Cliff Bell's

Closed for a Private Event
2015-12-10 00:00 - 23:59, 2015-10-08 00:00 - 23:59 UTC

The Chris Potter Trio
2015-12-02 20:00 UTC
A tenorist who can remind you of Joe Henderson at his craftiest, he employs his considerable technique in the service of music rather than spectacle.
The New Yorker
Purchase Tickets Here!
A world-class soloist, accomplished composer, and formidable bandleader, Grammy Award nominated saxophonist Chris Potter has emerged as a leading light of his generation. Potter’s music shows limitless creativity and a vibrant sense of swing, prompting critics, musicians, and fans alike to cite him as the one of the finest saxophonists today. Throughout his career, Potter has performed and recorded with artists as diverse as Steely Dan and Herbie Hancock, and has toured the world over with the Dave Holland Quintet, the Overtone Quartet, and his own projects like the jazz-funk group, Chris Potter’s Underground.
http://www.chrispotter.net/

Closed
2015-11-30 00:00 - 23:59, 2015-11-23 00:00 - 23:59, 2015-11-09 00:00 - 23:59, 2015-11-02 00:00 - 23:59, 2015-10-02 00:00 - 23:59 UTC

Mark Randisi and The Motor City Jazz Orchestra
2015-11-29 18:00 UTC
“Celebrating 100 years of Sinatra!” and the release of their debut CD: Hello, Detroit. Detroit-based record label, Brass Jar Music, is happy to announce the release of Hello, Detroit! Mark Randisi’s long-awaited release with The Motor City Jazz Orchestra during the 100th Anniversary Year of Frank Sinatra’s birth. At the same time it is a tribute to Detroit, with a new rendition of Hello, Detroit! (first recorded by Sammy Davis, Jr. for Motown, and written by Berry Gordy Jr.)
The Motor City Jazz Orchestra is one of Detroit’s newest and more eclectic large ensembles, having performed in a variety of venues around Detroit, including The Museum of Contemporary Art and Design (MOCAD) as part of New Music Detroit’s annual marathon of contemporary music and performance – Strange Beautiful Music, Fifth Avenue Billiards, Freedom Hill, and The Henry Ford Museum. Commissioned arrangements for this ensemble include music by Grammy-winning arrangers David Van De Pitte and Bill Cunliffe, featuring instrumental settings of popular songs by Frank Zappa, Steely Dan, and other popular artists and bands. In addition to their unique selections of contemporary and popular music, the MCJO has a repertoire of more traditional and standard big band arrangements. Members include top musicians in the area, including The Motor City Horns, from Bob Seger and The Silver Bullet Band.
When Italian tenor, Andrew Bocelli first heard Mark Randisi sing, he believed he was listening to a recording of Frank Sinatra. That’s a common response among Mark’s fans. He has opened up for Ray Charles, Joan Rivers, Don Rickles, and many others. He has traveled across the US and Europe revisiting classic Frank Sinatra standards, keeping the classic sound and style alive.
http://markrandisi.brassjarmusic.com

Closed for Thanksgiving
2015-11-26 00:00 - 23:59 UTC

Mathew "The Boogie Woogie Kid" Ball
2015-11-18 20:00 UTC
Described as “Michigan’s leading boogie-woogie pianist!” by The Farmington Patch, “A boogie-woogie master!” by The Romeo Observer, and “A rising giant in the field!” by Metroland, Matthew Ball is a graduate of Oakland University and The University of Detroit. He holds degrees in Music, History and Law. He trained classically at Oakland University with the internationally renown classical pianist Flavio Varani, a graduate of The Paris Conservatory and Manhattan School of Music, who traced his own pedigree of study back to Chopin himself!
Recently featured on NPR’s All Things Considered and Morning Edition as well as Michigan Public Radio’s Ann Delisi’s Essential Music, The Craig Fahle Show and WMUK’s The Art & More Show, Matthew performs classic Ragtime, Boogie-woogie & Blues piano favorites from the Swingin’ era of the 20’s 30’s & 40’s, with arrangements of American favorites like Swanee River, Glory of Love, Sheik of Araby, Waltzing Matilda, Over the Rainbow, The Entertainer, In the Mood, Bumble Boogie, Chopsticks Boogie, and so many more.
http://www.boogiewoogiekid.com/

