653 Chenery Street
in San Francisco's Glen Park neighborhood
1-415-586-3733
[email protected]
Open to walk-in trade and browsing
Tuesday to Sunday
noon to six
Live Streams every weekend!
Refresh your browser to catch a show in progress!
Visit our Facebook page or YouTube channel!
But nothing beats being in the room with the music & the musicians!
Christopher Gray and J. Raoul Brody join forces with a crew of like-minded friends to pay birthday tribute to — and sing the songs of — Harry Nilsson! A delightfully motley bunch will delve deep into Harry’s career, doing hits he wrote for other people (Three Dog Night’s “One (is the Loneliest Number)”, the Monkees’ “Cuddly Toy”), hits other people wrote for him (“Everybody’s Talkin’”, “(Can’t Live if Living is) Without You”), songs from movies (Popeye, The Point [“Me & My Arrow”? will they take requests?], Skidoo, The Life of Brian), and other oddities (“Good Old Desk”, “You’re Breakin’ My Heart”). Parentheses will abound. Solemn silliness too, we imagine!
Read Morewhich way west? Sunday concert series. All ages welcome! No cover charge, but your generous donations make it possible for us to pay the musicians. Sunday, June 9th – 4:30-6:30 pm: Terry Rodriguez Trio Ranging over jazz terrain from bop to Bill Evans – pianist Terry Rodriguez with bassist Ron Crotty and drummer Tom Hassett.
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On the second Friday of each month, jazz in the bookshop features The Jimmy Ryan Quintet. Drummer Ryan learned the trade in L.A. in the ’50s as well, and hit the San Francisco scene in 1960 — and never looked back. Jimmy has played with legendary musicians like Putter Smith, Vince Wallace, Kent Glenn and Bishop Norman Willliams, putting in significant time at legendary San Francisco clubs like Jimbo’s Bop City and the Gathering Cafe. For his Bird & Beckett dates, trumpeter Henry Hung and trombonist Danny Grewen, two active young players on the local scene, give a rich, fiery and romantic tone to the front line, while guitarist Scott Foster, a Bird & Beckett favorite since the beginning, handles the chordal duties and spins out beautiful lines with aplomb, and Bishu Chatterjee lays down a steady and creative foundation on the upright bass.
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which way west? Sunday concert series. All ages welcome! No cover charge, but your generous donations make it possible for us to pay the musicians. May 26th – 4:30-6:30 pm: Pacific Jazz Connection Jerry Logas, a multi-instrumentalist who covers all manner of saxes, clarinet and flute with equal parts lyricism and power, and Smith Dobson V, tenor player extraordinaire, heir to a multi-generational musical tradition and steeped from the cradle in jazz, bring us a fantastic quintet drawing from the deep well of “West Coast Jazz” that set listeners on their collective ear back in the late 1950s. Pacific Jazz Connection is co-led by Jerry Logas on baritone sax and Smith Dobson V on tenor sax, and a truly top-flight rhythm section comprising pianist Keith Saunders, bassist Michael Glynn and drummer Tony Johnson. Smith Dobson’s dad, also Smith, was a key pianist & vibes player on the regional (and national) scene for decades who played with…
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Sunday, May 19, 4:30-6:30 pm which way west? Sunday concert series never a cover charge, but your donations help us pay the musicians! Trumpet player Warren Gale has had a long and esteemed career, and is considered a key bebop player, particularly in West Coast small combo work, with significant time in Stan Kenton’s orchestra as well.  Drummer Jimmy Gallagher hales from Mendocino where he studied with pianist Kent Glenn– he’s been a vital force on the local jazz scene since moving down several years ago. Pianist Matt Clark needs little introduction to Bay Area, and indeed national, jazz audiences. He’s anchored groups with Bobby Hutcherson, Joshua Redman, Marcus Shelby and countless others. Bassist Michael Glynn studied with Basie & Armstrong associate Buddy Catlett, and has played with top-drawer jazz musicians including Bud Shank, Conte Condoli, Don Lanphere and Jon Hendricks! Join us for two sets of top flight jazz…
Read MoreA Bay Area native, active throughout the region in the early 1960s, with time served as house pianist at Jimbo’s Bop City from 19__ to 19__ in the company of Bishop Norman Williams, etc. Author of Diary of the Underdogs: San Francisco Jazz in the 1960s. Poet and novelist as well.
