Fat Tuesday...

As many of you know, tonight we'll be doing a FAT TUESDAY BLUES AND JAZZ PARTY at church.  It will be a fund raiser for the Christian Center - the oldest non-profit human service organization in the Berkshires - and their new Executive Director will be with us. I am so glad to do this gig for the Center: they are on the front line of fending off hunger and homelessness.

But there is another mission taking place tonight, too: building community among some of the area's musicians. The idea for this event came from the gathered musicians themselves after Thanksgiving Eve who all said, "When are we going to do this again?!?" And in the wake of Whitney's death, I want to own the importance of building loving trust among artists; all too often, artists are left to fend for themselves. It is a lonely walk, so this gig - with all its good vibes and sweet music - is a little bit of soul food.  And the way each musician works so hard to bring out the best in the others is... well... time within the kingdom of God.

Some of the area's finest jazz/blues players are going to be with us - all giving up their time and talent - mostly to share the joy of creating something bigger and more beautiful than ourselves.  I am grateful to them all - and honored to host this event. 

Dig it if you can:  the groove starts @ 7 PM.

I crisscrossed with Monk
Wailed with Bud
Counted every star with Stitt
Sang "Don’t Blame Me" with Sarah
Wore a flower like Billie
Screamed in the range of Dinah
& scatted "How High the Moon" with Ella Fitzgerald
as she blew roof off the Shrine Auditorium
                    Jazz at the Philharmonic