Dear All About Jazz Readers,

If you're familiar with All About Jazz, you know that we've dedicated over two decades to supporting jazz as an art form, and more importantly, the creative musicians who make it. Our enduring commitment has made All About Jazz one of the most culturally important websites of its kind in the world reaching hundreds of thousands of readers every month. However, to expand our offerings and develop new means to foster jazz discovery we need your help.

You can become a sustaining member for a modest $20 and in return, we'll immediately hide those pesky Google ads PLUS deliver exclusive content and provide access to future articles for a full year! This combination will not only improve your AAJ experience, it will allow us to continue to rigorously build on the great work we first started in 1995. Read on to view our project ideas...

Dmitri Matheny: Starlight Cafe

By JOEL ROBERTS
November 1, 1998
Sign in to view read count

slideshow

Already tabbed a "Talent Deserving Wider Recognition" in the 1998 Down Beat Critics' Poll, flugelhornist Dmitri Matheny seems on the verge of establishing himself as a major new jazz star. His third release on San Francisco's Monarch label may just put him over the top.

Conceived as a "collection of nocturnes," Starlight Cafe is a quiet, hauntingly beautiful album of ballads and standards (including "Stardust," "Corcovado," "When You Wish Upon a Star," and Benny Carter's "When Lights Are Low") plus several of Matheny's similarly themed originals. The 34-year-old Nashville native, now a stalwart on the Bay Area jazz scene, is a velvety smooth player who favors the lyrical and poetic side of jazz over the fire and brimstone side championed by many of his contemporaries. His tone and overall approach bear the strong influence of his mentor, the impeccable "flumpet" player Art Farmer. His ballad playing also recalls that of another master of California romanticism, Chet Baker.

The album was recorded live in Berkeley with a drummer-less trio featuring the fine pianist Darrell Grant (ex-Betty Carter, Frank Morgan, Tony Williams) and bassist Bill Douglass (Mario McPartland's West Coast partner). Matheny and his talented cohorts have made a highly enjoyable album of late-night jazz that proves you don't need to make a lot of noise to make a strong impression.

Title: Starlight Cafe | Year Released: 1998 | Record Label: Monarch Records

////bc

Date	Detail	Price
Feb6Wed 8:00 pm	Dmitri Matheny Group The Cigar Bar And Grill San Francisco, CA
Feb15Fri 7:00 pm	Gail Pettis Quartet The Bleu Note Lounge Lakewood, WA
Feb16Sat 1:00 pm	Dmitri Matheny Duo Eleven Winery Bainbridge Island, WA
Mar1Fri 7:00 pm	Dmitri Matheny Duo Ott & Murphy Winery Tasting Room Langley, WA
Mar2Sat 8:00 pm	Dmitri Matheny Group Cellar Door Port Townsend, WA
Mar6Wed 7:00 pm	Dmitri Matheny Group Whatcom Jazz Music & Arts Center Bellingham, WA
Mar7Thu 7:00 pm	Dmitri Matheny Group Christo's Pizzeria, Restaurant & Lounge Salem, OR