Attend in person, or catch the live stream on our YouTube channel and Facebook page. Doors open at 6:30pm. No charge. Books available for purchase. Keith Hatschek’s new book, The Real Ambassadors: Dave and Iola Brubeck and Louis Armstrong Challenge Segregation (University Press of Mississippi, 2022) delves into the largely untold story of Dave and Iola Brubeck’s partnership with Louis Armstrong to stage a jazz musical fighting for equal rights in the 1950s and 60s. The heart of the story is the allyship that developed between Satchmo and the Brubecks, and how important taking a stand against racism was to all of them, as well as the rest of the talented cast that premiered the show at the 1962 Monterey Jazz Festival.  “With well-researched details and clear-eyed passion, Hatschek relates the story of the Brubecks’ creation, of the stars it brought into alignment (Louis Armstrong, Carmen McRae, the vocal trio…

Live music occupied by indigenous culture! Dysfunktional is a new funk/jazz/pop quintet serving up improvised music from classic standards to funky fan favorites. Their repertoire includes personal takes on Stevie Wonder,  Bill Withers, Vulfpeck, Lawrence, D’Angelo (the band’s favorite), and much, much more. Consisting of San Francisco’s most beloved tech workers and two jaded graduate students, Dysfunktional aims to bring verve and youthfulness to San Francisco’s improvised music scene. Dysfunktional is: Grace Cheng, Piano, Flute, Melodica, Voice Tharun Sankar, Trumpet, Piano Ross Taylor, Drums, Voice Tory Johnston (Quinault), Guitar Jared Marx-Kuo, Bass, Voice Live in the shop, and also viewable both as a live stream and after the fact on YouTube or Facebook By donation, but $20 per is very much appreciated. Bird & Beckett pays a guaranteed “fair” wage to the musicians on our stage, and can’t do that without serious audience buy-in. BYOB. No food in the shop…

Lewis Jordan, reeds, poetry Bruce Ackley, reeds Sandra Poindexter, violin, voice Ollen Erich Hunt, bass Jimmy Biala, drums, percussion Lewis Jordan presents Music at Large, a Bay Area ensemble that brings music, poetry and an open spirit of improvisation. Saxophones, violin, bass, percussion and drums come with a large helping of original material. The group crafts its performances to highlight solo instrumental voices as well as collective interaction. With ears for a tradition that encourages innovation, the group has an interdisciplinary approach that works well with artists from a range of experiences. The group has just released its fourth CD, Critical Mass (Innova 073). $25 cash cover charge byob and masks; doors at 7:20pm reservations, please call 415-586-3733 Catch the stream on our facebook page and youtube channel a voluntary donation if using the stream to hear the show is needed and appreciated photos by Jeremy Allen

Bob Kenmotsu, saxophone Keith Saunders, piano Eric Markowitz, bass Tony Johnson, drums Bebop to bossa, and always swingin’ $20 cash cover charge – doors open at 7:20 for the 7:30 show BYOB and a mask, as covid still stalks the fringes of the land… capacity is just 25 at the moment to make for some breathing room! call 415-586-3733 to reserve a seat Live in the shop and viewable as a live stream on YouTube or Facebook Tony has been a force on the San Francisco jazz scene for over 50 years. He arrived from his native Australia in 1959 and was immediately playing and recording with great musicians including sax player Pony Poindexter and vocalist Bev Kelly. Tony toured with Earl “Fatha” Hines, George Shearing and Peggy Lee, and played the Sullivan show with the Vagabonds (Las Vegas Tropicana Hotel house band) on a bill that included Sammy Davis,…

Avotcja and her band Modupue have been a cultural nexus for many years. She works with a large revolving cast of musicians, fantastic talents with experience and acclaim far beyond the Bay Area, and with long association with Avotcja, herself. Avotcja turns 81 this month! Help us celebrate! This evening, Modupue will be a quartet. They’ll convene in the bookshop, with the doors to the public tightly shut but the live stream to the public wide open. Settle in to take in the live stream tonight! But PLEASE DONATE! That’s our only revenue stream to pay the musicians! You’ll find the performance on our YouTube channel or Facebook page. You can donate per the instructions on the screen, or using this DONATE BUTTON No audience in the shop, just musicians converging with Avotcja at the center, to play for you in your living rooms, from the living room that is…

Judith Serin’s Gravity, a collection of short stories and the title novella, has just been brought out by Eyewear Publishing.  Her collection of poetry, Hiding in the World, was published by Diane di Prima’s Eidolon Editions, and her Days Without (Sky): A Poem Tarot, seventy-eight short prose poems in the form of a tarot deck with illustration and book art design by Nikki Thompson, was published by Deconstructed Artichoke Press. Judith writes fiction and creative nonfiction as well as poetry, and her work has appeared in numerous magazines and anthologies. She teaches literature and writing at California College of the Arts. www.judithserin.com “In stories that are ethereal and haunting, Judith Serin portrays the inner world of women who confront their desires and constraints. Imaginative, captivating, sensual, and fierce, Gravity invites you to know yourself as well as Serin knows her characters.” — Julie Lythcott-Haim   Zack Rogow is the author,…

The Joel Frahm Trio presents music from the new album The Bright Side (Anzic Records, 2021) Joel Frahm, tenor saxophone Dan Loomis, bass Ernesto Cervini, drums $20 cover charge at the door (cash please) byob and a mask reservations: 415-586-3733 Coming off nine consecutive bookings in Europe in April (with dates in France, Germany, the UK, Norway and Sweden) and two consecutive bookings in Ontario, Canada (at the Ottawa Jazz Festival and the Jazz Bistro in Toronto), the Joel Frahm Trio heads west for seven shows from San Diego to Seattle, including this exclusive San Francisco date at Bird & Beckett, celebrating their new CD, “The Bright Side.”   joelfrahm.com Catch the trio’s performance in the live stream if you can’t make it to the shop. Please be sure to donate to help support the musicians and the venue if you do! We can’t do this without you! YouTube  …

