LIVE at Piedmont Piano Company
Jackie Ryan
25th Anniversary of “Passion Flower”
Internationally acclaimed Jazz Singer, Jackie Ryan, returns to Piedmont Piano to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the release of her critically praised CD, Passion Flower. Accompanying Jackie will be pianist Larry Vuckovich and special guest, saxophonist Noel Jewkes, both of whom originally played on the CD. The show will include seldom heard songs by Billie Hoilday, Harry Warren, Barry Harris and the great Billie Strayhorn. This will also be in memory of the three talented Bay Area musicians who played on “Passion Flower” who are no longer with us; bassist Jeff Chambers, trumpeter Alan Smith and drummer Eddie Marshall, with a few words about each of these wonderful friends.
Newly reissued Passion Flower CDs will be available at this concert!
General Admission
$25 in advance / $30 at the door
We are offering a limited number of seats for this performance. Advance purchase is recommended. Masking is optional.
JACKIE RYAN
Jackie Ryan has been described by Jazz Times Magazine as “one of the outstanding jazz vocalists of her generation...She is the thoroughbred vocal equivalent of the Triple Crown, rivaling the dexterous sass of Sarah Vaughan, the instinctive smarts of Carmen McRae and the scintillating verve of Diana Krall."
She started singing at the age of four and performing onstage professionally at the age of 15. She sings in several languages, and her versatility in styles ranging from blues to Bebop; to the delicate Portuguese Brazilian Bossa Novas to romantic Spanish boleros to the emotive ballads and vibrant swing standards of The Great American Songbook, have won the hearts of audiences worldwide.She has performed and/or recorded with Clark Terry, Toots Thielemans, The Jeff Hamilton Trio, John Clayton, Terry Gibbs, Jon Hendricks, Larry Vuckovich, Gerald Clayton, Eric Alexander, Cyrus Chestnut, and Paquito D'Rivera to name a few.
Each of Jackie's CDs have been in the top of the Jazzweek national radio tracking chart, including three back to back # 1 CDs, which stayed in the number one position for several weeks each.
She has performed in jazz clubs and festivals throughout the US, Europe, Japan, New Zealand, and Australia, with sold-out appearances at New York's Jazz at Lincoln Center and Birdland, to the Bay Area's SFJAZZ Miner Auditorium; and Yoshi’s.Her live shows have been described by the critics as 'magnificent, 'gripping' and ‘extraordinary’.
Jackie is the recipient of the 2018 Buddy Montgomery Jazz Legacy Award and the 2022 BAJABA Lifetime Achievement Award. jackieryanmusic.com
NOEL JEWKES
Noel Jewkes is one of the premier saxophone players in Northern California. He has worked in the San Francisco Bay Area for over 35 years, and has earned a distinguished reputation with lovers of Jazz music. Noel has recorded with John Hendricks, Wesla Whitfield, Jackie Ryan, Mary Stallings, Paula West, Mike Greensill, Lavay Smith, Bill Bell, Mimi Fox, Graham Bruce, Bobbe Norris, Larry Dunlap, Larry Vuckovich, as well as his own ensembles.
Noel’s most recent recording Chasin' The Pres: Tribute to Lester Young featuring Benny Green, Josh Workman, Marcus Shelby, and Harold Jones is available on Spotify, iTunes, Amazon, Pandora, and CD Baby.
“Noel Jewkes is the best mainstream reedman in the Bay Area as of 1998. I don’t know of a better contemporary modern saxman anywhere.” — Phil Elwood, Music Critic of the San Francisco Examiner noeljewkesmusic.com
LARRY VUCKOVICH
In a career spanning three continents and some six decades, Vuckovich has been choosing enough right notes to keep company with many of jazz’s mightiest minds. From tenor sax titan Dexter Gordon and drum great Philly Joe Jones to vocalists Mel Tormé and Jon Hendricks, he’s been the accompanist of choice, while creating a groundbreaking fusion of jazz and Balkan music as a composer (his pioneering 1980 album “Blue Balkan” with vibraphone maestro Bobby Hutcherson was reissued in October, remastered and repackaged).
After arriving in San Francisco from Montenegro at the age of 14, Larry became Vince Guaraldi’s only piano student. A highly versatile jazz pianist, Larry has performed with top musicians from various jazz influences, including Anita O'Day, Joe Williams, Helen Humes, Cab Calloway, Red Norvo, Don Byas, Charlie Haden, Bobby Hutcherson, Larry Grenadier, Tom Harrell, and Charles McPherson. Larry has appeared at major festivals and clubs in the U.S., Canada, and Europe. Larry recently received the Jazz Icon award from KCSM Jazz On The Hill and the BAJABA Lifetime Achievement award.“Larry is one of the premier west coast pianists.” - Barry Harris larryvuckovich.com