A New York jazz friend just wrote me, “Michael, are there any more videos from that Ivory Club Boys gig you posted from May 2014? That is such a great band!”
Happy to oblige, dear NYJF, with more from that spectacular evening at Armando’s in Martinez — featuring Paul Mehling, guitar, vocal; Evan Price, electric (and electrifying) violin; Marc Caparone (sitting in for Clint Baker), cornet; Sam Rocha, string bass, vocal; Isabelle Fontaine, guitar, vocal. They paid tribute, in their own way, to the mighty swing and joyously eccentric humor of Stuff Smith and his Onyx Club Boys.
One kind of crazy? Yes, a second take of CRAZY RHYTHM:
Something searching and melancholy, I COVER THE WATERFRONT:
And another type of crazy, as in YOU’RE DRIVING ME CRAZY / MOTEN SWING:
And here, for those of you unaware of the ICB, here are the other selections from that night that I’ve posted on JAZZ LIVES:
Forget the morning news for a moment. It’s a benevolent world that has this music in it.
May your happiness increase!
