JASON WILSON! Steinway Reggae blasts The Trane Studio

March 13, 2012 – 7:59 pm

Traveling in an alternate universe. One that speaks languages I’m not sure I’ve heard.

Jason himself a startling force of musicianship. With his band, pure radiation. Tilting left, rising north from his piano bench. Connecting his band with a fury of precision, muscle and melody.

Trombone – quirky. A garble of communication that constantly upends my understanding of the instrument – a closemouthed frog making sound from a billowing secret. To my ear, RJ Satchitananthan speaks in undertones.

Tenor Sax. Marcus Ali’s everybody’s coolest cousin. So at ease with self that he talks to friend on the right while friend on the left plays a remarkable solo – and it doesn’t matter. Laffing at private jokes to his left while we concentrate on the stunning virtuosity of the player on his right – and it doesn’t matter. This band doesn’t Perform. It communicates. When Ali busts out, it startles expectation.

Bass player Andrew Stewart has seven fingers on his left hand. NO? Prove it. A beautiful soul who introduces self with humility, wades into the game with simple eloquence, then proceeds to counterpoint his fellows with a uniqueness that confounds. And that’s just the warm-up. Slings into solos that reconstruct joy into transcendence. This is BASS I’m talking about. I’m told he built his guitar.

Todd Britton a shining beam on organ. Iain Green Drummer – a solid companion cleanly serving the whole. Juli Genoa & Jamie Browning, guest singers bringing the comfort of a family gathering to the party. Rupert “Ojiji” Harvey: the mighty Messenjah to remind us of the purity of the form and the foundation of the powerful riff Mr. Wilson rocks off. Aside: Dinner, Succulent.

Jason Wilson orchestrates a program that gallops over genres. Reggae. Then reggae again before I’ve registered the jazz element that usurped it, or the rock that flew in sideways …

This band’s generosity sandblasted the room.
The packed Trane, victorious.

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THEATRE, HEAVYWEIGHTS and KATHLEEN’S’ JAZZ

February 28, 2012 – 6:44 pm

HUGHIE
alley theatre workshop

Michael Kash’s entrance onto Hughie’s stage is imprinted like a sizzling poker. The creaking, twisted-bone staggering, as fragile as a broken dish. Dean Ifill’s pained tiptoeing feet equaled the thrill. A poetic production. Verbiage thrumming against mulling, with tentacles of each awakening dormant life in the other.

The inclusion of two jazz musicians as prelude to this Eugene O’Neill one-act is inspired. David Ferry directs, creating a tension that readied me for a scurrying mouse. I will never miss an alley theatre workshop production – they reach for the moon through the angst of human weakness and resilience. lizzyjacks! on the road thanks the 16 guests who joined her at the show. We enjoyed a Most Enchanting, irrepressible and intimate party with Kash following. An excellent night out, creating new friends in several directions.

playing till March 3, 2012
at the Theatre Centre
showdetails.php?id=136

Michael Kash stars as HUGHIE


The Heavyweights Brass Band

“Wear something colourful and put on your dancing shoes.” A Mardi Gras party in Jaymz Bee’s loft! What an invite! Jaymz is a generous promoter of outstanding musical talent and I’m lucky to be introduced to it. And dancing?! Well dancing feels like a childhood I forgot to have. And honey … did I dance!

The Heavyweights Brass Band shocked me. The musicians look fresh out of high school yet play with the professionalism of performers twice their feet on earth.  With depth. Assurance.  New Orleans with a youthful punch.

Chris Butcher, trombone. Jon Challoner, trumpet. Paul Metcalfe, saxophones. Rob Teehan, sousaphone – every player glittering with talent. And really … SOUSAPHONE! But I admit to a personal jolt toward drummer Lowell Whitty. He envelops the whole with an exactitude of elasticity, and staccatos the field with a quirky joy that pops out like your favourite friend in the playground.

