MP3 Mike Smith Quartet - Andy´s Live Jazz-Mike Smith -30th Anniversary Featuring the Jordan Baskin Trio

Saxophonist Mike Smith celebrates his 30th Anniversary of Performing at Andy's Jazz Club in Chicago.
A live recording featuring Mike and the Jordan Baskin Trio with Brian Ritter and Jeff Pedraz

10 MP3 Songs in this album (74:27) !
Related styles: Jazz: Jazz quartet, Jazz: Bebop, Type: Live Recordings

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Details:
I remember it like yesterday. Just off the road with Buddy Rich, I got a call to put
together a group and play the Thursday 5 p.m. slot at Andyâs. I was the unknown
quantity, and the gig was strctly on a trial basis. That was thirty years ago. I
guess that must make my Andyâs gig one of the longest trials in history. I will
always be indebted to Scott and Dawn Chisholm, Penny Tyler, and the late Dick
Goodman for the opportunity the gave me in 1981.

I sat down one day and did the math. Forty weeks per year, on average, is one
thousand twelve hundred nights. And three sets a night translates into three
thousand six hundred sets. In other words, Andyâs - this warm, bustling,
quintessentially Chicago room - is the place where I developed into a performer.
My kids grew up knowing that when Dad put on his beret,slung the gig bag over
His shoulder, and left the house, he was probably heading to Andyâs. My son,
Julian, now a jazz bassist living in New York, cut his musical teeth on the Andyâs
stage when he was just sixteen.

So here we are in 2011. Chris and Jeff Chisholm, Scotty and Dawnâs sons, run
the club now. The stage is bigger, the piano is better, and we have a sound
system with monitors. The staff is priceless, itâs a great place to eat, hang out,
and perform. And the room is just as welcoming to patrons and supportive of
musicians as it ever was.

Which is why Andyâs has been my base of operation for thirty years. I couldnât
begin to name all the fantastic musicians who have shared the stage with
me. But trust me, itâs a Whoâs Who of jazz talent, both international and local.

Which brings me to the CD you are holding in your hands. It was recorded on
November 26th and 27th 2011, live at Andyâs Jazz Club in Chicago, and
features two of my current band members. Jordan Baskin on piano and Brian
Ritter on drums. Jeff Pedraz a young bassist from Philadelphia filling in for
Jake Vinsal. Keep in mind, these players are all in their 30âs, which means they were
just kids the first time I took the stage at Andyâs thirty years ago.
Thirty. Itâs a nice round number, a hefty number, one that might describe a
marriage made in heaven, a job you do for love, a home youâd never want to
leave. Yeah, thatâs how I feel about Andyâs. My home. And could any musician
have been more fortunate than me to live my musical life here? Thanks Andyâs.
Thanks, Chicago.
Special thanks to my family, Judy, Sara, Julian and Spencer, for putting up with
the many moods of Mike Smith; My Parents, Al and Carole, who still are my biggest
fans and never told me to get a real job; My brother Eric, his wife Kathy and their family;
Pat and Leroy Scott, in-laws who never considered me an out-law. To Steven Wasser,
president of Powell Flutes, for his enthusism and commitment to our new saxophone, the
âSilver Eagleâ by Powell, and Chris French, who built it; Rico Reeds, who have supported
me thru most of my career; Jim Riggs who is still giving me lessons even though he
doesnât realize it. To my band, Jordan Baskin, Jake Vinsal, Jeff Pedraz, and Brian Ritter,
who give me the friendship and respect I need to create; Frank Sinatra Jr., my friend as
well as boss, who is responsible for much of my success in this business we call music.
And thanks, to all my friends, those still swinging, as well as those who have passed on,
who have shared a stage with me: Angie Basagas, Ronnie Kolber, Bob Centano, Eddie
Morgan, Jim Fox, Paul Rostock, Terry Anthony, Bob Chmel, Walt Johnson, Sid Jacobs,
Rob Parton, Jeff Morrison, Nat Adderley, James Moody, Rocco Giglio, Bill Reglin, Dave
Brandom, Hank Cattaneo, Buddy Rich, Paul Malin, Jobelle Yonely, Joe and Carmel Malin,
Conrad Herwig, Jochen Keilwerth, Gerhard Keilwerth, Jim Snidero, Joel Spencer,
Dick Reynolds, Freddie Breitberg, Joe Picuri, Billy Rogers, Paul Holderbaum,
Nick Brignola, Vince Herring, Buddy Childers, Maynard Fergusen,Carl Fontana,
Rich Matteson, Dave Santoro, Steve Abbott, Ron Farino, Bruce Otto, Dan Higgins,
John Whitfield, Doug Lawrence, Francois Kloc, Chris Coppinger, Gerry Labelle,
Walt Weiskopf, Dennis Carroll, Ron Perillo, George Fludas, Dan Trudell, Eric Schneider,
Pat Mallinger, Ron Friedman, Brad Williams, Jim Ryan, Bob Rummage, Eric Montzka,
Jodi Christian, Robert Shy, Larry Luchowski, Paul Wertico, Jerry DiMuzio, Jerry Coleman,
Larry Gray.