This early evening into the twilight, Bird & Beckett is pleased to present a student combo comprising students from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music’s Roots, Jazz and American Music B.Mus. degree program. A jam session open to young players from throughout the Bay Area, grounded by a trio of seasoned Bay Area jazz professionals…

Kim Shuck, poet & artist, conducts Bird & Beckett’s virtual poetry series twice a month. On the second Monday of the month, two poets are featured with an open mic following; on the fourth Monday of the month, it’s all open mic. So polish up a gem or grab one you want to try out…

In honor of the turning of the wheels that have been a long time turning. A building up and breaking down in imagery for the sake of the enrichening of our metaphors, and metaphorical concepts. One more exploration of mythical speech. A compendium. A gazette. Walker Brents III relates tales from diverse traditions.

Khalil Abdullah, guitar Anne Sajdera, piano Heshima Mark Williams, bass Genius Wesley, drums Brother Khalil Abdullah was born into a NYC household filled with the sounds of jazz, classical, blues and R&B. On any given day, one could hear Basie’s swing, Duke’s genius, Sassy, Dexter, Earth Wind and Fire, or a myriad of other greats,…

Bird & Beckett’s events open to the public have been back since mid-June! Mask up and come in! (do please bring proof of full vaccination. Not vaxxed? Get vaxxed and join us!) Live jazz & more in the shop for audiences and live streamed through cyberspace! Every Friday and Saturday at 7:30pm + more Come…

For decades now, Grant Levin has been one of the best kept secrets in jazz, and Bird & Beckett has been proud to present him literally hundreds of times since he arrived in the Bay Area in 2010. The performance documented here was the last of the live-stream only pandemic concerts we presented between March…

Hungry to hear some of Bird & Beckett’s past live streams? On the home page you can scroll down to read the individual posts for the shows we’ve mounted in the past several months, a hint of what’s gone down since the pandemic lock-down began. In more amazing times, it would take you right back…

The Isaac Schwartztet brings a fresh take and vibrant artistry to the jazz/black american music repertoire. Leading the Schwartztet from the drumset is Isaac Schwartz, joined by the incredible and uniquely talented Sam Priven on saxophone, Henry Hung on trumpet and Josh Thurston Milgrom on bass. Isaac, an Oakland native, has honed his craft for…

Scott Foster, guitar Matt Montgomery, bass Dan Foltz, drums Scott Foster concocts a new project or revisits and tweaks an old one every single time out, and has done so ever since we asked him to assume a monthly residency many, many years ago. First, though, he provided unassuming brilliance to Bird & Beckett’s legacy…

Christine No and Heather Bourbeau are featured to open the poetry session tonight. Christine has a new book coming out and Heather has recently been part of the Wall and Response project with Maw Shein Win and Megan Wilson of the Clarion Alley Mural Project. Kim Shuck, San Francisco’s 7th Poet Laureate, hosts Bird &…

Join San Francisco columnist Denise Sullivan for a series of morning discussions with The City’s arts and cultural leaders and lesser-known workers, the everyday people who help make this place we call home, every second Sunday at 10 am, live streamed from Bird & Beckett Books in Glen Park. Find the stream on Bird &…

TOGETHER AGAIN Betty Wong & Friends CD Release Concert & Bird & Beckett Pandemic Relief Party Live in the shop and viewable as a live stream on YouTube or Facebook! TOGETHER AGAIN was inspired by two musicians — during the Covid pandemic, a time of impending threat to survival — making music that draws energy…

Michael O’Neill, reeds Adam Shulman, piano Dan Feiszli, bass Jason Lewis, drums The Michael O’Neill Quartet has developed an avid following over nearly two decades. O’Neill’s latest album, And Then It Rained (Jazzmo Records, 2020), featuring bassist Dan Feiszli and drummer Jason Lewis alongside pianist Michael Bluestein, is his fourth, and the first to focus…

Simon Rowe leads a trio in two sets of straight ahead, bebop and latin inflected jazz. An Australian bitten by the jazz bug in Sydney at age 12, when his grandfather brought a Louis Armstrong lp into the house, Simon has traveled the American jazz byways ever since he packed off to Texas as a…

Horace Silver, a giant of jazz born in 1928, joined Stan Getz on piano in 1950 and changed the face of jazz. In 1953, he co-founded the Jazz Messengers with Art Blakey and went on to ever greater heights, always with an individual voice that can’t be imitated — only honored. Pianist Keith Saunders leads…

Jerry Ferraz and Michael Koch host Bird & Beckett’s  monthly poetry open mic (1st Sundays), typically following a reading by a featured poet. Tonight, Jane Rades takes the stage.    

Thollem McDonas – KeyboardAndré Custodio – Drums/Electronics Live in the shop and viewable as a live stream on YouTube or Facebook. Doors open at 7:20pm. Music at 7:30pm. $20 cash cover charge at the door. Call for reservations – 415-586-3733 during regular store hours, Tuesday to Sunday, noon to six pm. Proof of vaccination required…

Bob Kenmotsu, saxophone Keith Saunders, piano Eric Markowitz, bass Tony Johnson, drums Live in the shop and viewable as a live stream on YouTube or Facebook! Tony has been a force on the San Francisco jazz scene for over 50 years — he arrived from his native Australia in 1959 and was immediately playing and…

Judy will read her work, and be quizzed for your benefit about her work and her attitudes by Silvi Alcivar. We imagine Silvi might be prompted to read a few of her own poems along the way. Live in the shop and viewable as a live stream on YouTube or Facebook! Judith Ayn Bernhard is…

Jonah Cabral is a young alto saxophonist who’s coming on strong, back home for a minute in San Francisco while pursuing a degree in music in the Netherlands. He has tenor player Gavin Halloran, pianist Simon Rowe, bassist Jayla Chee and drummer Vince Lateano on the date — three young players and two veterans romping…

Mutant Audio – guitarist Scott Foster’s ongoing project with saxophonist David Boyce (Broun Fellinis) and the drummer Cairo McCockran. Last heard at Bird & Beckett in February 2021 – click here. Tonight, Mutant Audio is live in the shop, and is also viewable as a live stream on YouTube or Facebook! $20 cover charge (cash…

Annette A Aguilar, NYC Latin/Brazilian drummer with San Francisco roots, returns with her seven-piece band, Beans on the Left, including Anthony Blea on violin, Chloe Scott on flute, Murray Low on piano, Gary Brown on bass, Ricky Aguilar on congas and Mena Ramos on bata. Her New York band, StringBeans, has been a major force…

Guitarist Ed Cherry is in town briefly and comes into Bird & Beckett with his long-time colleague, the tenor saxophonist Bob Kenmotsu for two sets of trio work, with Eric Markowitz on bass. Ed and Bob traveled together in the 80s and 90s out of NYC in the band of R&B vocalist Ruth Brown, cementing…

Wayne De La Cruz – Hammond B3 organ Ray Scott – guitar Jim Chanteloup – drums A groove, for sure. Live in the shop and viewable as a live stream on YouTube or Facebook! Attending in person? $20 cover charge; cash please. BYOB. Proof of vaccination required for shows. We love that you’re coming. You’re…

Homeboy Dan Neville stops in town from Cali, Colombia to present an evening of Latin Jazz. Dan Neville, vibes Óskar Ly, piano Ayla Davila, bass Omar Ledezma Jr., percussion Dan has a ton of offer! This quartet, for instance. He himself is a nascent Bay Area treasure, and he know where to find fantastic collaborators.…