Luke Westbrook, guitar.
Matt Montgomery, bass.
Smith Dobson, drums.

$20 suggested cover for adults;
Teens and music students, $5-10 sliding scale; kids free.
Reservations, call the store at 415-586-3733.
BYOB.

This trio of musician friends has been performing together since 2007. These days the group plays repertoire mainly from the Great American Songbook (jazz standards) but every now and then you may hear something completely free or a choice pop tune from a bygone era. What makes the trio unique is the level of individual expressivity and musicianship that each player brings to the group. 

Guitarist Luke Westbrook’s years playing jazz, his serious inquiry into early Western polyphonic music and his affinity for the raw textural potential of acoustic and electric stringed instruments form the primary elements of his palette. Born in San Francisco in 1979, he began playing jazz early in the schools, participating in the Monterey Jazz Festival and in the Grammy in the Schools program through SFJazz.

In pursuit of his musical vision, Luke has also studied privately on guitar and piano with some of the most respected pedagogues in the field of modern music, including William A. Mathieu (author of The Harmonic Experience, Inner Traditions and Bridge of Waves, Shambhala); Dušan Bogdanovic (classical guitar, USC, SFCM and Geneva Conservatory in Switzerland); and Kevin R. Gallagher (student of Sharon Isbin at Julliard; winner of the 1997 Francisco Tárrega Guitar Competition). Borrowing from these master teachers, Luke has developed a unique technical framework as a performing guitarist demonstrated by his finger-style approach to the instrument as well as a composer’s understanding of the repertoire.

Bassist Matt Montgomery is active in the Bay Area jazz scene and has worked with great musicians including Faye Carol, Calvin Keys, Larry Coryell, Mark Levine, Donald Bailey, and many others. He has also worked with noted singer-songwriters Cass McCombs, Adam Stephens (of Two Gallants), Greg Ashley, and with GRAMMY-winning producer Joe Chiccarelli. He also wrote and recorded music for a documentary film, “Enduring Democracy: The Monterey Petition,” released in 2022.

Drummer Smith Dobson, the most well-known performer in the group, has been an invaluable contributor to the Bay Area jazz scene for more than two decades. Raised in Santa Cruz, Dobson brims with creativity, gigging regularly on drums, saxophone and vibes. He has recorded extensively and performed around the world, most recently in New York at Birdland with his sister, jazz vocalist Sasha Dobson.