Late in the evening, in true Mardi Gras style we marched through the corridors of Jaymz’ building following the band, bleating away on our Jaymz Bee kazoos. Signature Bee. The fact that it ended up in a “dungeon” with wall sized film images of women depicted in extreme states of bondage and torture is another topic of discussion. The band members were unaware of what was flowing on the wall behind them. The juxtaposition of their oblivious, life-filled integrity against that sea of silenced women haunts me. So much joy reduced to a sadness I have yet to come to terms with.

www.heavyweightsbrassband.com

Kathleen Gorman

Kathleen Gorman recently played the Trane with her band of engaging musicians. Kathleen is a refreshing, whimsical gal and her music reflects her individuality. A keyboard artist, singer and composer, her jazz plucks notes from between the sound and tosses them up like soap bubbles. She invited jazz poet Chris Hercules to share her limelight on several pieces, and he perfectly counterpointed the continuum of classic light jazz that she captures with his smoky bygone roots. Stay tuned for her upcoming new CD release.

kathleen\’s site

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from House to Home to … Brothel?

February 20, 2012 – 3:44 pm

house: Allsax4tet at Dominion House

Robust. Precise.  Nuanced. The illusion of a full orchestra  … created by four musicians and 21 sax’s.
Yes. Four lads. Twenty-one saxophones.

Doug Pipher, arranger, leader, masters eight of them. His glee in playing the tiny soprillo through to the outrageously oversized contrabass (made to order in Brazil and the only one in Canada) is a baton inspiring his colleagues to giddy heights.

Three full sets incorporate jazz to opera. The unusually packed house at Dominion went ballistic with the full tilt glory of Bohemian Rhapsody. www.allsax.ca An act worthy of lighting votive candles in thanks for musicians who care so much to become this good.

 

kitchen: Bob Cary Orchestra at People’s Chicken

It hurts my mouth to say the name of this club out loud. Formerly Chick’n Deli, good news is, it still showcases the big bands, and Bob Cary’s is one of the best. A sardine tin, packed with top talent. On feb 13th it was fronted by crooner Vincent Wolfe, smoothly reminiscent of the rat pack’s glory days.

 

lounge: Love Letters Cabaret at Lula Lounge

An Old Hollywood romantic tryst with our current Burlesque fantasy. Choreographer Pastel Supernova titillates her audience into a daze of complicity during a night of mischievous  seduction. With producer Vanessa Young at the helm, (an accomplished dancer and choreographer herself) I was most impressed with the confidence of these two women, propelling their youth into a fist of mature vision. Enjoy a tantalizer with bpm:tv’s  clip of this night at Lula and follow the links watch?v=M-v2QaWXhEE

 

home:  Princess Margaret Hospital Brothel  er, Home Sweepstakes

Happened to work the media launch of the grand prize in Thornhill. Dear PMH brainstormers, You’ve built a 7,662 sq ft palace in which children will get lost looking for their cat. Cats will drown in the voraciously gargling lap pool. The twelve sinks, six bathrooms, four showers and one oversized bathtub could clean all of North York in one sitting. Anyone who wins this house will need to spend my entire year’s income in one month of utility costs. Anyone who can afford to do so will not choose to live in a humble neighbourhood five doors down from Wimpy’s. It’s 2012. Decades past the brilliant inception of the eco movement. Trumpeting an Energy Star washer and dryer as your sole nod to sustainable living does not sit well. Especially since you boast two sets. Heralding a 1,618 sq ft basement is comparable to throwing snickers bars at a starving refugee. The Occupy Movement is swelling across the globe. Think Marie Antoinette. Perhaps next year your design pubahs could come up with thrice as many abodes, with a fraction of the footprint, each utilizing geo thermal, solar, recycled water, and perhaps even a vegetable garden. You know, a house somebody could actually call a home. In the meantime, it would serve as an excellent venue for Supernova & Vanessa’s burlesque theatre. Before it morphs into the perfect BROTHEL.
Check it out just to swoon over the excess gp1.phpl

lizzyjacks! home
And then there’s Elise LeGrow who ransacked lizzyjacks! with her jazz and blues back in 2010. Here’s an unplugged version of her first single with Sony, and the track that’s in circulation on our pop stations. We’re proud to call you our own, ms. elise. Storm the barns sweetheart.
watch?v=10xIyx5XmMo
id487682765

 

 

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SSSSSsssly!

