Culture Crawl 372 “It Takes a (Czech) Village

The 2nd annual Czech Village Blues takes over the Lions Bridge in the historic Cedar Rapids neighborhood August 11th. Greg West and Michelle Churchill Bell tell Dennis Green that headliners include Bernard Allison, Vanja Sky, and Mike Zito, touring as the Ruf Records Blues Caravan. Also performing are Iowa based groups Shane Johnson’s Blue Train and Tim & The Trutones, along with a youth stage where the top three winners of a young artists challenge will perform.
 
Gates open at 4pm, show at 5pm. Proceeds benefit the fund to restore the historic Riverside Roundhouse. Get your tickets in advance and save $5 at www.czechvillagefriends.org.

Clean Up Your Act 8-20-18

Iowa State University will house a center to study antibiotic-resistant bacteria.

This Week’s Special Programs – July 30 thru August 4

Short List with host Bob Naujoks    

Monday – Friday at 8:35 AM and Saturday at 7 AM  

Formidable Flutes: Eric Dolphy 

Multi-instrumentalist Eric Dolphy’s short career was marked by his proficiency on not only the alto sax and flute, but also on the clarinet and piccolo. He is considered the artist who established the bass clarinet as a jazz instrument, and was among the earliest significant jazz flute soloists. He employed this command of many instruments in his improvisational style, using an array of extended techniques to emulate the sounds of human voices and animals.

 

 

 

 

 

Jazz Corner of the World with host Craig Kessler

Monday, 6:00 PM – 10:00 PM

Prestige Records in 1968 – Part Two

Craig travels back 50 years once again to look in on the recording activities at Bob Weinstock’s Prestige Records in 1968.  In this week’s show, Craig spins records from the second half of the year (June thru December).  We’ll hear Pat Martino, Don Patterson, Jaki Byard, Pepper Adams, Richard “Groove” Holmes, and many others.  Mighty fine material that’ll make you feel mighty fine!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Jazz Profiles with host Nancy Wilson    

Monday at 11:00 PM 

Louis Armstrong – The Man and His Music, Part 1

It’s hard to overstate the incredible reach of this original American artist. Louis Armstrong defined American culture and did it with the force of his talent as a musician, singer, composer, author, innovator, entertainer, actor, and bandleader. He transcended racial barriers and became America’s ambassador to the world.

 

 

 

 

 

Wednesday Night Special

6:00 PM   

Ritmocano at the 2017 Jazz Under the Stars 

Jazz Under the Stars 2018 is almost here! We wrap up our look back at the stellar performances of our 2017 series with Ritmocano. To contain all the energy from this incredible ensemble, we moved the show to the McGrath Amphitheatre. It was a powerhouse night of smoking Latin jazz, played by some of Eastern Iowa’s premier musicians. As we set the stage for this year’s Jazz Under the Stars, join us for another listen back at our hot nights in August!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Jazz Night in America with host Christian McBride

Thursday at 11:00 PM

Live In San Jose Summer is season of jazz and blues festivals across the country, and Jazz Night in America has been touring the country, taking in as many as possible. It continues it’s mini-series, featuring the best performances from the scores of great live jazz celebrations. This week, Jazz Night in America features singers Cyrille Aimée and Daymé Arocena at the San Jose Jazz Festival.  

 

 

 

 

Jazz Corner of the World with host Craig Kessler

Saturday, Noon – 4:00 PM and Monday, 6:00 PM – 10:00 PM

The Saxophone Artistry of Gary Bartz

Craig takes a loving look at the recording career of master saxophonist Gary Bartz.  We’ll hear a tasty selection from Gary’s 30+ recordings as a leader, on labels like Prestige, Milestone, Atlantic, Steeplechase, and Candid.  We’ll also hear astonishing examples of his work as a sideman. Over 50 different releases from the likes of Miles Davis, McCoy Tyner, Max Roach, Woody Shaw, Gene Ammons, and others.  Don’t miss this show from one of the really good saxophonists of our time! 

 

 

 

 

KCCK’s Midnight CD

The Monday – Sunday Midnight CD for this week can be found at: 

http://www.kcck.org/midnight-cd/

New Music Monday for July 30, 2018

Listen to this week’s playlist on YouTube and Spotify.

