Viva Carlos Vega
Carlos Vega’s drumming on the 1993 recording, James Taylor (LIVE), exemplifies startlingly his supportive, dynamic, and unfailing commitment to groove and song. With huge ears and deep pocket, his playing disappears into the musical whole and rises into focus at just the right moments; eliciting his taste and discipline as a first-call L.A. session master and his technical attributes as an original member of David Garfield’s fusion mainstay, Karizma. It is my favorite—of many—Carlos Vega recordings. He would commit suicide five years later at the age of 41.

Seaton rearstage for the 13th Annual Carlos Vega Memorial Concert, Sunday, December 5th

Garfield hosted the 13th Annual Carlos Vega Memorial Concert this past Sunday, December 5th, at Cafe Cordiale, where many of his friends and admirers gathered in remembrance and celebration of the man and his gifts—gone tragically too soon. Not surprisingly, some this town’s best musicians can be counted among them, and the overflowing, floor-level stage included Paul Jackson Jr., Jimmy Earl, Denny Dias, Lenny Castro, Jimmy Vivino, Alex Ligertwood, and, of course, Garfield. The drum throne was the natural focal point this evening and was graced by Oscar Seaton, Vinnie Colaiuta, and Walfredo Reyes Jr, in order.

Vinnie. Period.

Peaceful Succession
Seaton, a long-time Garfield cohort, hosted the throne—opening the set and proffering his instrument for the evening: a pop-y bass and snare, de-tuned floor tom, and angular cymbal array including auxiliary-hat positioned in lieu of a mounted tom. He delivered correspondingly bold and angular groove behind the inspired band, often to the delight of an otherwise intense Garfield.

Vinnie. He relieved Seaton, didn’t touch a wingnut, and proceeded to play in effortless tribute to his old friend. It was interesting watching him navigate the foreign set-up fluently as he adjusted his stick angle to accommodate the aft-tilted ride cymbal; mostly avoided the prominent x-hat; and generally adapted seamlessly to the voices, angles, and heights at hand—never compromising his Vinnie-ness. Notably, he even seemed to coax an extra inch or so out of Seaton’s cranked 5.5″ deep snare. Really, with the hall-of-fame body of work behind him, it would be exciting to watch the guy dial a phone.

Seaton and Colaiuta pretty evenly divvied up the bulk of the show, with Walfredo Reyes Jr. sitting-in for the final two or three tunes. His easy, soulful pocket and savvy musicality ensured a soft-landing for a high-flying night of music, and offered satisfying resolution to an evening dedicated to Carlos Vega.

Wally’s World

Cordially Yours
Cafe Cordiale is testament to the enduring power of good music and exceptional musicianship to attract a crowd in a scene as saturated and spread-out as Los Angeles’. A no-cover policy doesn’t hurt. The restaurant/bar has earned a reputation as a musician’s hangout through its commitment to music with a stage-centric room, consistently high-quality calendar, stellar jam nights, and open-door hospitality.

Of the many times I’ve been there, this was the first I’d actually reserved a table for dinner and sat proper-like in the dining room. We were seated practically in the horn section, front stage right, and half-expected to have to double on flute at some point. We relaxed, settled in, stretched out, and mocked the poor bastards crammed at the bar. It was packed.

Yuletide Treasure
There is something special about Cafe Cordiale at Christmas time. The white walls and white open-ceiling, tasteful glowing lights, white flowers, and splashes of greens and reds combine to turn the place into a striking and warming Holiday sanctuary. Add the chill and rain outside this night, and it made for an especially cozy communion and tribute. If you missed it, and even if you didn’t, you might consider dimming the lights, fixing a glass, and sitting down with James Taylor (LIVE) for a cozy communion and tribute of your own.

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Photo © Lissa Wales

Brian Blade and The Fellowship Band at Zipper Hall November 12, 2010

Triple Blade
Friday November 12th marked the third time I’ve seen Brian Blade perform at The Jazz Bakery.