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We’ve got it all today, mother & daughter writers… New Orleans R&B… it’s all yours! Consider it our gift, in honor of the mothers we’ve got and the ones we sorely miss, and the mothers we are! First, Leslie Simon, mother, and Caya Schaan, daughter, join in a joint Mothers Day reading at 2 pm, and then Macy Blackman rocks it home at 4:30. New Orleans R&B, soulful mother of us all! Macy Blackman & the Mighty Fines might well be the best band in the Bay Area playing the music of Fats Domino, Professor Longhair, Lee Dorsey and Dr. John… originals too! Macy Blackman on piano, Richard Mayers on harmonica and percussion, Larry Vann on drums and Bing Nathan on bass. O Mother! Bring your mother… Bring your child! Single guy or gal out on your own? You’re just as welcome… Let us mention, by the way, that Leslie chairs the Women’s…
Read MoreWednesday, May 15, 2013 at 7:00 pm Poets Benjamin Hollander and George Albon read to celebrate the release of newly published prose works: Hollander’s In the House Un-American, and his Memoir American, and Albon’s Aspiration, all three of which will be hot off the presses from Clockroot/Interlink, Punctum, and Omnidawn, respectively. Benjamin Hollander was born in Haifa, Israel and as a boy immigrated to New York City. He presently lives on the west coast of North America. His books include: In the House Un-American (Clockroot Books/Interlink Publishing, Spring, 2013), Memoir American (Punctum Books, Spring 2013) Vigilance (Beyond Baroque Books, 2005), Rituals of Truce and the Other Israeli, (Parrhesia Press, 2004), The Book Of Who Are Was (Sun & Moon Press, 1997), How to Read, too (Leech Books, 1992), and, as editor, Translating Tradition: Paul Celan in France (ACTS, 1988). George Albon‘s books include Brief Capital of Disturbances (Omnidawn), Momentary Songs (Krupskaya),…
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Marc Dulman has gone into permanent exile now, and we miss him! He was a fine writer – of poetry, plays, prose fiction — and also a dedicated teacher with a long history at CCSF. A man who was constantly attuned to his own muse, who was confident that his writing was on par with the writers of the ages and who was likely quite correct in that assessment. We’re glad to have known him, and to have heard him read his own work — whether it was the poems collected in the volume called House Wine, the play called Ten Franc, or other work that he polished until it shone deep and bright. Marc’s colleagues and friends will gather May 5th, Sunday, at 2 pm to read some of his work — particularly the novel which was on the verge of publication when he passed away suddenly a few months ago. Soul on the…
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which way west? Sunday concert series. All ages welcome! No cover charge, but your generous donations make it possible for us to pay the musicians. Sunday, May 5 – 4:30-6:30 pm: Trio BZF. Pianist Ken French, bassist Ron Belcher and drummer Jim Zimmerman first found common musical ground a dozen years ago when they began traveling together with vocalist Clairdee, and their musical rapport is evidenced on the stunningly cohesive & joyful cd — called simply “Trio” — that they recorded as Trio BZF in a single afternoon in 2006. Their individual careers have kept them busy on divergent paths, but they’ve maintained this trio throughout, playing together whenever their schedule allows. Drummer Jim Zimmerman was on the road with Cleo Laine for decades as well as traveling regularly with Diane Schuur and playing in venues from Carnegie Hall to Tokyo’s Blue Note club with Peggy Lee, Michel Legrand, the…
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Ruth Parish passed away a few months ago, and we’re gathering her friends and relations to celebrate her life and the fond memories we have of her as a regular for years at the Bird & Beckett Friday evening jazz sessions. Ruth’s daughter Anne-Marie Fleming has organized the evening and has invited Michael Parsons, Don Prell and Chris Bjorkbom to be on hand to play some of the jazz Ruth loved. Do come to celebrate a vibrant spirit! Ruth was born in Texas in 1924, but soon thereafter the family moved to Chicago where Ruth was mostly raised… She graduated high school in the middle of WWII and got her first job at Wrigley’s chewing gum factory making “K” rations for soldiers — she and her co-workers were well pleased that they could help the war effort at home through their work. In 1940, Ruth and her sister Katie moved to New York City, where they were offered…
