Eric Shifrin brings a Latin touch to the bandstand tonight, in a long-standing trio with bassist Paul Smith and drummer Raul Ramirez. $20 cover (cash, please!); doors open at 7:20 for the 7:30 show.  Bring a mask and something to drink, if you like. You’re in for a delightful evening of music. Catch it in our live stream if you can’t make it into the shop, but you really don’t want to miss the real thing, in real time, in person. Eric Shifrin learned piano as a child on his mother’s lap and turned professional right out of high school, gigging on both alto sax and piano to earn his bread and butter. He was composing and recording from the start, put in time on cruise ships, spent crucial years in Japan and by the 1990s was rooted in the Bay Area, where his movable feast of music embodied in…

Drummer Tony Johnson brings in a quartet on the fourth Friday of each month. Tonight it’s the 230 Jones Street Band, with Charlie McCarthy, saxophone & flute; Glen Deardorff, guitar and Al Obidinski, bass. Four veteran jazz players, and long-time friends, swingin’. $20 cash cover charge; byob & a mask. Find the live stream on Bird & Beckett’s YouTube channel or Facebook page, and donate if you possibly can to support the musicians, the music and the venue! Tony hit San Francisco in 1959, fresh off the boat from his native Australia, ready and raring to go. He got busy in the North Beach clubs right away, recorded in 1960 with vocalist Bev Kelly in a combo with legendary saxophonist Pony Poindexter, pianist Flip Nunez and bassist Johnny Allen at the Coffee Gallery on Grant Street, played behind Bobby Short at the Hungry I. Tony played on the Ed Sullivan…

Guitarist Ed Cherry is in town briefly and brings a trio into Bird & Beckett with Adam Shulman on piano and Owen Clapp on bass. Call for reservations – 415-586-3733; limited seating. $20 cash cover charge. BYOB and a mask. Doors open at 7:20pm for the 7:30pm show. Ed Cherry moved to New York from New Haven, Connecticut in 1978 to play guitar with Dizzy Gillespie from 1978 to 1992 performing in Gillespie’s quartet and big band, and with Diz’s United Nation Orchestra, which recorded the 1989 Grammy Award-winning lp, “Live at Royal Festival Hall,” for Enja Records. Ed was with Gillespie’s group in San Francisco for an SFJAZZ date in 1991 on a bill opened by saxophonist Mel Martin’s Big Band — here’s a clip from Gillespie joining the Martin band for a take on Manteca that night, with Vince Lateano and John Santos in the band. Diz died…

None will dispute the notion that Dr. Legato, the multi-instrumentalist Noel Jewkes, has been in the top echelon of jazz players in the region for five decades. Noel is known for his swing and the cool elegance of his work on all manner of reeds, as well as piano and a few more instruments besides. He draws the best from any rhythm section and draws the best rhythm section players around to share the stage and make some beautiful music. Tonight’s quartet, with Grant Levin on piano, Chris Amberger on bass and David Rokeach on drums, will offer up a generous scattering of gems from the jazz canon and some beautifully polished Jewkes originals. With Kay Kostopolous contributing her sultry vocal talents, this will be a lovely evening for all. $20-30 sliding scale cash cover charge, please! B&B is a “Guaranteed Fair Wage” establishment. Coming to the show? BYOB and…

Paul Combs, saxophone Ken Cook, piano Doug Miller, bass Alex Aspinall, drums A night of obscure Dameronia presented and performed by the Paul Combs Quartet. Tadd Dameron was a cornerstone of late 1940s jazz, contributing key compositions to the jazz canon including “Good Bait,” “Our Delight,” “Hot House,” “Lady Bird,” and “If You Could See Me Now.” Here’s a link to a good biographical sketch: http://www.bluenote.com/artist/tadd-dameron/ Saxophonist, educator and jazz historian Paul Combs has done prodigious work — a true labor of love — bringing a huge number of little known Tadd Dameron compositions to light in recent years, evidenced by Paul’s recent cd, “Unknown Dameron: Rare and Never Recorded Works of Tadd Dameron” and his book Dameronia: The Life and Music of Tadd Dameron. Visit Paul’s site for much additional information: paulcombs.com If you can’t make it in person, you’ll find a live stream on Bird & Beckett Facebook…

