Woody Allen and His New Orleans Jazz Band – Dec. 19, 8 p.m. – Copley Symphony Hall, $20
Watch any Woody Allen film — the influence of jazz on his life and art is undeniable. It was only a matter of time before Allen, a long-time clarinet player, gathered a lineup of talented jazz musicians and started making the music himself.
Normally, film-made celebrities who try their hand at making music fall flat on their faces with lack of talent. But Allen takes a different route than rock-star hopefuls like Bruce Willis and Jared Leto: He’s long surrounded himself with the greats and schooled himself in the fundamentals of jazz, currently living out his dedication to the music by touring with his New Orleans ensemble. Allen’s understanding of the clarinet shines through articulate yet slinky notes, crooning alongside the scale-sliding trombone of Jerry Zigmont and the pulsating horn blasts of Simon Wettenhall.
Dixieland, often overlooked in favor of founding artists like Louis Armstrong, Benny Goodman, Charlie Parker and, later, Miles Davis, played a key role in the growth of an American phenomenon. The fundamentals of jazz — from swing to bop to cool — were all introduced by early Dixie artists. Allen’s highly recognized commitment to the styles of such an undervalued period is key in keeping its soul alive. His music is the closest thing this side of Bourbon Street to the sound and spirit of those crackly old 78s your grandparents played on their gramophone — save for the Disneyland Dixie band, but who’s going to pay $100 to see a band with a 20-minute set?
Allen brings his own brand of New Orleans jazz from the streets of Manhattan to Copley Hall on Dec. 19. Joining Allen in his 21st-century resuscitation of an oft-forgotten musical foundation will be Zigmont and Wettenhall, Cynthia Sayer on piano, Conal Fowlkes on string bass and Rob Garcia on drums. (CM)
Friday, Dec. 1:
Hi-Tek – The Belly Up Tavern
It’s only a matter of time before Hi-Tek’s name starts getting thrown in the tracing of new DJs’ techniques back to their sources. His exclusion so far can most likely be attributed to a difficultly identified sound — most know him best for his work in Mood and on Black Star, so effortlessly complete we often forget it’s there. Tek’s new album, Hi-Teknology 2, triumphs verses from Ghostface, Nas and more under an umbrella of rich hooks and wave-crashing beats. (SW)
The Coup & Mr. Lif – The House of Blues
Key players in hip-hop’s elbow-nudgin’, sexed-up funk niche made popular by Outkast, Mr. Lif and the wily Coup boys bring some seriously spazzed-out shit to the stage. Both have seen mounting success with their newest releases: Lif entrances with a monotone Jamaica drag-flow over erratic beats by El-P on Mo’ Mega and Coup do the dirty thing all night long on Pick a Bigger Weapon, spewing some political satire along the way. (SW)
