next time we will try to record better, but it still sounds surprisingly good. Enjoy! 

http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLNK8XalJqI-by-jcYC0YMqFQWvW7UM_c4