Archives for January 5, 2006

At more or less the last minute, I have decided to attend the conference of the International Association for Jazz Education (IAJE) next week in New York. It is a massive gathering—at least 7-thousand educators, musicians and people from every nook and cranny of jazz as an art and jazz as a … [Read more...]

The Voice of America’s John Birchard writes: Your Philly Joe material reminded me of an evening back in the early 60s, a Monday Night at Birdland. Joe had brought a quintet into the club. Following the obligatory oratory by PeeWee Marquette, Jones—very clean in a hip three-piece Ivy League … [Read more...]

For the uninitiated: Pee Wee Marquette was a fixture at the old Birdland, known to the club’s audiences for his elecutionary introductions when he left his doorman’s post to be the MC, and to musicians as an extortionist. His nickname derived from his stature; he was under four feet tall. For a … [Read more...]