Keeping jazz relevant - tune by tune

I love it when jazz musicians find a way to make their music relevant to the moment. Take last night’s edition of the weekly jam session at the Ramada Inn in Venice FL. 


Jim Martin
with Dave Trefethen and Tony Bruno

Flugelhorn player Jim Martin opened his second-set appearance with “Here’s That Rainy Day” – set up by a clever intro that was the first few bars of “Stormy Weather.” Given that we’d had more than five inches of rain in the prior 36 hours, it was most appropriate. I’m not sure if anyone else in the audience caught his damp humor. (Florida’s rainy season began June 1.) 

It reminded me of a night in mid-March 1993 when I went to hear 
singer Abbey Lincoln at the Regattabar in Cambridge MA. There was a very light snow falling that evening. Lincoln was introduced, the lights dimmed and she opened with “Spring Will Be a Little Late This Year.”