Home » Jazz Articles » The Cool Vic Files » File 0699-2

169

File 0699-2

By

Sign in to view read count
Case #3

Mr. Vic,

Please help me - I beg of you. There was a famous jazz club in San Francisco, I'm pretty certain it was an after-hours or late hours club that is now defunct. Do you know its name?

— Evan Bennett


Evanesque,

Your folks named you after Bill Evans' son, Evan. Isn't that right? Thought so. I guess that makes this "A Letter To Evan".

I love Frisco. (Hey, relax, I only call it Frisco to vex the natives.) I love the Church of John Coltrane and the Tenderloin District in particular. I dig that grimy urban decadence, that low-living, pitching quarters with the hypes and cons. Most of these cats are smart enough to con Joe Six Pack (and Sally Punch Clock), but when they try ol' Vic out for size they lose their hot wheels and jacks—if ya know what I'm sayin'. Anyway, I had an office at Bush and Geary. Festive little place. Always had working girls leaning against the street post at 4:00 AM. Hired one... as a secretary (shhh... don't tell Lulu).

Jazz Clubs, Huh? There were plenty of them. But the one you might be thinkin' of is either The Blackhawk, where I caught Miles between his two great quintets, and the Keystone Corner, where I caught Art Pepper for the last time. Matter of fact, Art and I deshirted backstage and compared tatoos. He had this intricate dragon burned into his shoulder —I impressed him with my "Mommy" tatoo. Well, to make a long story short, these were groovin' places that roared. A ton of great music recorded at each place. Check out Dexter Gordon's Keystone sets.

Today, my dime is on Yoshi's, across the Bay in Oakland. Shirley Horn and Gene Harris tore up the joint the last time I was in town.

COOL VIC TIP: When at Yoshi's, be sure to tantalize your taste buds with Yoshi's "Tora, Tora" roll and the Unagi. They're dynamite! Lulu loves them with an ice-cold 18oz Sapporo.




Case #4

Hi Cool Vic,

I've been trying to locate this album for a long time... David Blamires, and the song's title goes something like this... "Deep Blue Sea...or ocean..."

Really appreciate it if you can direct me to where I can buy this...I guess it's been out of print according to CDNow. I think this album came out in the early nineties...

- Rick, just a plain old dick


Plain old dick,

David Blamires is a vocalist who has recorded under his own name, but much more with other musicians. Dave and I go way back. Actually, I used to play little league ball with his old man. His Dad had this giant glove, played first base, and sucked balls outta the dust like a Hoover. Being a rangy shortstop with a "live arm", I must say, he bailed my butt out on more than one occasion. We both made it to the midget league all-star game and shared MVP honors leading our team (Upper Wilbury West) to a 6-4 victory. Okay, enough about midgets... back to the music... The only disc Lulu was able to find that remotely met your clues was keyboardist Paul Halley's Angel on a Stone Wall released on Living Music (CD 20, 1991), which is still in print. The song I think you are thinking of is "Sea Song". Anyway, that is as close as we could get.

If I'm not mistaken, it's just about time for my grilled cheese sandwich. Lulu is such a doll—every Friday she slips in a Jersey tomato just to keep things interesting.

Continue: File 0699-3

Comments

Tags


For the Love of Jazz
Get the Jazz Near You newsletter All About Jazz has been a pillar of jazz since 1995, championing it as an art form and, more importantly, supporting the musicians who create it. Our enduring commitment has made "AAJ" one of the most culturally important websites of its kind, read by hundreds of thousands of fans, musicians and industry figures every month.

You Can Help
To expand our coverage even further and develop new means to foster jazz discovery and connectivity we need your help. You can become a sustaining member for a modest $20 and in return, we'll immediately hide those pesky ads plus provide access to future articles for a full year. This winning combination will vastly improve your AAJ experience and allow us to vigorously build on the pioneering work we first started in 1995. So enjoy an ad-free AAJ experience and help us remain a positive beacon for jazz by making a donation today.

Popular

Get more of a good thing!

Our weekly newsletter highlights our top stories, our special offers, and upcoming jazz events near you.