This is the first in a series of articles I'll be writing for Louisville Music News on the subject of jazz. I'll be telling you about upcoming concerts, places to find good jazz and the jazz players who make the Louisville scene. I'll also, from time to time, tell you about some of the people who work behind the scenes in jazz. Though these people are not musicians themselves, they make wonderful contributions to the jazz scene.
One of these people is Harold Maier. For those of you who don't know the guru of Bardstown Road, Harold is the owner of Twice-Told Used Books & Jazz Records in the Highlands and recently became co-owner of the Twice-Told Coffeehouse about a block away. Although both of these establishments offer a variety of goodies, they have one thing in common: a dedication to spreading the word of jazz.
At Twice-Told UB&JR you can find the absolute best selection of used jazz records from Duke Ellington to Sun Ra. At the coffeehouse you can hear, in addition to acoustic music and poetry, jazz. On any given night, you can hear the Ron Hayden group, Axis, or the Java Men. (The Java Men have recently been named the house band and can be heard every Saturday in January.)
Another unique feature of the coffeehouse is jazz videos on Wednesday night. This is a must for any jazz lover. "This is something I've wanted to do for years," Maier says. "This is vintage footage of the greatest jazz players. It's our way of keeping the tradition alive."
Though the coffee house has just opened recently, Twice-Told UB &JR has been open since 1984. "I found out pretty early that there was a demand for used jazz records and before I knew it, I sold all of my own personal collection. A lot of those were collectors' items."
For those of you who have been following Thursday jazz nights at Zena's Cafe and for those who found the hours of 10 to 1 a.m. a little late for their taste, there's some good news. Jazz at Zena's is now at happy hour time. That's right, now you can hear jazz on Thursdays from 5:30 to 8:30. In addition to the regular Scott Henderson trio, you can also hear the Ron Hayden group and others.
Call Zena's for exact scheduling. Zena's is located at Third and Market. Stop in after work for jazz and good times.
If you missed the last Louisville Jazz Society concert, you missed a great show.
Sonny Leyland, British-born boogie woogie pianist, put on a wonderful show for a packed house on December 7. The next concert is Tanareid on February the first. This is a must for any jazz lover. Tanareid plays sizzling bebop with modern sensibilities and a groove that will knock you out the door. Jazz Society concerts are at Luckett's Downstairs at Actors. They start at 5:30 p.m. and admission is always under ten dollars.
A final note: Anyone interested in jazz combos at the University of Louisville for the spring semester should call Mike Tracy at 588-6032.That's it for this issue; see you next time.