The first was in 2005 with Billy Childs’ Jazz Chamber Ensemble. At that time, The Bakery had stood at its 3233 Helms Ave location in Culver City for over eleven years since moving from a small photography studio in the same complex after a serendipitous two-year run. I was still relatively new to town, but the warm, open, wood-vaulted listening room with those green plastic lawn chairs (“…the best you could buy,” reminds founder Ruth Price) was already my clear favorite venue for serious jazz. It was a concert venue without the fuss; an intimate club feel without all the clinks and chatter.

Many Bakery shows later, I again caught Blade with the Scott Colley Quartet on the final weekend of the Jazz Bakery on Helms Ave, May 30, 2009. The lawn chairs had only recently been replaced with seating more befitting the nearly 16-year-old and by-then legendary space as it faced an abrupt yet graceful end.

Blade’s performance Friday with The Fellowship Band was part of The Jazz Bakery’s Moveable Feast concert series Price began organizing shortly following the demise of its permanent home. Although technically not housed in the namesake venue, where Ruth Price goes so goes The Jazz Bakery—defined by her commitment to showcasing world-class live jazz in dedicated concert settings and her tireless creative spirit. For this night, The Jazz Bakery was Zipper Hall at the wide-ranging Colburn School of performing arts in downtown Los Angeles.

Inside The Zipper
While Price and her non-profit board of directors continue to sort out the details of a new and fixed home, the Moveable Feast concept has offered some of the same top-quality events we’ve come to expect from The Jazz Bakery at some of the most extraordinary concert venues in town, including Redcat at Disney Hall, The Grammy Museum Sound Stage, Japan America Theatre, and Largo at The Coronet. Price and many of the Bakery’s loyal supporters see the musical chairs, indeed, as a sort of game. A treasure hunt. An adventure. The change of necessity, as is often the case, has become a virtue all its own.

Looking up.

The Fellowship Band at Zipper Hall was exemplary. The superb venue and the simple novelty of it elevated the evening’s experience. Personally, while I’ve passed the impressive facade—located adjacent to Disney Hall—often over time, it was a new and exciting discovery. The 435-seat theater with 60-foot ceiling and delicate wooden arched trellis; and glowing, golden-blonde stage illuminated (if a bit over-brightly) by large, round, celestial pods hovering above added an aura of drama and enhanced anticipation as the seats filled to capacity.

The Fellowship
While Blade, by now jazz drumming’s rockstar, may have been the featured attraction—commanding draw and attention—he was not the story Friday and is deliberately not the story here (pretty sure I’ve written plenty about the guy already). The group (comprised of piano/pump organ, two saxes ranging from soprano to bass, hollow-body electric guitar, upright and drums), once dubbed Brian Blade Fellowship, is now simply The Fellowship Band. If the name doesn’t convince that this is a true band, Blade’s drumming leaves no doubt. Musical brothers for over twelve years now, The Fellowship are a mature, intuitive, patient ensemble focused on the collective whole—a spacious, lush wash of sound undulating and tranquil; crashing and intense.

A joyous blur.

Blade is both the wave and the surfer; simultaneously creating motion and riding it. Happy quietly paddling out or boldly going tubular. At times barely touching a drum or cymbal with stick or brush and then abruptly, spasmodically possessed with whatever motion is necessary to get to where he wants to be on the kit…and NOW! His time-keeping is editorial, narrative, impulsive and abstract; it is broken yet always strangely fluid; and as definitively illustrated this night—which was my point—supremely supportive and musical.

Beyond Hemingway
Blade and The Fellowship are essentially the perfect subplot to update the still unfolding tale of Price and The Jazz Bakery. Sharing history and purpose, both are evolving and passionate collectives committed to a cause greater than their individual parts. The Jazz Bakery transcends its venue. Be it in a cramped and improvised photography studio; a beloved yet ultimately transient space in an old bakery building; a panoply of revolving performance spaces as diverse as Los Angeles itself; or the next future home to come, each musical feast—movable or not—bears its unique brand and spirit. They can take the jazz out of the bakery, but not The Bakery out of the jazz…kind of thing.

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