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Sunday, April 28th… there’ll be dancing in the streets! Terrific live music, great food, interesting vendors & scads of happy people thronging Diamond Street between Bosworth and Chenery… don’t neglect to come up to the shop and say hi!  We’ll be holding down the fort and will offer a telling of Tibetan folk tales by the inimitable Walker Brents III at 2:30 pm, followed by live jazz as the action on the streets starts to wind down… Ex-Glen Parker/jazz guitarist Mark Reynolds and family (Gretchen and the twins, Jarrett & Jillian) are making the trek down from the North Bay for the street fair, and Mark is bringing his band called “Studio 5” into the shop for a 4:30 pm “which way west?” session… We’ve hosted this band several times in the past and can vouch for their fine musicianship. Mike Dixon on alto sax; Dan Silva, piano; Jon Francis, bass; and Mike…
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On the last Sunday of each month, Walker Brents gives a talk, on subjects ranging widely across the cultural and intellectual spectrum. This month, in keeping with the light-hearted spirit of the street fair playing out down the block, Walker will tell some Tibetan folk tales… fascinating bits of mental legerdemain to amuse & delight!
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which way west? Sunday afternoon concert series every week…4:30 to 6:30 pm No cover, but your donations make it possible for us to pay the band! Eclaire de Lune plays the music of Django Reinhart and quite a lot more…  Hot Club swing, bossa nova, West Coast jazz, tango, Parisian musette waltz, the Great American Songbook, pop classics, world café… Dennis Fortin, acoustic lead guitar; James Pickrel, acoustic rhythm guitar; Cote Reese, accordion; Danny Bittker, clarinet; and Dave Fischer, acoustic bass.
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As a duo, Jewkes & Vuckovich will dig deep into the music that enhanced the great noir films of American cinema in the 40s, 50s and 60s. Each of these gentlemen has been acknowledged as among the very top musicians on the local scene for five decades or more.
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SUPPORT BIRD & BECKETT - DONATE TODAY!
Your donation to the Bird & Beckett Cultural Legacy Project helps us pay for a multitude of operating expenses necessary to present, promote and preserve local music, poetry, and more.
Help us keep the arts alive and thriving!
The Bird & Beckett Cultural Legacy Project was created in 2007 "to present, document and archive the creative work of significant living writers and musicians in the San Francisco Bay Area, for a neighborhood audience and future generations." We've been doing that very thing for more than a decade and a half, continuing the work we began when the store was established in 1999.
Due to lapses in tax filings during and post-pandemic, the BBCLP's status as a registered nonprofit was suspended at the beginning of April 2024 while we reapply, which is expected to take about six months. Donations made after April 1st will not be tax-deductible until nonprofit status is restored.
However, we continue to present a full slate of programming live music and poetry, and producing literary chapbooks, and we seek and welcome your continued financial support in the interim. If a tax-deduction is not a major reason for your support to date, we hope you'll continue to ride with us while we navigate these next several months.
Click on "donate" in the navigation bar above, drop off a check at the bookshop, or drop one in the mail to:
Bird & Beckett Cultural Legacy Project
653 Chenery Street
San Francisco, CA 94131
Call us at (415) 586-3733 to find out how else you might lend your support.
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The Bird & Beckett Cultural Legacy Project
Our events are put on under the umbrella of the Bird & Beckett Cultural Legacy Project (the "BBCLP"). That's how we fund our ambitious schedule of 300 or so concerts and literary events every year.
The BBCLP is a [Read More ]
The Independent Musicians Alliance
Gigging musicians! You have nothing to lose but your lack of a collective voice to achieve fair wages for your work!
The IMA can be a conduit for you, if you join in to make it work.
https://www.independentmusiciansalliance.org/
Read more here - Andy Gilbert's Feb 25 article about the IMA from KQED's site
