Smoke Jazz Club Announces Fall Concert Schedule

One of New York City's premier live music venues, Smoke Jazz Club, presents a stellar line-up of both legendary jazz performers and emerging voices for the fall season. Acclaimed for its essential music programming and inspired setting, Smoke Jazz Club recently reopened to much fanfare after being closed to indoor performances and dining for over two years. This revered institution has undertaken an impressive expansion and renovation that anchors its place as a world-renowned destination for the best in classic and modern jazz.

The fall season comprises four Smoke Sessions Records releases: legendary drummer Al Foster Reflections (Sep 1-4); Steve Turre and his Sextet Generations (Sep 14); Nicholas Payton Trio (Nov 10-13) and a special Thanksgiving Day weekend concert series by Wayne Escoffery Quintet (Nov 25-27). The inimitable pianist/composer Vijay Iyer makes his Smoke Jazz Club debut (Sep 15-18). An all-star roster of Joe Lovano (tenor saxophone), Kevin Hays (piano), Ben Street (bass), and Al Foster (drums) celebrates one of jazz's most prolific composers, Thelonious Monk, in an unforgettable four-night run (Oct 13-16). Please scroll down for more artist information and complete schedule or visit SMOKEjazz.com. When: Every Wednesday-Sunday @ 7:00 p.m. + 9:00 p.m. and additional 10:30 p.m.
(Fri & Sat only). Doors open at 5:00 p.m.

Full Lineup:

Thr-Sun Sep 1-4 Al Foster Quintet: Reflections (Smoke Sessions Records) cd release
Chris Potter - tenor saxophone
Nicholas Payton - trumpet
Kevin Hays - piano
Vicente Archer - bass
Al Foster - drums

The great drummer Al Foster celebrates the release of his eloquent and important new recording. Available now on Smoke Sessions Records, Reflections pays tribute and offers thanks to loved ones and mentors such as Herbie Hancock and Miles Davis. Foster is well-known for his long association with Miles Davis. His melodic drumming and rhythmic inventions were the pulse of Davis' bands throughout the '70s and '80s. In his autobiography, Miles related that he hired Al because, "he could set up shit for everyone else to play off and could keep the groove going forever." Celebrated for making everyone around him sound better, Foster's life in music has numerous other highlights including important work with Sonny Rollins, Herbie Hancock, Stan Getz, McCoy Tyner, and Joe Henderson. Rollins called him "the last of the great living jazz drummers." This special Labor Day Weekend concert series features a simply brilliant quintet including trumpeter Nicholas Payton, saxophonist Chris Potter, pianist Kevin Hays, and bassist Vicente Archer.

Thr-Sun Sep 8-11 Eddie Henderson Quintet
Eddie Henderson - trumpet
Donald Harrison - alto saxophone
George Cables - piano
Gerald Cannon - bass
Lenny White - drums

Trumpet master Eddie Henderson's "deft feel and plush sound made him a central figure in the worlds of jazz-funk and hard-bop in the 1970s" according to The New York Times. But the eternally youthful Henderson's more recent recordings have also been widely acclaimed and prove that he is making some of the most important music of his career into his 80s. The Chicago Reader adds, "His progressive, assured, and imaginative improvisations roll out in a glorious sun-splashed tone... he seems to dance through his solos, balancing his quick clockwork technique with bursts of bluesy soul." According to Downbeat, "His musical wisdom, gleaned during decades spent on the best jazz bandstands, informs every unerring note."Henderson leads his peerless quintet featuring an incredible lineup of alto saxophonist Donald Harrison, pianist George Cables, bassist Gerald Cannon, and drummer Lenny White-all important bandleaders themselves.

Wed Sep 14 Steve Turre Sextet: Generations (Smoke Sessions Records) cd release
Steve Turre - trombone & shells
Wallace Roney Jr. - trumpet
Emilio Modeste - tenor saxophone
Isaiah Thompson - piano
Corcoran Holt - bass
Orion Turre - drums

Steve Turre, a legendary artistic innovator on both the trombone and seashells, celebrates the release of his new album Generations (Smoke Sessions Records, TBR 9/16). His energetic and youthful ensemble includes trumpeter Wallace Roney Jr., saxophonist Emilio Modeste, pianist Isaiah Thompson, bassist Corcoran Holt and drummer Orion Turre, an impressive crop of emerging jazz voices. Turre's own storied career includes work alongside music legends such as Ray Charles, Rahsaan Roland Kirk, and Woody Shaw, and he has consistently won both the Readers' and Critics' polls in JazzTimes, Downbeat, and Jazziz for "Best Trombone" and for "Best Miscellaneous Instrumentalist (shells)." A versatile master and true jazz original, he's equally at home on everything from swinging classic bop lines or conjuring Rahsaan over a deep groove. Downbeat says, "Few artists 'own' their instrument to the degree that trombonist Steve Turre does. Whether playing the music of Rahsaan Roland Kirk, performing as a member of the Saturday Night Live house band or with one of his own units, his voice is distinctive and memorable."

