Lyle Link, saxophone Adam Shulman, piano John Wiitala, bass James Gallagher, drums Adam Shulman has been a staple of the San Francisco jazz scene since he moved to the city in 2002. Before the move, Adam was a student at UC Santa Cruz where he studied with the great pianist Smith Dobson and the trumpeter/arranger Ray Brown. Adam has played as a sideman with internationally renowned artists Stefon Harris, Willie Jones III, Miguel Zenon, Mark Murphy, Alan Harris, Luciana Souza, Paula West, Ratzo Harris, Larry Coryell, Sean Jones, Grant Stewart, John Clayton, Bobby Hutcherson and with the Glen Miller Orchestra.

The spot where the moon was lowest, as she went by, was off the Zinc Cliffs. We used to go out with those little rowing boats they had in those days, round and flat, made of cork. They held quite a few of us: me, Captain Vhd Vhd, his wife, my deaf cousin, and sometimes little Xlthlx – she was twelve or so at that time. On those nights the water was very calm, so silvery it looked like mercury, and the fish in it, violet-colored, unable to resist the Moon’s attraction, rose to the surface, all of them, and so did the octopuses and the saffron medusas. There was always a flight of tiny treasures – little crabs, squid, and even some weeds, light and filmy, and coral plants – that broke from the sea and ended up on the Moon, hanging down from that lime-white ceiling, or else…

[arve url=”https://vimeo.com/240973062″ align=”right” /] Lincoln Adler, sax Lee Bloom, piano Brandon Essex, bass Carrie Jahde, drums With the experience of many years of collaboration as a unit, NoCoasters takes on original compositions, jazz, Latin, New Orleans, pop and even country standards and reinvent them in ever-changing ways. Their approach is highly improvisational, playful, and communicative. NoCoasters performs for the swells at spots like Cafe Claude, the Cigar Bar–all manner of swanky establishments. Here, you get to hear them without the chatter of fellow diners and the clatter of dishes. Presented by Bird & Beckett with support from Jazz in the Neighborhood’s Guaranteed Fair Wage Fund.    

Smith Dobson, soprano sax Charlie Gurke, baritone sax John Wiitala, bass Evan Hughes, drums Each of these four musicians is hugely respected on the local professional jazz scene; together, they’ll dig deep into some wonderful music. Smith Dobson, the very great San Francisco multi-instrumentalist, has recently been working on a notoriously difficult horn, the soprano sax, and has been nursing the burning idea of digging into some originals and tunes by the likes of Thelonious Monk with a group built around the soprano sax/baritone sax pairing, along the lines of the music made in the late ’50s and early ’60s by soprano sax master Steve Lacy. Lacy’s album “The Straight Horn of Steve Lacy,” which featured Charles Davis on bari, John Ore on bass and Roy Haynes on drums, showcases this approach applied to tunes by Monk, Miles Davis and Cecil Taylor. Monk’s album “San Francisco Holiday” provided the band name. Smith, Charlie, John…

Lyle Link, alto sax Bob Kenmotsu, tenor sax Keith Saunders, piano Adam Gay, bass Omar Aran, drums Bassist Adam Gay has assembled a quintet of fine players, including two reed players who have soul and technique to spare. The Friday-after-work slot is always “pay what you want” or “pay what you can” and our basic line these days is that $10 per solvent adult is the way to go. We want your help in keeping money flowing into the scant pockets or our fine San Francisco cultural workers! Keep in mind, that it’s up to you! More is fine, and less is fine too. We want you to enjoy the music, the musicians, the company of friends, neighbors, live music aficionados and the other good people that are keeping the soul of San Francisco alive for us! Giving us the strength to keep fighting the good fight against the deep…

Patrick Wolff, sax Randy Porter, piano Eric Markowitz, bass Evan Hughes, drums Saxophonist Wolff joins forces with highly acclaimed Grammy-nominated pianist Porter for a couple of sets of creative, swinging jazz. Long associated through their yearly involvement with the Stanford Jazz Workshop, these two musicians share the core musical values of the bebop era and the music that grew out of it. Backed by the irrepressible swing of Eric Markowitz and Evan Hughes, one of the Bay Area’s great rhythm section pairings, the band will jump head first into the wittiest tunes of the canon, from composers like Cole Porter and Thelonious Monk.    

