The Jazzcat

Sounds of the Avenue

 

Video  Additional Photos

 

When you speak of “The Avenue” and the words “Jazz Music” are in the sentence, those of us from Los Angeles know and remember one place, “Central Avenue”. The best in jazz music was played on that street from some of our very own; Charles

Mingus, Eric Dolphy, Art Farmer, Dexter Gordon, Harold Land, Teddy

Edwards. People came from all over to experience the sound, even the

Duke!

 

Tonight

at the brand new Disney Complex, we got another chance to experience

those days. The show started out with poetry by Wanda Coleman. Born and

raised in South Central she remembers her father, his love for the

music, and those early days as a child on Central Avenue. Ivy Anderson’s Chicken Shack, The Elks Lodge and the Dunbar Hotel, it was the Sunset Blvd of yesterday.

 

Ernie

Andrews the coolest of cool was on hand. He and Phil Wright together

played and sang the stories of “Old Man Jazz”. Ernie is one of Los Angeles’s

greatest treasures and he sings and tells the stories of back in the

day so vividly, that you can see the room transform to clubs of the day

on Central Ave

right before your eyes. “Lucky So and So”, “Jump for Joy”, and the

comic “I’d Love Me” were just of few of the tunes Ernie belted out for

us. He says that there are plenty more tunes and recordings locked in

the vaults of Capital records. A virtual gold mine just waiting for

issue and re-issue. Well, Ernie is our goldmine and we are certainly

proud of that. He always leaves me with a big smile on my face!

 

The music in Los Angeles moved up the street and around the corner from Central Ave to the streets of Lemeirt Park.

A place where legends have played. Billy Higgins, Horace Tapscott and

many others have inspired so many. One of those being the supreme of

love, spirituality, goodness and the sound that represents the love in

jazz music, Mr. Dwight Trible!

 

DAMN!

Thou hath been haled the “Kick-ass Holyman” by critics. For those of

you who have experienced the waves of sound and love, you understand.

Dwight, fantastic as usual sang. It just feels like the heavens open up

and the music pours in. We don’t drown but instead, we are uplifted as

we float on the power of the spirit of the music. Harold Land Jr. on

piano, Trevor Ware on Bass and Daniel Bejarano on Drums. Talk about the

sound of Trane! This band goes to the source, puts it’s hand on the

pulse and delivers the ultimate in (close your eyes and become one with

the music) experience.

The

evening ends as it began, with poetry accompanied by the guitar sound

of Tommy Tedesco. A brilliant ending to a wonderful night!

LeRoy Downs