Thr-Sun Sep 15-18 Vijay Iyer Trio
Vijay Iyer - piano
Harish Raghavan - bass
Jeremy Dutton - drums
featuring special guest
Graham Haynes - trumpet (Fri & Sat only)

Vijay Iyer was described by The New York Times as a "social conscience, multimedia collaborator, system builder, rhapsodist, historical thinker and multicultural gateway." He is also one of the most celebrated and renowned pianists and composers of the 21st century. He is the recipient of a MacArthur Fellowship, among many accolades, and was named Downbeat's Jazz Artist of the Year four times in the last decade. He was called "an American treasure" by Minnesota Public Radio and has been praised by Pitchfork as "one of the best in the world at what he does." His most recent recording UnEasy features an illuminating and mesmerizing trio and he leads another one here with bassist Harish Raghavan and drummer Jeremy Dutton for his highly anticipated Smoke Jazz Club debut. Iyer will also feature special guest trumpeter Graham Haynes on Friday and Saturday only.

Thr-Sun Sep 22-25 One For All
Jim Rotondi - trumpet
Eric Alexander - tenor saxophone
Steve Davis - trombone
David Hazeltine - piano
John Webber - bass
Joe Farnsworth - drums

Originally influenced by the music of Art Blakey, Horace Silver, Art Farmer, and Benny Golson, the beloved sextet One for All has been called "New York's premier hard bop supergroup," by Jazz Times. "Cohesive and interdependent, these musicians bring out the best in one another," adds All About Jazz. The band's name is taken from Steve Davis's composition and title track for Blakey's final Jazz Messengers album, One for All.This original lineup featuring trumpeter Jim Rotondi, saxophonist Eric Alexander, trombonist Steve Davis, pianist David Hazeltine, bassist Peter Washington, and drummer Joe Farnsworth first performed together 25 years ago. Over that quarter century, One for All has delivered many unforgettable performances at Smoke, as they are sure to do again.

Wed Sep 28 Micah Thomas Trio
Micah Thomas - piano
Dean Torrey - bass
Kayvon Gordon - drums


Pianist Micah Thomas is one of the emerging leaders of a new generation that is bringing fresh perspective and creative energy to the modern jazz tradition. In addition to leading his trio, Thomas is a steady member of the Immanuel Wilkins Quartet and the Giveton Gelin Quintet, and as a sideman for Ambrose Akinmusire, Lage Lund, Joel Ross, Nicole Glover, Melissa Aldana, Gabe Schnider and others. The New York Timesstates, "Only occasionally - a few times in a generation, even - does a pianist come along who seems to have gobbled up and processed so much music, their style can make sense of both jazz's history and its present in a single motion. Micah Thomas is one of those players."

Thr-Sun Sep 29-Oct 2 Elio Villafranca & The Jass Syncopators cd release
Elio Villafranca - piano
Steve Wilson - alto & soprano saxophone
Vincent Herring - tenor saxophone and flute
Alex Norris - trumpet
Edward Perez - bass
Dion Parson - drums
Mauricio Herrera - percussion

Smoke is thrilled to welcome back Cuban jazz pianist and composer Elio Villafranca to celebrate the release of his latest album Standing at the Crossroads. This recording speaks about his own life experiences as an artist, growing up in the small town of San Luis, Pinar del Rio, surrounded by Congolese drums, educated in Russian classical music, while falling in love with jazz. Elio Villafranca leads his exciting group the Jazz Syncopators. Villafranca is a spellbinding pianist who has recorded and performed with master artists such as Pat Martino, Terell Stafford, Billy Hart, Paquito D'Rivera, Eric Alexander, Lewis Nash, David Murray, and Wynton Marsalis. He brings an original musical perspective and is at the forefront of an exciting new generation of musicians. Downbeat states, "Villafranca has emerged as a commanding presence on the jazz scene, not just in the U.S. but throughout the world." The Jass Syncopators highlight the significant influence from the Caribbean region, specifically from Cuba, on jazz music from its earliest days in New Orleans.

Thr-Sun Oct 6-9 Cyrus Chestnut Quartet
Cyrus Chestnut - piano
Freddie Hendrix - trumpet
TBA - bass
Willie Jones III - drums

Thr-Sun Oct 13-16 Bird & Diz: Dizzy Gillespie Celebration

Wed Oct 19 Amina Figarova Sextet
Amina Figarova - piano
Wayne Escoffery - tenor saxophone
Alex Pope Norris - trumpet
Bart Platteau - flutes
Yasushi Nakamura - bass
Rudy Royston - drums

Thr-Sun Oct 20-23 The Music of Monk: Hays/Lovano/Foster/Street
Joe Lovano - tenor saxophone
Kevin Hays - piano
Ben Street - bass
Al Foster - drums

Thu-Sun Oct 27-30 Russell Malone Quartet
Russell Malone - guitar
Rick Germanson - piano
Vincent Dupont - bass
Neal Smith - drums

Thr-Sun Nov 3-6 Charles McPherson Quartet
Charles McPherson - alto saxophone
Terell Stafford - trumpet
Jeb Patton - piano
David Wong - bass
Billy Drummond - drums

Thr-Sun Nov 10-13 Nicholas Payton Trio featuring Buster Williams & Lenny White (Smoke Sessions Records) cd release
Nicholas Payton - trumpet, piano & Rhodes
Buster Williams - bass
Lenny White - drums

Fri-Sun Nov 25-27 Wayne Escoffery Quintet (Smoke Sessions Records) cd release