Guitarist Scott Foster always cooks up a good show on the third Friday of each month. This month, he’s invited multi-instrumentalist Danny Bittker to help assemble a quintet and to call the tunes. Danny plays saxophones, clarinet and steel pan on this date, joined by Zach Pitt-Smith on sax and flute, Greg Nottage acoustic and electric bass, and Dan Foltz on drums, with Lee Heuermann on vocals! $20 cash cover charge at the door. Doors open at 7:20 for the 7:30 show. Reservations: 415-586-3733 BYOB and a mask. If you can’t make it in person, you’ll find a live stream on Bird & Beckett Facebook page and YouTube channel. Donate per the instructions on the screen if you can afford to support live music and the great local musicians who play it for you!

The Glen Park merchants celebrate the neighborhood with a FREE BEER! party on the third Thursday of every third month, and this month, the guest of honor & delight is Tony from Critter Fritters. No live stream, no cover charge! Just come down to the shop & party with your neighbors! Tony is a neighborhood icon of the first water, one of the jewels in the Glen Park tiara! And what would your darling pets do without him, we ask! And the trio tonight is a great one! Groove merchant Larry Vann is a Bird & Beckett favorite, whether it’s with his own long-standing trio with Tim Landis on guitar and Michael Warren on bass, or in his frequent dates with the New Squatoolas and other great bands. He’s a Bay Area legend with a storied history in the biz. And he is, in fact, the Groove Merchant! Tonight, Adam…

Kim Shuck, San Francisco Poet Laureate 2019-2021, hosts an online Bird & Beckett poetry reading twice a month – on the 2nd and 4th Mondays. Paul Corman Roberts and Youssef Alaoui are the featured poets for this session, with an open mic to follow. Bird and Beckett VirtualPoets, 6/13!! When Mon Jun 13, 2022 7pm – 8:30pm Pacific Time – Los Angeles Where https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84350265713?pwd=eE84V3BYdWxiSFBHNHhmdUt1WTUzdz09 (map) Joining info Join with Google Meet meet.google.com/wub-iqeu-xoy Calendar [email protected] Join Zoom Meeting https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84350265713?pwd=eE84V3BYdWxiSFBHNHhmdUt1WTUzdz09 Meeting ID: 843 5026 5713 Passcode: 244211 One tap mobile +16699006833,,84350265713#,,,,*244211# US (San Jose) +13462487799,,84350265713#,,,,*244211# US (Houston) Dial by your location +1 669 900 6833 US (San Jose) +1 346 248 7799 US (Houston) +1 253 215 8782 US (Tacoma) +1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago) +1 929 436 2866 US (New York) +1 301 715 8592 US (Washington DC) Meeting ID: 843 5026 5713 Passcode: 244211 Find your local number: https://us02web.zoom.us/u/keiLsfdeVg…

Lucien Zell, passing through on his way to take part in the poetry workshops at the High Sierra Community of Writers in Olympic Valley at Lake Tahoe, will read some of his work alongside colleagues Kim Shuck, San Francisco Poet Laureate Emerita (2019-2021), and Lee Rossi. Can’t make it down to the shop for the reading? You’ll miss the wine & snacks and real-time camaraderie, but a live stream will be found on the Bird & Beckett Facebook page and YouTube channel. Lucien Zell’s writing has appeared in The New Orleans Review, Tikkun and Poetry Salzburg Review, and will appear in three upcoming anthologies. His first American book of poetry, Tiny Kites (Dos Madres), was published in 2019. A professional singer-songwriter, his folk/rock album “Fall into Flight” is available on iTunes and Spotify. “Carnival of Shades,” a classical piece for which he composed the libretto, premiered last November at the…