Kathryn Waddell Takara, visiting from Hawaii & celebrating the release of her new collection Seasons in Haiku, will read this evening together with Bay Area poets Karla Brundage, Lucille Lang Day, Shizue Seigel, Amos White and, Maw Shein Win If you’re unable to make it down to Bird & Beckett this evening, you can view the live stream on the store’s YouTube channel or Facebook page. Donations appreciated to support the poets and the stream. 60% of your donation will be shared with the poets; 40% will support the streaming expenses. Information on how to donate will be found on the video screen There’s also a link at the top of this website. View the reading here: YouTube              Facebook _________________________ Kathryn Takara is an Afro-futurist, eco-poet, and warrior for social justice. She has published 11 books of poetry, most recently Seasons in Haiku. With a long…

Touring from NYC The Kazemde George Quintet Kazemde George, tenor saxophone Sami Stevens, vocals Manuel Schmiedel, keyboard Giulio Xavier Cetto, bass Adam Arruda, drums $25 cover charge (cash, please); byob. catch it in the live stream if you can’t make it to the shop. be sure to donate to help support the musicians and the venue. we can’t do this without you! YouTubeFacebook Kazemde George, an African American jazz saxophonist, composer and beat-maker raised by Caribbean parents in Berkeley and based in Brooklyn, has a gift for direct melodies articulated with a beautiful tone and “a certain guiding restraint.” He’s touring through with his New York band, with his partner Sami Stevens on vocals and local hero Giulio Cetto on bass! Welcome home, Kaz! Kaz was exposed to a wide range of musical styles as a youth and began playing piano, saxophone and percussion at an early age. During high…

JimBo Trout, guitar and vocals Steve Neil, bass Ken Owen, drums JimBo Trout is walking the line, playing his heart out, and having a good time! JimBo’s music is a good-time gumbo of bluegrass, rock+roll, honky-tonk country, old-time, ragtime, blues, western-swing, rockabilly, jug band, jazz, swing, Cowboy, New Orleans, and more. But he would never let tradition stand in the way of a good time. Whether solo or with his band JimBo Trout and the Fishpeople, an energetic, entertaining and engaging show is guaranteed. JimBo Trout is based in San Francisco, but traveling the world in a quest to bring great music to you. With over 700 songs on his list,  he will surprise you with his range. The appeal extends to fans of traditional music as well as those with more modern tastes, young and old, and in-between. JimBo Trout and the Fishpeople is a collective of top musicians…

Andrew Stephens, trumpet Ben Goldberg, clarinet Rob Reich, accordion and piano  Adam Kubota, bass But of course! It’s the joy you would naturally expect! Doors open at 7:20pm $20 cash cover charge, please byob & masks Reservations, 415-586-3733 or catch it in the live stream if you can’t make it to the shop. be sure to donate to help support the musicians and the venue. we can’t do this without you! YouTube       Facebook  

      Scott Foster, guitar Charles Thomas, bass Omar Aran, drums A look behind the curtain. reservations, 415-586-3733 byob and a mask $20 cash cover Nothing beats live jazz in the shop but if you can’t make it… Find the live stream on our Facebook page or YouTube channel

CBop returns to Bird & Beckett to present their third EP, “Three’s A Charm” recorded at the Oakland Riviera by CarnyMusic Recording in late 2021 The EP is a nod to some of CBop’s favorite composers (Sonny Rollins and Burt Bacharach, to name two). They’ll perform two sets of music in what they say is their favorite San Francisco venue. We’ll trust them on that, and will be delighted to present them. Please come share these bright moments with us. Dan Keller – Bass Mark Secosh – Saxophone Bob Johns – Piano André Custodio – Drums Playing music by luminaries Coltrane, Duke, Monk, Bird and more! The quartet’s origins began in San Francisco as coordinated venue jam sessions that included noted luminaries of the jazz world. CBop prides itself on delivering and communicating groove with sophistication. The quartet has played festivals, weddings, birthdays, anniversaries, openings, fundraisers, and corporate events. Above…

Joe Goldmark, pedal steel guitar Mitch Polzak, lead guitar and vocals Hank Maninger, bass guitar and vocals Kenny Owen, drums The Seducers play the songs of Merle Haggard, Waylon Jennings and countless other giants of classic and outlaw country music. Bring $20 for the musicians! BYOB, too!   Can’t make it to the shop for the show? You can view it from wherever you are on Bird & Beckett’s Facebook page or YouTube channel. Please donate to help us pay the musicians and maintain the live stream! You’ll find instructions on the screen during the stream, and you can also call us for information on how to do it. Thanks for supporting the culture!

Over in the canyon, just up the street from the bookshop, the Gum Tree Girls Festival is slated for 10am to 3:30pm on Sunday the 10th, with live music, stirring oratory, informative history, food, drink, games and community camaraderie! You don’t want to miss it! With the Festival coming up in just a few days, they need volunteeers to help out! See the link at right! (Sunday, too, be sure to drop by Bird & Beckett after the Fest at 5pm for The Seducers, America’s favorite honky tonk band, live in the bookshop!) The Gum Tree Girls, you ask? In the mid-1960s, the Gum Tree Girls — Geri Arkush, Zoanne Theriault Nordstrom and Joan Seiwald, pictured here — and prior to that, in 1958, Minnie Straub Baxter, stood up and saved Glen Canyon from sporting a double deck, elevated “viaduct” expressway to the other side of Twin Peaks! Right over…