JJ Roth Design

Harmonica Shah and Howard Glazer
2016-02-17 20:00 (America/Detroit)
“Born in California, Shah also spent time in Somerville, Texas, with his blues harmonica and guitar playing grandfather, Sam Dawson. Dawson had recorded for both Alan Lomax and Duke Records. His mother, a beautician, encouraged him to be a salesman for Jet magazine in the latter part of the 1950s. This allowed Shah access to Oakland’s bars and clubs, where he heard musicians such as Lowell Fulson, Jimmy McCracklin, Juke Boy Bonner and Big Mama Thornton.
Shah told Living Blues magazine that his grandfather’s passion for the blues inspired him. “Well see I picked it up from him, he’d be out in the fields singin’ all that (sings in a slow moan) ‘Tell me how long, whoa, tell me how long it’s been since you’ve been away from home’ Well, that’s raw! That’s a big damn difference from ‘Good Golly Miss Molly'”.
He moved to Detroit in 1967, and worked for Ford Motors for fifteen years. Shah bought himself a cheap harmonica in 1976 and, while operating as a taxicab driver, Shah was introduced to local blues jam sessions. “Hell, that was it, no turning back then”, Shah recalled.” -Wikipedia

The Clif Wallace QuintetFeaturing Meagan McNeal
2016-02-14 20:30 - 22:00 (America/Detroit)
“Wallace, carving his own beat in the jazz world”. – South Bend Tribune
Born in Fort Wayne, Indiana, Clif Wallace began serious studies in Jazz at North Carolina Central University where he received both a Bachelor of Arts in Music and a Bachelor of Music in Jazz Performance.
In College, Clif gained broad experience in playing in many different musical settings. Ultimately earning the drum seat in the African American Jazz Caucus’s Historically Black College and University (HBCU) All-Star Big Band for three years. With the HBCU Band, he had the opportunity to perform with Jimmy Heath, Joe Chambers, Gerald Wilson, and Jimmy Cobb.
Just after college, He Joined the judging panel for the 2008 Notre Dame Collegiate Jazz Festival along the likes of Marvin Stamm, Gene Bertoncini, Jim McNeely, Larry Ridley, and Jamey Aabersold.
In 2008, Clif played drums on John Brown’s “Merry Christmas, Baby”, that broke top 40 in the Billboard charts in 2008. Having since recorded with many other up and coming artists of many music genres. He has also recently recorded and toured with Polish tenor saxophonist Marcin Zupanski, as well as Origin Label artists, Aaron Wright and Dudley Owens.
In 2009, Clif Wallace took the opportunity to participate in Betty Carter’s Jazz Ahead artist Residency Program in Washington, DC, as well as the Ravinia/Steans Institute Artist Residency Program led by Dr. David Baker, James Moody, Dr. Nathan Davis, and Rufus Reid in Chicago, Illinois.
Currently, Clif Wallace can be seen and heard in Chicago, Illinois, and other surrounding cities in the mid-west as well as venues around the country.
www.clifwallace.wordpress.com

The Clif Wallace Quintet Featuring Meagan McNeal
2016-02-14 17:30 - 19:00, 2016-02-13 21:30 - 23:30, 2016-02-13 18:30 - 20:00 (America/Detroit)

The Feast of Saint Valentine
2016-02-13 - 2016-02-14
Celebrate Valentines Day Weekend by joining us at Cliff Bell’s for a special and unique evening in Downtown Detroit. Experience our historic venue with entertainment by the Clif Wallace Quintet (featuring Meagan McNeal!) and a very special dinner prepared by our own Executive Chef Joe Susko. Showtimes are Saturday at 6:30 and 9:30 and Sunday at 5:30 and 8:30. In order to secure a reservation please pre-order your seats at (313) 961-2543.

Dinner Menu – $60.00 per-person

First:
Diver Scallop – Spicy tomato broth, watercress and onion purée
or
Foie Gras – Brioche, strawberries, basil and balsamic glâce
or
Pork Cheeks – Braised in Faygo root beer & fennel, crispy polenta cake and tonkotsu glace
Next:
Champagne Salad – Butter lettuce, champagne grapes, blue cheese and strawberry-champagne vinaigrette
Intermezzo:
Lemon Ice
Then:
Chateaubriand (for Two) – 14oz. Beef tenderloin, herbed new potatoes, glazed carrots and cipollini onions
or
Smoked Portobello Steak – Tomatoes provençal, red skin potatoes and French beans
or
Pollo Toscana – Artichokes, capers, garlic, heirloom tomatoes and French beans
or
Tuna – Coriander & orange dusted, Thai-basil rice, rainbow stir-fry and onion purée
Finally:
Black Forest Brownie – Morello cherries, brownies and white chocolate mousse
***A’LA Carte pricing available upon request, Absolutely no substitutions