Pianist Caili O’Doherty is out from NYC to teach at the Stanford Jazz Workshop and brings in a quartet that includes Bay Area stalwarts Steven Lugerner on saxophone and Giulio Xavier on bass, with Caili’s fellow New Yorker & running buddy Cory Cox on drums. In March, she completed a 5-night run at Dizzy’s at Lincoln Center with her “Lil Hardin Armstrong Project” and toured both coasts to great acclaim with her 2015 cd, “Padme.” Want to hear the sound of today’s jazz now? Come to Bird & Beckett tonight! [arve url=”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-TyDAKcW8rs&feature=youtu.be” /]  

    The String Herders have constructed a fresh take on Americana – corralling diverse influences such as Bill Frisell, Jim Campilongo and Duke Ellington. Tom Huber & Kurt Stevenson (guitars) Larry Luthi & Huntley Barad (rhythm)

Seventh Avenu (final e optional) makes its third appearance at Bird & Beckett! A North Bay-based septet, Seventh Avenu features vibist Dan Neville and the 4-horn arrangements of trumpeter/bassist Graham Bruce. It’s a seven-piece jazz juggernaut, with a book of original music and great arrangements that’s thick as a brick! Mad Duran, alto, soprano, flute Dave Schrader, tenor, soprano Ruth Ahlers, bari Steve Weaver, trombone Dan Neville, vibraphone Graham Bruce, bass Kendrick Frreeman, drums Madaline Duran began playing sax at 12 and during high school was selected for study & performance with Oliver Nelson, John Lewis and Clark Terry. With a U of Miami degree shetoured the USA and Europe with the 21 piece BLUE SAINTS. Back in SF she joined George Cables, Hal Galper, Tee Carson, Jessica Williams and Larry Vukovich, Eddie Henderson,Tootie Heath, Eddie Moore, Eddie Marshall, Adam Nussbaum, James Moody. In the Apple she played the Village…

  Darren Johnston, trumpet Cory Wright & Stephen Lugerner, bass clarinets [arve url=”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M_pAJpwTRY0″ /]  

The legacy band! Chuck Peterson put this unit together several years ago, as a fresh iteration in a direct line of evolution from the earliest days of Bird & Beckett Friday evening jazz… Now, its core line-up sports Ray Loeckle on tenor sax; Jerry Logas on baritone sax, clarinet and vocals; Glen Deardorff on guitar; Dean Reilly on bass; and Tony Johnson on drums, swingin’ and boppin’ from 5:30 to 8:00 pm on the fourth Friday of every month. Chuck sits in on flute whenever he can be in town.  

Berkeley-raised (from the age of 7), Berkeley USD-trained (on trumpet; BHS Class of 1980), multi-instrumentalist Peck Allmond has been Brooklyn-based since 1993. The last few years when he’s traveled out to the Bay Area, he’s commonly been found in the company of these sidemen, local luminaries all: Keith Saunders, piano; John Wiitala, bass; Vince Lateano, drums. Peck plays trumpet, flute and saxophone on his dates, performing original compositions and jazz standards with consummate skill.

Click through to watch this incredible slice of a documentary on Charles Curtis Blackwell! [arve url=”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lUCGz7bkYck” /]

Honky tonk revisionists out of Oakland, Crying Time plays straight-up country and western music, from Bob Wills to Glen Campbell with whistle stops in between. Their original songs sit pretty in the mix – you’ll think you heard these tunes on your daddy’s stereo when you were little. Jill Rogers is a singer’s singer with a 1974 voice and a story to tell, and Myles Boisen is a hero of juke joint licks on the six string and lap steel guitar. They’re ably assisted by John “The Inspector” Shiurba on bass and Tim Rowe on drums, driving the rhythm with impeccable grace, style, and swing.