Palladium kicks off another season of great jazz Wednesday with Nate, Chuck Redd and Tommy Cecil

I had really hoped summer wouldn’t end so soon, but I can’t stop the clock. Fall is arriving and it’s time to launch our new season of shows.

 

We’re kicking off our jazz season Wednesday night with a special Side Door concert featuring three Palladium favorites – Nate Najar, Chuck Redd and Tommy Cecil. Chuck, the great D.C. drummer and vibes player, is here once or twice a year – often leading the Statesmen of Jazz. And Tommy Cecil plays bass on most of Nate Najar’s albums and was last here with Nate over the summer.

 

As for Nate, we’re also celebrating the 10th Anniversary of his Jazz Holiday concert on Thursday, Dec. 17. We’re pulling out the stops for this one. Nate will be backed by a 14-piece all-star big band featuring  John Lamb, Chuck Redd, Ken Peplowski, Harry Allen, Jon Erik Kelso, Bill Allred, James Suggs, Jeff Rupert and more.

 

Another great jazz guitarist, Julian Lage, will be here in the Side Door with his trio on Sunday, Nov. 15. Julian’s is  Grammy nominee and his list of collaborators includes Jim Hall, Mark O’Connor, Nels Cline, Chris Eldridge, Scott Colley & Antonio Sanchez, Gary Burton, David Grisman, Eric Harland, Anthony Wilson, Martin Taylor, Joshua Bell & Yoko Ono.

 

Vocalist Whitney James returns for two shows this season in the Side Door. Her first show is Saturday, Nov. 7 when she’s performing the songs of Barbara Streisand and Bette Midler. Expect these great songs to be filtered through Whitney’s unique style. She’ll be back on Friday, Feb. 12 with her annual Valentine’s show of love songs and more. Expect both those shows to sell out, so get your tickets early.

 

There’s more great jazz in October with Side Door appearances by keyboard master Shawn Brown on Saturday, Oct. 24 and our friends with the Al Downing Jazz Society are presenting drummer, percussionist and bandleader Thomas Carabasi, leading his Samba Jazz Quintet. The show will feature some other Palladium favorites – Patrick Bettison (bass/harmonica), Phil Fest (guitar/vocals), Robert Prester (piano) and Perry Childs (sax/flute).

 

We’ve got some big band appearces too – including the return of the Helios Jazz Orcestra, and a free concert on Nov. 1 by the Jazz Ambassadors of the U.S. Army Field Band.

 

We’re also partnering with the Suncoast Jazz Classic to present Tom Rigney and Flambeau, who tore up the Side Door last year with their combination  of New Orleans jazz and blues, boogie woogie, and swing. That show is Thursday, Nov. 19.

 

In the new year we’re welcoming back Nicki Parrott, Rossano Sportiello and Ed Metz, for what will be another sold-out night in the Side Door.

 

And on Sunday, April 10, our friend at the Bill Edwards Foundation for the Arts are presenting Grammy-winning saxophonist and flautist Najee, one of the pioneers of contemporary jazz. Najee has three platinum and five gold albums. He has worked with many artists including Quincy Jones, George Duke, Chaka Khan and Lionel Richie – and most recently he performed as a special guest artist on Prince’s “Hit and Run” tour