Darren Johnson, peace cannon.
Kai Lyons, guitar.
John Wiitala, bass.
Lorca Hart, drums.

$20 cover charge; byob.
Students, $10.
for a reservation, call the shop at 415-586-3733.

An exciting prospect, this quartet!

We said that before the date, and here’s our vindication:

Darren Johnston has graced the stage at Bird & Beckett countless times (well, 28 times by our latest count) since guitarist Scott Foster invited him on board for a quartet date a decade ago, about two dozen of those occasions as a leader and collaborator in a variety of formations, dubbed variously Bye Bye Bartok, The Pipes, Locomotive Sunflower, Ghost Call, Tales End, Freefall, Swerve Control, Double Scorpio and this one, Standard Issue!

When Darren Johnson’s Standard Issue last played Bird & Beckett, the four-piece combo was intent on playing “standards, a lot of them from off the beaten path.” Here they are back again, again with Kai Lyons, a uniquely and cross-culturally engaged guitarist, sharing the front line, with the legendary John Wiitala standing up to the bass where Marcus Shelby has oft held forth, and with Lorca Hart taking the drum chair where Jeff Marrs last perched. This time out, the repertoire is just slightly more elaborately described as “a mix of swinging and grooving standards, both familiar and off the beaten track, with just a few Johnston originals sprinkled in.” We dare say, this aggregation is coherently consistent and is further described on the projects page of Darren’s website as his “most ‘straight-ahead’ swinging project ever as a leader… (which) recently recorded a collection of underplayed ‘standards’ by the likes of Thelonious Monk, Victor Jara, Sun Ra, McCoy Tyner, and more.”

Keep your eyes open for a new release coming soon! Meanwhile, come catch the quartet at Bird & Beckett! You’ll only be sorry if you don’t!