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Photos from the Charlie Hunter Trio live at Yoshi’s West in San Francisco on December 13, 2007. The trio featured Charlie on guitar, Scott Amendola on drums, and Erik Deutsch on keys, along with special guests the Campbell Brothers on steel guitars.

Scott Amendola (percussion) and Wil Blades (B3) recently invited Jeff Parker (guitar) to San Francisco to play a couple of gigs. I was lucky enough to catch the trio performing live at the Red Poppy Art House on August 12, 2007. Jeff hails all the way from the Chicago music scene, and it was a real treat to have him play with Wil and Scott in such an intimate venue in the Mission. It’s also worth noting that Wil just released his first CD titled Sketchy, so make sure to check that out sometime. Below, I’ve included a few photos from the trio’s show at the Poppy as well as one sample audio track from the first set of that night’s performance — a composition by Scott called Slow Zig, which can be found on his 1999 album The Scott Amendola Band.

 Slow Zig (MP3 Audio) [11:02m]: Play Now | Download

Here’s a 17-minute audio clip and a few photos from a recent live performance by Scott Amendola, Wil Blades, Jeff Cressman, and Ben Goldberg at Intersection for the Arts on May 1, 2007.

 MP3 Audio Sample [16:50m]: Play Now | Download

I archived an inspiring performance by Plays Monk live at Intersection for the Arts on November 14, 2006. The band features a wealth of talent that focuses intensely on interpreting the work of Thelonious Monk, and includes Ben Goldberg on clarinet, Devin Hoff on contra bass, and Scott Amendola playing drums. And because of their generous willingness to let me share the recording I made, you’ll find MP3 audio files of all twelve songs they played as well as a seven-minute web video of Track 11: Evidence at the links below. Experiencing music like this live is so hard to describe sometimes, but I think these quotes from the musicians themselves provide the best insights into what Plays Monk is all about. So, please enjoy the recordings, and make sure to support these guys and Intersection for the Arts the next chance you get!

 QuickTime Video [11:30m]: Play Now | Download
 Windows Media Video [11:30m]: Play Now | Download
 Reflections [8:51m]: Play Now | Download
 Eronel [8:04m]: Play Now | Download
 Nutty [9:03m]: Play Now | Download
 Skippy [6:07m]: Play Now | Download
 Ask Me Now [7:32m]: Play Now | Download
 Teo [4:43m]: Play Now | Download
 Four in One [7:48m]: Play Now | Download
 Shuffle Boil [6:01m]: Play Now | Download
 Epistrophy [9:33m]: Play Now | Download
 Ugly Beauty [8:12m]: Play Now | Download
 Evidence [12:27m]: Play Now | Download
 Light Blue [7:10m]: Play Now | Download

After arranging to make a sweet recording of Scott Amendola and Wil Blades playing at the Intersection for the Arts series Jazz at the De Young Museum, I decided to keep the day a little more mellow and just go hang out, enjoy the beautiful day outside, and take some photos of them instead of recording. They put on a fantastic show, and we were delighted to see a second performance inside related to the opening of the Quilts of Gee’s Bend exhibit at the de Young. We really couldn’t have asked for a better day that was full of culture, art, and music! And if you’re really dying to hear some of Scott and Wil’s duo performance, you should check out our video from one of their performances a few months back at the Red Poppy Art House.

I recently had the good fortune of recording Wil Blades on his Hammond B3 organ and Leslie amp and Scott Amendola on drums playing live in a duo format at the Red Poppy Art House in the Mission District. I met Wil through another drummer a few months ago, and when I noticed he was playing at the Red Poppy (a venue I’ve taped at previously), I contacted him to see if he’d be cool with making another live recording. Luckily for me and you, both he and Scott agreed. The two of them have been performing together in various musical arrangements for the last few years, and the duo concept came out of their interest in keeping the music open, dynamic, and wide. On this night, the two played some of their original compositions as well as parts of Duke Ellington’s Far East Suite (arranging it down from a 15-piece band to a duo format!). Wil and Scott were gracious enough to grant me permission to share the entire recording of both sets plus a four-minute video from the night’s performance. So please enjoy the recordings, and don’t forget to support both of these amazing musicians whenever you have the chance. You can find more info about their albums and upcoming gigs on their respective websites that are linked above.

 QuickTime Video [4:37m]: Play Now | Download
 Windows Media Video [4:37m]: Play Now | Download
 Blades & Amendola 1st Set [44:01m]: Play Now | Download
 Blades & Amendola 2nd Set [45:34m]: Play Now | Download