July 25, 2008
Bob Thompson, Laura Evans Together Saturday at Frederick’s 21
By Tony Rutherford
Huntingtonnews.net Entertainment Editor
Huntington, WV (HNN) – Whether you prefer a leisurely paced cocktails , dinner and entertainment or just a little jazz, you must mark Saturday on your calendar.
Laura Evans left her job as ex ecutive director of the Huntington Symphony Orchestra to pursue playing jazz, writing lyrics and recording with Bob Thompson, a legendary pianist, regularly featured on “Mountain Stage,” the internationally broadcast public radio series.
Both she and Thompson perform Saturday at the Jazz Café evening at the Frederick’s 21, 940 Fourth Avenue, Huntington.
Having played piano and studied music since age five, Evans sang with Thompson during a symphony fundraiser in February at the now defunct Arthur’s Restaurant, 322 Tenth Street. For Evans, though, it had been a chat with the West Virginia jazz legend at a tiny bar that helped turn her from an administrator back to a performer like she had been in New York City.
Thompson has flourished into a West Virginia and international jazz icon. On one of his latest releases, “Hit from the Git,” the keyboardist molded his music akin to the groovy soulful sounds of Herbie Hancock. His professional career has spanned 30 years and for the last decade plus one year, Thompson’s holiday jazz show, “Joy to the World” has been a staple of Public Radio International.
Describing his music as “warm and inviting as a cup of cocoa on a winter day without leaving a too sweet after taste,” the graduate of West Virginia State College (now University) remembers early advice from Chicago saxophonist Bunky Green: “Whenever you sit down to your instrument, play as though it might be the last time. Don’t fool around, don’t jive. Go ahead and say what you’ve got to say.”
Thompson prefers a little bar somewhere to the big stage. “The kind of connection I like happens a lot when we’re playing in a small club, and that carries over when we get into a larger venue.”
The price for Saturday’s cocktails, full course dinner, show and dessert is $100. Or, you can attend the Thompson / Evans performance for $25. Check out the old world charm of 21 by clicking: http://www.21frederick.com/blank.html, call (304) 529-0222, or make an on-line reservation at: http://www.21frederick.com/con tactus.html
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Bob Thompson, Laura Evans Together Saturday at Frederick’s 21
By Tony Rutherford
Huntingtonnews.net Entertainment Editor
Huntington, WV (HNN) – Whether you prefer a leisurely paced cocktails , dinner and entertainment or just a little jazz, you must mark Saturday on your calendar.
Laura Evans left her job as ex ecutive director of the Huntington Symphony Orchestra to pursue playing jazz, writing lyrics and recording with Bob Thompson, a legendary pianist, regularly featured on “Mountain Stage,” the internationally broadcast public radio series.
Both she and Thompson perform Saturday at the Jazz Café evening at the Frederick’s 21, 940 Fourth Avenue, Huntington.
Having played piano and studied music since age five, Evans sang with Thompson during a symphony fundraiser in February at the now defunct Arthur’s Restaurant, 322 Tenth Street. For Evans, though, it had been a chat with the West Virginia jazz legend at a tiny bar that helped turn her from an administrator back to a performer like she had been in New York City.
Thompson has flourished into a West Virginia and international jazz icon. On one of his latest releases, “Hit from the Git,” the keyboardist molded his music akin to the groovy soulful sounds of Herbie Hancock. His professional career has spanned 30 years and for the last decade plus one year, Thompson’s holiday jazz show, “Joy to the World” has been a staple of Public Radio International.
Describing his music as “warm and inviting as a cup of cocoa on a winter day without leaving a too sweet after taste,” the graduate of West Virginia State College (now University) remembers early advice from Chicago saxophonist Bunky Green: “Whenever you sit down to your instrument, play as though it might be the last time. Don’t fool around, don’t jive. Go ahead and say what you’ve got to say.”
Thompson prefers a little bar somewhere to the big stage. “The kind of connection I like happens a lot when we’re playing in a small club, and that carries over when we get into a larger venue.”
The price for Saturday’s cocktails, full course dinner, show and dessert is $100. Or, you can attend the Thompson / Evans performance for $25. Check out the old world charm of 21 by clicking: http://www.21frederick.com/blank.html, call (304) 529-0222, or make an on-line reservation at: http://www.21frederick.com/con tactus.html
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