February 8, 2012 – 5:47 pm

                                                                SLY BLUE

Sly Blue! Sly Blue!!!!! I LOVE YOU! Oh. OHOHOH. Yesssssssssssss. The New York swing band swung into TO’s Dovercourt House recently and I WAS THERE!
All I could say to them was “This is a Good Day To Die!” And mean it.
A Thrill of TALENT!
Affirmation of Life.
Slams the Uber into Exuberance.

Chris Norton, a Picasso of madness on trumpet, vocals and stardom.
Bandleader BINGOyoualwayswonderedWHYBANJOnowyouKnow! Marko Gazic.
Trombone Sweetheart James Zeller.

Accompanied by our very own TO swoon talent:
Brandi Disterheft upright.
Glen Anderson skins.
Denis Keldie accordion.
Jim Heineman sax

Witnessing our hometowners step humbly onto a stage with visiting musicians and collectively bust open a vein in the universe  … makes me ache with the beauty.

Here’s a vid that Jaymz Bee shot of Sly Blue on a previous night at the very same Dovercourt House – where live swing sings every Saturday night. It’ll give you the kick in the heartcoxic I had on January 21st 2012. Imagine three full sets of this snap! And they’re comin’ back in the Fall!

watch: SLY BLUE at Dovercourt House October 2011

As the legendary Jim Heineman said to me that night, “Live music is the Final Frontier.”
Amen brother.

CRUEL AND TENDER

Still playing at Canadian Stage. I’d love to see it again. Not everyone was elevated by this production. It excited me. Adam Egoyan’s direction whorls like a precisely administered hallucinogenic. Martin Crimp’s play stacks the personal on top of the political like a circus act on a high wire. Set and lighting are exquisite compositions of fine-tuning. There are enough examples of excellent acting onstage to satisfy. For me, the play implodes and explodes in equal balance. I wanted to talk about it for hours.

\”Cruel and Tender\” info at Canadian Stage

 

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2012. half a january.

January 18, 2012 – 3:49 am

Reveled in a Jaymz Bee loft salon recently. Almost as many performers as guests! Ergo, we were Spoiled by talent! “thank you jaymz and all you wow performers”  The featured act? The Allsax4tet. Emphasis on STARS. Join me at the Dominion House on Queen, February 11th and shatter your own expectations. Ten buck cover.  www.Allsax.ca

Embedded in Jaymz’ CV as producer, songwriter, JAZZ.fm host, impresario, is his penchant for skyrocketing young talent. Kate Sloan rode the comet that night. A nineteen-year-old singer/songwriter/pianist, she performed a sly rendition of Drake’s “Best I Ever Had”. Rap lyrics slipping innocently from the mouth of a sweet young lady? Scorched. If ya wanna peer into the  looking glass of the indomitable Mr. Bee, here’s his fan page: 149838075028941?ref=ts

Been meaning to catch Danny Marks live for, ummmmm, a few years. Finally. His solo act was a feast of tunes springing wildly out of the blues, rock & country archives – sometimes in one song – corralled by a comedic showman/guitarman/ship that whipped his non-stop 2-hour set.  www.dannym.com if you wanna educate yerself on a national treasure. Or catch his jazz.fm blues show. Otherwise, maybe I’ll see you, noon, at his band’s Rex Hotel gig one of these Saturdays …

Remember the heart stopping Elise LeGrow? Serving up sublime jazz from her anciently talented 22 year old self at the March 2010 lizzyjacks! Her inked deal with Sony was still shimmering on the page that night. Here’s news from her manager, the composer &  jazz accompanist Asher Ettinger: Her first single. Which she wrote!

NO GOOD WOMAN watch?v=Rp8p0KPon4g  Standing Oh! sweetheart!

I myself am trotting about in glee, having participated in Kalen Hayman’s return to studio photography. Here’s the link to a few of his re-imagined pinups:  marilyn-by-kalen   Click on the thumbnails. And meander through Kalen’s versatile and vibrant website while you’re at it. He’s invited me to continue a collaboration; hence, I’m currently helping him in the research for a series of his photo vision. Will invite you to the gallery exhibit when the time comes. See? Ya never know what’s around the corner!

As an aside, how many of you are on the Resolution? If it happens to be muscles and stamina, here’s the gal that’s been defining mine for over a decade: www.gayleforce.ca  Gayleforce celebrates 30 Years! of success this year – and a few of her clients have been with her since the beginning! Yes, Gayle’s SO Good that, even though I’ve moved across the city, I still pump it out in her class twice a week.

