Chicago Adds New Jazz Club

Chicago is about to get another jazz venue.  Greg Pasenko and his wife, Diane Delin, are in the process of renovating a site at 1540 West North Avenue into the Club Blujazz.  Pasenko and Delin run the Blujazz label.  It is expected that the club will spotlight their music, as well as other local and national artists.

For more information, click here.

Enjoying Some Christmas Gift CDs

I received some non-jazz CDs for Christmas and have been enjoying them the past few weeks.  The tunes are all Minnesota-grown and include Bob Dylan, The Jayhawks, and The Replacements.  The last has to be one of my all-time favorite non-jazz groups.

It has been a good break from the usual for me.  I would never have bought the music (let alone CDs!) so a nice detour into the folk/rock genre.  Also a great way to start the new year.

Happy New Year to all.

Chicago Tribune Printers Row Article Corrected

I received word from the Chicago Tribune that a correction has been issued in today's edition on the use of the wrong titles in Elizabeth Taylor's column on best books of the year (Chicago Tribune Printers Row 12/5/09).  The correction appears on page 2 of the paper.

As I had previously blogged, Ms. Taylor had provided the wrong titles for both of her choices for best books of the year.  After trying to purchase the books at my neighborhood bookstore, I was amazed to find that Taylor's choices were both listed incorrectly.

I am glad to see that the errors have been corrected and am very appreciative of the Chicago Tribune's Amy Guth for following up.  I have to say I am a little disheartened by the lack of apparent response by others in the Chicago area.  I am hopeful that there are other "book-nerds" out there and I hope to connect with you all.

Merry Christmas to all!

Evanston Township High School Jazz Festival

Evanston Township High School has announced its Seventh Annual Evanston Jazz Festival. The event focuses on educating high school jazz students and showcasing their talents. The festival attracts more than 300 student musicians from school bands as far away as Winnipeg, Canada to as near as Chicago, Illinois, this year with more than 40 bands and combos from over 16 schools.

The Jazz Festival will be held Saturday February 6, 2010 at the Evanston Township High School, 1600 Dodge Avenue, Evanston, IL.  The Festival will run from 9:00 am until 10:00 pm.  For additional information check out http://www.ethsjazz.com/.

Chicago Tribune Printers Row Book Section

I am still leading my one man crusade against the outrageous mistakes in this past Saturday's Literary Editor's column on the best books of 2009.

The Editor listed two books (written by her close, personal "friends") as best books of the year. The problem is that BOTH book titles are wrong. We are not talking little mistakes either. The titles are completely wrong with only ONE word correct in each. There still has been no retraction or correction by the Tribune.