San Francisco journalist Denise Sullivan conducts a monthly series of conversations (the second Sunday of each month from 10-11 a.m.) with The City’s activists, educators, arts and cultural leaders, as well as lesser-known workers, the everyday people who help make this place we call home, live streamed from Bird & Beckett Books. This month’s guest is Megan Wilson, artist, organizer and co-director of the Clarion Alley Mural Project. Wilson is a visual artist, writer, curator, and activist/community organizer based in San Francisco. She creates large-scale installations, public projects, and street art, incorporating a broad range methodologies and aesthetics to address conceptual interests that include home, justice, impermanence, and generosity. Wilson has been an artist and organizer with Clarion Alley Mural Project (CAMP) since 2000 and is the current co-director. Find the stream on Bird & Beckett’s YouTube channel or Facebook page.  

Michael Zilber, saxophone Matt Clark, piano Essiet Okon Essiet, bass Sylvia Cuenca, drums $20 cash cover charge at the door. Reservations: 415-586-3733 BYOB and a mask. Michael Zilber writes prolifically and plays a great tenor saxophone. Fine quartet on this date! Do come and enjoy a fine night of small combo jazz music in your cozy neighborhood bookshop cum jazz club. If you can’t make it in person, you’ll find a live stream on Bird & Beckett Facebook page and YouTube channel. In the autumn of 2021, Mike released the album “Mike Drop” on Sunnyside Records as co-leader with another Mike — the drummer Mike Clark. The album received rapturous reviews in Downbeat, All About Jazz and the New York Jazz Record. Matt Clark was the pianist and Peter Barshay the bassist on the album, which featured two Zilber originals and tunes by Wayne Shorter, McCoy Tyner, Duke Pearson and…

Phillip Greenlief, tenor saxophone Dan Seamans, bass Tom Hassett, drums Always a pleasure to hear The Lost Trio! Decades of collaboration and a rich book of tunes by the likes of Thelonious Monk, Steve Lacy, Herbie Nichols and many, many more. $20 cash cover charge at the door. Reservations welcome: call 415-586-3733 BYOB and a mask. A live stream will be found on Bird & Beckett Facebook page and YouTube channel. Donate! Here’s a taste of a their last trio outing playing jazz in the bookshop…  

The Pedro Pastrana Quartet is for sure a latin jazz ensemble, though it’s one like no other. On paper, the group might seem like your traditional jazz quartet — a wind instrument, bass, drums and a chordal instrument, in this case, the cuatro. But it’s the integration of the cuatro that defines the Ensemble’s unique style, connecting the earthy quality of a folk sound with the sophisticated harmony of modern jazz and the syncopated rhythms of the Caribbean. The Ensemble’s sound is not dominated by either of these genres but is defined by their intersection. Simply put: Tower of Power meets Pat Metheny meets Familia Cepeda meets “Mapeyé” meets Evel Knievel. A live stream will be found on Bird & Beckett Facebook page and YouTube channel. Check your preconceptions at the door, and enjoy the work of: Pedro J. Pastrana, Puerto Rican CuatroPedro is a music creator rethinking the concept…

Charlie Gurke, baritone saxophone Marcus Stephens, alto and tenor saxophones Josh Tower, bass Isaac Schwartz, drums Who doesn’t love the bari sax in jazz? One of San Francisco’s foremost bari practitioners will be in the house this Friday! Charlie Gurke is a keystone of the local jazz scene, leader of the famed Gurkestra — an elastic concept that puts many San Francisco talents to brilliant use in a variety of lovely settings! To our small stage, he brings a quartet once again for your pleasure. Jazz chamber music most pleasing to the senses. $20 cash cover charge at the door. Reservations welcome — call 415-586-3733. BYOB & a mask. A live stream will be found on Bird & Beckett Facebook page and YouTube channel. Your donations help fund the stream and, even more importantly, help us pay the musicians a guaranteed fair wage. Thanks for supporting jazz in SF! Here’s…