46th St. Theme
not one, but TWO new clubs, The Pocket and Jazzcultural
Just after WWII one could go to 52nd street and hear Art Tatum, Bud Powell, Coleman Hawkins, Lester Young, and Charlie Parker all on the same strip. Thelonious Monk composed the anthem that became Bird’s set closer: “52nd St. Theme.”
New Yorkers call that area “midtown.” For a long time midtown did not have so many jazz clubs, with one big exception, Birdland on 44th street, where Gianni Valenti books the best and the brightest into not just one but two rooms: Birdland Jazz Club upstairs and Birdland Theater downstairs. Iridium off 51st still has some good jazz but there the emphasis is usually on blues, fusion, and rock guitar, with Les Paul being the Iridium patron saint.
However, it is a new day, and now the district is making a proper bid for the glory years of 52st Street.
During the pandemic various places closed, including the terrific upscale joint the Jazz Standard. My old friend Martin Porter was then working there at the time, and he was keenly aware that Jazz Standard’s demise left a hole in the scene, which really thrived on that sort of sleek and intimate prestige room with all the trimmings. Martin is now part of the team at The Pocket, which opened this past week on 46th street between 6th and 7th avenues, across the street from where Michiko’s/Roberto’s used to be, and around the corner from “new” Steinway hall. The room has a great sound, every seat is close to the band, and there is a full menu.
Last night Walter Smith III was tearing it up with Larry Grenadier and Bill Stewart; this was his TWIO project, where he invites another tenor star up to “battle” for half the set; in this case it was Ben Wendel. Earlier this year I saw the TWIO concept with Dayna Stephens, and in both cases the friendly cutting-contest atmosphere brought out the best in all hands. Serious business, and seriously fun to listen to.
The upcoming roster at The Pocket is pretty extraordinary, including weekly residencies for two of the hottest big bands around: The Mingus Big Band and Arturo O’Farrill and the Afro Latin Orchestra.
A few blocks west on 46th is Spike Wilner’s new club Jazzcultural, between 8th and 9th avenue in the heart of Restaurant Row, right next to the famous piano bar Don’t Tell Mama. I’ve known Spike even longer than Martin; I helped him organize the James P. Johnson “Last Rent Party” at Smalls some years ago, and a bit more recently brought Ron Carter into Mezzrow within a month of Mezzrow’s opening. Smalls, Mezzrow, and now Jazzcultural: Spike is in charge of three jazz clubs in Manhattan, could that be a record? Spike is a true jazz cat and a good player, too, he is headlining Jazzcultural on June 16 for his 60th birthday. Like Wilner’s two other clubs, the emphasis in Jazzcultural is community, with a large area for afternoon jam sessions, a long bar for the hang, and a spacious theatre.
Jazzcultural has only been open a few months but it is clearly already a happening spot for the straight-ahead cognoscenti. The great Louis Hayes was holding it down with his Cannonball Legacy Band under pictures of Bud Powell, Thelonious Monk and the club’s spiritual father, Barry Harris. At 89 Hayes was still cheerfully dealing out classics that Hayes helped make famous such as “Work Song” and “Hi-Fly” with a good band featuring Vincent Herring, Jeremy Pelt, Rick Germanson, and John Webber. Pelt’s solo on “Hi-Fly” was remarkable; I could have listened to whatever lyrical magic was happening at that moment all night long. Herring had microphone duties and told several good jokes. From Herring’s patter I also learned that Rick Germanson was from Wisconsin! I didn’t previously know this crucial geographical detail, and Germanson and I shared a few nice words after. (There are more Wisconsin jazz pianists than may be commonly supposed, including Germanson, myself, Lyle Mays, Joan Wildman, David Hazeltine, Geoff Keezer, Dan Nimmer. I joked to Rick that we really go back to Władziu Valentino Liberace.)
Interesting question: Who has owned the most jazz clubs operating at the same time in New York? Spike may hold the modern record, but the mobster Owney Madden, who owned the Cotton Club in the 1920s and '30s, also owned at least a piece of perhaps 20 other nightspots, whose names are not immediately available without research. He also apparently owned part of the toney Stork Club, which would not qualify as "jazz club" in any era.
In the 1940s, Barney Josephon owned both the Cafe Society and the Cafe Society Uptown and both were legit jazz clubs. Max Gordon at one point owned the Village Vanguard and co-owned the upscale Blue Angel supper club in midtown east. The latter had entertainment but wasn't a jazz club. In recent decades, Michael Dorf owned multiple spaces under the Knitting Factory umbrella in multiple cities but I think he had only one spot in New York at a time.
Anybody else got relevant examples?
Got to attend the opening with mingus big band, great night, love the pocket.
looking forward to trying out JC.