Kenny Zimglinghaus
2015-11-18 20:00 (America/Detroit)
Purchase advance tickets here!
Kenny Zimlinghaus is a stand up comic who can be heard every morning on the Sirius XM 109 show “Wake Up with Taylor”. Kenny has been doing stand-up comedy for over 15 years and has performed all over the country. His debut release “Night Pageant” immediately went to #1 on Itunes upon it’s release in April of 2015.
Kenny also starred in the film “Wedgerino” which won ‘Best Offbeat Comedy” at the 2015 Manhattan Film Festival. The film also has been selected to be screened at the Chain Film Festival in NYC and Middlebury New Filmmakers Festival in Vermont.
Kenny Zimlinghaus has a loyal following from his years in radio and prides himself on giving his audiences a uniquely hilarious show every time he comes to town.
http://zimlinghauscomedy.com/

The Karl E. H. Seigfried Trio
2015-11-13 21:00 UTC
“Karl Seigfried is one of those Chicago presences that helps make the city a great one for jazz. Highly recommended.” -Cadence Magazine

Karl E. H. Seigfried is a critically-acclaimed bassist and guitarist deeply involved in the Chicago music scene. He has performed and recorded in virtually all musical styles — jazz and classical, country and rock, traditional and avant-garde. He has received rave international reviews for his performances and compositions documented on twenty-five recordings.
Karl has performed duets with Bobby McFerrin, Fred Hopkins, Peter Kowald and Nik Turner and played in ensembles fronted by Roscoe Mitchell, Fred Anderson, Henry Grimes, George Lewis and Bertram Turetzky. He has also appeared on stage with Saturday Night Live’s Martin Short. His recorded collaborations include work with members of Hawkwind, Gong, Jefferson Starship, Cartoon, Psychic TV and Lucky Leif & the Longships.
Karl produced, co-wrote and played bass and guitar for Of Alien Feelings, the new album by Calvin Weston, legendary drummer for Ornette Coleman, James “Blood” Ulmer, Derek Bailey, Marc Ribot, James Carter and many others. The album’s lineup of players features a cross-section of virtuoso instrumentalists from modern jazz and progressive rock: Todd Rundgren (Utopia), John Medeski (Medeski Martin & Wood), Jack Walrath (Charles Mingus Quintet), John Helliwell (Supertramp), Jay Beckenstein (Spyro Gyra), Vernon Reid (Living Colour), Nik Turner (Hawkind) and Thijs van Leer (Focus). Click here to listen to samples of all tracks from the album.
Karl has played bass in big bands for nearly twenty years, including with such diverse groups as the AACM Great Black Music Ensemble and the Glenn Miller Orchestra. He is a founding member of Saalik Ziyad’s NSA Ensemble, an intergenerational and multicultural group that plays completely original music. He has also performed with Alan Gresik’s Swing Shift Orchestra, the swinging big band that has been in residency at Chicago’s historic Green Mill since the 1990s.

http://www.seigfried.org

Victor Ghannam
2015-11-11 20:00 UTC
Victor Ghannam is a self-taught multi-instrumentalist who has performed throughout North, Central and South America, primarily on oud and qanun. A 30-year veteran of the stage, he has toured with many of the leading recording artists of the Arab World and is most recognized for his dazzling improvisations combining passion, technical brilliance, creative adventure and intensity.
https://www.facebook.com/victor.ghannam

Chad McCullough & Bram Weijters
2015-11-08 18:00 UTC
“…truly a perfect match creatively.” – EMUSIC.COM

Featuring:
Chad McCullough – trumpet
Bram Weijters – piano & keyboards
Piet Verbist – bass
John Bishop – drums

Through their first two recordings, the Belgian / American band led by pianist Bram Weijters and trumpeter Chad McCullough firmly established a musical style that’s equal parts melancholic and hopeful. Along with bassist Piet Verbist and drummer John Bishop, they have built a musical bond over the past 5 years that has led them around the globe, with their continued successes due in no small part to their ability to connect with audiences. For their third album, they continue to expand their compositional and textural palette, with the opening track, “Billions” hitting the ground running, as other compositions stretch from gospel-inspired (“Glorious Traffic Jam”) to pensive (“Hesitation”), and folk-like (“Winter’s Lament”). The co-leaders explore an intimate duo setting on “The Same (Prelude)” and “Before Acceptance,” providing a textural and tonal contrast to the full band. –

http://originarts.com/recordings/recording.php?TitleID=82683#sthash.x9ARjSr9.dpuf