Two-time Grammy nominated Australian saxophonist and composer Troy Roberts, now based in New York City, maintains a busy performance and recording schedule around the globe with some of the great artists of today including Joey DeFrancesco and Jeff ‘Tain’ Watts. He’s also performed with Christian McBride, Dave Douglas, Sammy Figueroa, Kurt Elling and others. Jazz Times magazine says Roberts “…is a force to be reckoned with no matter the setting. He is more than one to watch, he is one to follow closely.” Troy’s new release, “Nu Jive Perspective,” his eighth as a leader, is an eclectic concoction of soul, funk, R&B and gospel, all musically glued together by a deep sense of jazz etiquette.

     Saxophonist Jerry Vivino’s history contains a who’s who list of artists he has performed or recorded with, including Stanley Clark, Tony Bennett, Ray Charles, Dr. John and Wynton Marsalis. For the past two decades, he’ s been a featured member of the house band for Conan O’Brien’s talk show, a band led by Jerry’s guitar playing brother Jimmy Vivino. He’s also been a part of bassist Will Lee’s Fab Faux band and has a regular spot at L.A.’s world-renowned progressive jazz club, The Baked Potato. For his new disc, “Coast to Coast,” Jerry enlisted the help of Bucky Pizzarelli, Brian Charette, Ron Stout, Mitchel Forman, and Lew Soloff among others.

 

 

Also this week, the Charles Pillow Large Ensemble celebrates the early electric period of Miles Davis with “Electric Miles”.

 

 

 

 

          

 

    Reedman Tim Warfield, a one time member of Shirley Scott’s band, is back with his first recording in five years, “Jazzland”.

 

   

 

and saxophonist Tom Tallitsch unveils a captivating program of new compositions for his quintet on “Wheelhouse.”

 

 

Culture Crawl 371 “Paul’s Leg Warmers and Headband”

We begin a special Culture Crawl series this week featuring the artists performing at KCCK’s Jazz Under the Stars. First up are Gail and Paul Williams of “The Jazz Standard,” a new name for this group of musicians who have performed at Ramsey’s in Marion, First Friday Jazz, and around the community. Also in the band are Eastern Iowa stalwarts Lynne and Peter Hart, Tim Crumley, and Danny Oline.

Paul and Gail tell Dennis not only about the music they’ll be playing at the concert, but also how jazz figured in how they met!

Join Iowa’s Jazz Station for Jazz Under the Stars, 7pm on Thursday, Aug. 2, Noelridge Park. More info at www.kcck.org.

Culture Crawl 370 “Definitely the Aquarium”

Rich Heritage of Cedar Rapids Theatre Company – RHCR Theatre presents “Closer” Aug. 4-11. RHCR Artistic Director Kerry Covington steps into the four-person cast in this story of love and betrayal, and says there is a lot of room for the actors to interpret the characters. Katie Starks directs the show, and says that there are lot of funny moments, but it’s definitely rated R.
 
More info and tickets at www.rhcrtheatre.com.

Culture Crawl 369 “That ‘Hamilton’ Music is Pretty Good!”

The Cedar Rapids Municipal band has just two more weeks of concerts remaining in their 2018 season. The July 25th and 29th programs feature the bugler for the Kentucky Derby, Steve Buttleman, who is a CR Washington graduate. He’ll be teaming up with two student trumpeters for “Buglers Holiday.” Hannah Langley, from Oak Ridge Middle School will reprise an outstanding solo she performed with her band at the Iowa Bandmasters convention.

The Aug. 1st and 5th shows feature Jorge Mantilla, clarinet professor at the University of Iowa, who will also perform a quartet piece with members of the clarinet section. That program also will include a medley of music from “Hamilton,” which Steve saw a few weeks ago, and finally understands what all the hype is about!

Details at www.crmuniband.org. Check the Muni Band’s pages on Facebook and Twitter for last-minute weather information, if necessary.

Talking Pictures 8-25-18

Mamma Mia 2, Leave No Trace, Sorry To Bother You, Hearts Beat Loud with Hollis Monroe, Denny Lynch and Monica Schmidt.