In memoriam, a ten trumpet salute: Dear Leona Hudecki and dear Rod Robbie: may you frolic in the afterlife, buoyed by the joyous beauty with which you graced our earth. Your talents, insights, graces and glories live on in the countless numbers of us fortunate to have been blessed by them. Thank you.

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i’ve got some CRAZY talented friends!

December 1, 2011 – 5:26 am

saturday, november 26th was a double hitter!

started the night out celebrating the launch of the Toronto Jazz Blog 

view: the toronto jazz blog  a vibrant (& bilingual!) pastiche: interviews with jazz musicians, photography, video, and artistic jumpstart … created and produced by the romantic partnership of samantha clayton & mikel mata.

samantha is one of toronto’s little gems – a compelling jazz singer with smokey blue undertones and slinky mischief. sam graced lizzyjacks! a few times as the guest artist, accompanied by pianoman nonpareil steve hunter.

mikel, her parisian counterpart, is a photographer/videographer who’s work cleanses the palate with its clarity.  a former fashion photographer, war photojournalist and documenter of nomads, mikel propels an intensity into his work that’s infused with lifejoy. the torontojazzblog is rich in visuals & storytelling.

parlay voo’d through the distillery districts magic ambiance up to the danforth with the lushly talented painter susan stewart … visit susan stewart\’s website… (recognize her self portraits from lizzyjacks! sitting room?)

where the powerhouse called suzanne mckenney, & her band Suzie’s Alibi, ripped the soles off my feet with the launch of their inaugural ep “Didn’t See A Thing”. five alarm fire! with her 3 rockin’ bandmates, a chameleon, husky-yet-pure voice, heart-aching range, sly songwriting, pink guitar, vavavoom dress and leopard print spike heels, ladies and gents …. yah. the dance floor needed windshield wipers.

earlier in the week, composer and jingle writer asher ettinger‘s Art of Music exhibit danced the walls in liberty village. a playful & colourful exploration of asher’s relationship with music, counterpointed with lee wallace‘s fine jazz guitar playing. big crowd, cool show.  were any of you lucky enough to catch lizzyjacks! with the mindbending elise legrow? and asher on keyboard? he’s her manager. catch a glimpse of his Art of Music: watch?v=1iBHGUBiNFY

toronna … yer shootin’stars

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A CAROUSEL OF THE UNEXPECTED

August 15, 2011 – 8:00 am

Review of:
ELECTRIC ECLECTICS FESTIVAL 6
July 29 – 31, 2011

What epitomizes cultural cool these days? How about camping on 100 acres of lush Ontario farmland, meeting musicians and artistic beacons from around the world? Open-air concerts of avant-garde music & multi media.  Art & sound installations in a silo, a tent, a dome. In industrial sized trailers. A field.

Electric Eclectics is an experiential art junkie’s bonanza percolating in the rolling sweep of Meaford. Two hours north of Toronto. Three nights of live music. Starting early in the evening, tripping through sunsets and fleeing into the night where it slings forward under a sultan’s tent of DJ’s until dawn. Six years successful.

A taste of the eclectic in the electric? Hilltop:
The Dead Are Those Who Have Died. Self-described by this one-man electric guitar cannibal as “shamanic gnosis”. We’re assailed by his dedicated channeling of the dead. Sounds like malarkey on the page. Live? Like Dr. Kevorkian lovingly interpreting the anguish of the murdered, the suicides, the lost in limbo.

Danielle De Picciotto. American multi-media artist De Picciotto transported to Berlin in ’87, instrumental in the post-punk, techno, party palace & fashion miasma of the pre & post Wall hybrid. Shifting gears, she and her German born husband, multi-disciplinary artist & electroclash musician Alexander Hacke, mesmerize with a noir fairy tale mix. De Picciotto melodically reading from her newly published memoir of those revolutionary Berlin years, layered with her film and his live music.

Myths. Feminine pop star expectations crushed in a duet of emotional, vocal, electro gymnastics. Dance music meets politics. Harmonies howl with generations of the feminist/social wound. Hope trots in the velocity of this exacting, thrilling, disciplined girls-as-eruption performance.