Tim Haldemen Quartet
2015-10-25 18:00 - 20:30 UTC
“A superb tenor saxophonist” Peter Margasak, Chicago Reader
Primarily a saxophonist, Tim Haldeman experiments with woodwinds, guitars, percussion, singing, and composition. He started playing saxophones more than 20 years ago, and has been performing, touring (U.S., Europe, Canada), and recording with some of Chicago’s premiere jazz groups since 1997, including Mike Reed’s People, Places and Things, and Matt Ulery’s Loom. He holds a B. A. in Jazz Performance from The Chicago College of the Performing Arts at Roosevelt University, and has studied saxophone with the likes of Bob Shepard, Jim Gailloretto, Mark Hynes, and Ron Dewar. Haldeman currently lives in his home town of Ann Arbor, MI, where he leads his own trio and quartet, and performs with Dan Bennett’s Legendary Wings, featuring Nick Collins, Matt Endahl, and Jordan Schug.

Mark Randisi and The Motor City Jazz Orchestra
2015-10-12 08:00 - 17:00 UTC
“Celebrating 100 years of Sinatra!” and the release of their debut CD: Hello, Detroit!
Detroit-based record label, Brass Jar Music, is happy to announce the release of Hello, Detroit! Mark Randisi’s long-awaited release with The Motor City Jazz Orchestra during the 100th Anniversary Year of Frank Sinatra’s birth. At the same time it is a tribute to Detroit, with a new rendition of Hello, Detroit! (first recorded by Sammy Davis, Jr. for Motown, and written by Berry Gordy Jr.)
The Motor City Jazz Orchestra is one of Detroit’s newest and more eclectic large ensembles, having performed in a variety of venues around Detroit, including The Museum of Contemporary Art and Design (MOCAD) as part of New Music Detroit’s annual marathon of contemporary music and performance – Strange Beautiful Music, Fifth Avenue Billiards, Freedom Hill, and The Henry Ford Museum. Commissioned arrangements for this ensemble include music by Grammy-winning arrangers David Van De Pitte and Bill Cunliffe, featuring instrumental settings of popular songs by Frank Zappa, Steely Dan, and other popular artists and bands. In addition to their unique selections of contemporary and popular music, the MCJO has a repertoire of more traditional and standard big band arrangements. Members include top musicians in the area, including The Motor City Horns, from Bob Seger and The Silver Bullet Band.

When Italian tenor, Andrew Bocelli first heard Mark Randisi sing, he believed he was listening to a recording of Frank Sinatra. That’s a common response among Mark’s fans. He has opened up for Ray Charles, Joan Rivers, Don Rickles, and many others. He has traveled across the US and Europe revisiting classic Frank Sinatra standards, keeping the classic sound and style alive.
http://markrandisi.brassjarmusic.com

Closed For A Private Event
2015-10-02 00:00 - 23:59 UTC
We are very sorry for the short notice to those of you who were planning on attending the Spare Parts performance this evening. Something very special came up and we had to cancel in favor of a private event. The good news is that they will be performing Saturday night at 9:30 p.m. We hope to see you there. Thanks, Cliff

Chris Lawrence & Linosphere
2015-08-28 18:00 UTC
Chris Lawrence began playing the trumpet at age 11 in his hometown of Muskegon, MI. In 2011, he was selected as one of five finalists to the Carmine Caruso International Jazz Solo Competition, the most prestigious competition for jazz trumpeters in the world. A 2005 graduate of Western Michigan University (B.A. Music/Philosophy), Chris has performed with an amazing variety of musicians, such as Marcus Belgrave, The Temptations, Linda Rondstadt, Martha Reeves and The Vandellas, Fred Hersch, John Proulx, Planet D Nonet, Arno Marsh, Matt Ulery’s By a Little Light Project, Folias, Marcus Elliot, Michael Malis, Randy Brecker, Slide Hampton, Claire Fischer, Shawn “Thunder” Wallace, Derico Watson, Fred Anderson, Billy Hart, The Grand Rapids Jazz Orchestra, Matt Brewer, Scott Hesse, Ray White, Aaron Neville, and Allen Broadbent. Chris can also be heard on the soundtrack to the feature film, Graffito(Soft Cage Films).
http://www.chrislawrencemusic.com/
http://linosphere.bandcamp.com/releases