About the band, Clif:
“Wallace, carving his own beat in the jazz world”. – South Bend Tribune
Born in Fort Wayne, Indiana, Clif Wallace began serious studies in Jazz at North Carolina Central University where he received both a Bachelor of Arts in Music and a Bachelor of Music in Jazz Performance. In 2009, Clif Wallace took the opportunity to participate in Betty Carter’s Jazz Ahead artist Residency Program in Washington, DC, as well as the Ravinia/Steans Institute Artist Residency Program led by Dr. David Baker, James Moody, Dr. Nathan Davis, and Rufus Reid in Chicago, Illinois. Currently, Clif Wallace can be seen and heard in Chicago, Illinois, and other surrounding cities in the mid-west as well as venues around the country.
About the band, Meagan:
Meagan, an up and coming artist who sings songs of love, peace and self discovery. She believes that music is her gift but motivating people to pursue their dreams is her passion. An eclectic mix of genres including Neo Soul, Jazz, and R&B, The album “MINDSET” is available on iTunes, Amazon and Cd Baby . According to McNeal, portrays life in all its splendor, from its roadblocks to its successes and also has surprise collaborations with a few of the many artists she has networked with over her highly productive and growing career.

Closed
2016-02-08, 2016-02-05, 2016-01-25, 2016-01-11, 2016-01-04, 2015-12-14

Closing after Brunch for the Superbowl. Go Lions!
2016-02-07 15:00 - 22:00 (America/Detroit)

Bob, Iz and Jim
2016-02-06 21:30 (America/Detroit)
Bob Mervak has been an active member of the Detroit music community since 1997, and has worked with many of the musicians who embody its collective talent. He has worked with pianists Matt Michaels and Gary Schunk, bluesman Johnnie Bassett, Colton Weatherston, Chuck Brodsky, Grammy award-winner Tim Marks, Beth Stalker, Ben Sharkey, Liz Larin, and a host of others. He performs in various settings, has toured extensively, and is equally capable on stage and in the studio.
http://bobmervak.brassjarmusic.com/

Dwight Adams Quartet
2016-01-29 21:00 (America/Detroit)
Dwight Adams is a soul-inspired, R’n’B trumpeter. He has played and recorded with Marcus Belgrave, Rodney Whitaker, James Carter, Shawn Wallace and Donald Walden, and tours with Stevie Wonder. He has served as a jazz trumpet instructor at both Ohio State University and Michigan State University. Basically, he’s the man!

Terence Blanchard Featuring The E-Collective
2016-01-24
Please note we will have two seating’s for this event at 5pm and 8pm. Reservations will not be taken, only advance tickets will be sold for this event. Purchase Tickets!
Trumpeter and composer Terence Blanchard breaks the mold with his new quintet, The E-Collective. This project journeys to an exciting realm of grooved fusion teeming with funk, R&B, and blues colors. The May 2015 Blue Note release Breathless is a first foray into straight-up grooveland for Blanchard, and he’s thrilled with the range of this band — from dance-steeped party to pensive, ambient sounds: “Breathless is the album I’ve been wanting to do for quite awhile.” Joined by guitarist Charles Altura, Fabian Almazan on piano and synths, bassistDonald Ramsey, and Oscar Seaton on drums, Blanchard’s Breathless is a master class in storytelling, written in response to social tensions and inspired by Eric Garner’s resounding words: “I Can’t Breathe.”

http://www.terenceblanchard.com/

Rodney Whitaker
2016-01-22 21:00 (America/Detroit)
Internationally renowned bassist and Mack Avenue recording artist, Rodney Whitaker, currently holds the titles of Professor of Jazz Bass and Director of Jazz Studies at Michigan State University where he has built one of the leading jazz degree programs and performing faculty in the United States of America. He is considered one of the leading performers and teachers of the jazz double bass in the United States. Whitaker has performed and toured with over 100+ legendary performing jazz artists over the past 25+ years. Featured on more than 100+ recordings – from film to compact discs – Whitaker’s film scores, China, directed by Jeff Wray, was released on PBS Fall 2002 and Malaria and Malawi, released on PBS Fall 2010. Also, Whitaker has a DVD release featuring Michigan State University’s Jazz Department entitled, “Inside Jazz” and three new compact discs entitled, “Get Ready” & “Work To Do”—both on Mack Avenue Records and “Better Than Alright” by Michigan State University College of Music.
http://rodneywhitaker.com/