In the valley of trees? DJ’s span decades. Punk. Dub. House. Techno. Disco/Italo. Juke. Drum & Bass. Fusion. Trance. Analogue. Digital. Midi. Orchestrated by talents who cross-dress as radio personalities, musicians, lighting technicians, tech directors, industrial designers.

Electric Eclectics? Motorcycles as synthesizers, drummers as dervishes, cameras as musical instruments. Flutes. Soldering irons. Zithers. Choral music. Noise. The intangible made visible. Sound as physical. Light as mystical. Finland. California. Vancouver. New York. Toronto. Kentucky. Ottawa. Alaska. Detroit. Meaford. Juxtaposition an art in itself.

Electric Eclectic’s Director Gordon Monahan and Assistant Director Chris Worden curate an international mashup of fiercely talented, intelligent, forward thinkers in a setting of time-soaked, natural beauty. EE 7 will run from August 3 – 5, 2012.

Copyright judithcockman©2011

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newz #7

June 17, 2011 – 9:00 am

A Farewell Kiss …

My hope with lizzyjacks! spkezy salon was to create a bubble-out-of-time for those who follow the siren’s song. Theatre experienced as a participant. A venue where fabulous musicians were received with intimate attention and delight. An ambience that harkened to eras where salons granted immunity to hardship. Where artists, thinkers, and music lovers met over lovingly prepared food, served on gorgeous dishes, and felt good to be alive. Where the sublime impregnated the humble. Where magic was possible.

I believe lizzyjacks! succeeded because much of that came true. Even the preparations proved to be dramatic. I worked with zealous speed and intensity to accomplish each salon. And screeched to a halt upon the arrival of every first guest, composing a demeanor of (hopeful) calm and preparedness. Illusion, every time. And the unfolding of each salon was unique and precious in its own manner. Every musician brought individual gifts. Each guest, his or her own special contribution of self.  Kitchen help, paid and unpaid, a fabulous support. Each meal, an adventure.

I’m sad to close her doors, but immensely proud of her success. lizzyjacks! inspired wonderful new friendships, and imbued my little home with an energy I believe is a celebration of life at its best. I move into new adventures sustained by her creation.

I thank all of you for participating. And special thanks to these friends for assistance in ways that were invaluable …
Don Collins, Paul Hickey, Norma Dell’Agnese, Jacqueline Spicer, Kalen Hayman, Lyne Tremblay, Donna Davey, Angela Argento, Katherine Duncanson, Matt Zimbel, Deborah Grover, Joan Vanduzer, Gayle Boxer Duncanson, Max Gorges, Anthony Iorio  – and all of you who expressed your enthusiasm with generosity; who passed the good word forward, and returned with friends. Memories have been made of these ….

As my new adventures take shape, I’ll keep you posted on this site and hope you’ll continue to share yours with me.

Blessings.

judith
(lizzyjacks! is available to you for consults.)

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newz #6

April 19, 2011 – 8:00 am

Saturday, April 30th Julie Michels & Kevin Barrett grace the lizzyjacks! spkezy salon.

Both singly and as a duo, Julie and Kevin have a ravenous fan following. A chance to have Julie’s “glorious holler” [Mark Miller, The Globe & Mail] and Kevin’s exquisitely deft fingermagic transport us in the thrilling intimacy of lizzyjacks! is golden. I’ve also heard Julie touch the quiet ache of the heart with the vibrancy of a hummingbird’s wing ….

They are recently returned from a western tour of their new recording, She Sings He Plays.

Catch a tune at http://www.myspace.com/juliemichelskevinbarrett

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newz #5

March 30, 2011 – 8:19 am

Well, the talent that lights up this salon is beyond belief. Joel & Roxxie kinda shocked the room with their utter marvelousness. Rapt is the word … when we weren’t hooting and whistling in response!

And the friendships I’ve made during this adventure … well, on March 19th they filled my kitchen with chefdom and fed my guests a luscious meal! Don Collins, Paul Hickey, Angela Argento and Jackie Spicer … tip of the fedora to ya’!!! Big love. Big, big …

Here come the major pipes & fingermagic of Julie Michels & Kevin Barrett.
April 30th. Standby for take-off …

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