Markus Rutz
2016-01-21 20:00 - 22:30 (America/Detroit)
Markus Rutz plays trumpet with bluesy, soulful style and a tone that has been called gorgeous. He composes music from his home base in Chicago, Illinois where he also performs with modern jazz groups, Latin jazz bands and pit orchestras for musical theater. Since 2012 Markus has released two recordings featuring original compositions. On each Markus is joined by great Chicago talent: drummerIsaiah Spencer, guitarist Scott Hesse, pianist Dennis Luxion, and saxophonist Chris Madsen. Second Impression the most recent release also features a collaboration with saxophonist Brice Winston from the Terence Blanchard Band. It’s Cooler By the Lake (2012) features the tunes Figure 8 and The Neutral Ground which have become local favorites of musicians in performances at Chicago jazz clubs such as The Jazz Showcase and Andy’s Jazz Club.
Born in the Chicago area, Markus moved with his family to Colorado and then to Marshfield, Wisconsin where his innate musical talent was nurtured and refined by professor Robert Biederwolf at the University of Wisconsin – Marshfield. At age 14 Markus discovered the recording Kind of Blue by Miles Davis and was introduced to small group jazz. Without question, this became a major influence on conception, and Miles an early influence. In time others also become major influences on his present style of playing – Louis Armstrong, Fats Navarro, Clifford Brown, Art Farmer and Lee Morgan.
Markus’ formal education began at the University of Wisconsin – Madison where bassist Richard Davis and trumpet professor John Aleyintegrated lessons in the arts, history, society into the world music and performance. Seeing music in those extended contexts became lifelong valued lessons. It also brought into focus Markus’ true passion — Jazz.
Markus left Wisconsin to follow that passion in New Orleans where he where he lived and studied for almost five years. At the University of New Orleans he learned from professors Ellis Marsalis, Harold Battiste and Victor Goines. Playing, learning and living alongside of now, long-term friends Brice Winston, Christopher Thomas, Brian Blade, Antoine Drye, David Morgan, Nicholas Payton and Delfeayo Marsalis, Markus embraced the music and culture of the Crescent City, integrating it into his own style.
Markus has since returned to Chicago and made it his hometown. His latest compositions celebrate the Midwest, rural and urban, with its own long and renowned jazz history.
http://www.markusrutzmusic.com/music.html

Closed for a Private Event
2016-01-17 17:00, 2016-01-13 16:00 - 22:00, 2015-12-31, 2015-12-10 (America/Detroit)

The Moth StorySLAM!
2016-01-07 19:30 - 22:00 (America/Detroit)
The Moth returns to the Cliff Bell’s stage on the theme: TBA. Get your stories ready and join us! Tickets are $5 at the door or $10 in advance at themoth.org.
Presale tickets guarantee admission, but not seating. We encourage you to try your best at arriving before 5 p.m. to increase the chance of finding a seat.
The Rundown
4 p.m.: Sign up to tell a story, volunteer to be on a judging team or just sit back and listen.
7 p.m.: (SHARP): We’ll pick the first name and the show will begin. Each teller will have 5 minutes to tell his or her tale. After each story, the judges confer, and give a score. The teller with the highest score becomes our StorySLAM winner. The winner will compete with the year’s other winners in our next GrandSLAM Champions.
Be Forewarned
The Moth is for TRUE STORIES. OK, there won’t be a fact-checker there, and the FBI probably won’t dig into your files to verify the names and dates and places, but please know, emphatically, The Moth is not for fiction stories. The tiny fictions and lies we tell ourselves ARE part of our “true stories” but that one about you, Obama, Ghandi and Einstein up in a spaceship eating brownies… not so much.
The Moth is NOT a venue for readings; it is a venue for tellings. No notes, papers, or cheat sheets allowed. Contestants are judged on sticking to the five-minute time frame, sticking to the theme and having a story that sticks — one that has a conflict and a resolution.
Story Tips

No stand-up routines please: The Moth LOVES funny people but requires that all funny people tell funnySTORIES.
Steer clear of meandering endings: your last line should be clear in your head.
Start in the action and set up the stakes.

The Moth STORY SLAM! Dedication
2016-01-07 19:30 UTC
The Moth returns to the Cliff Bell’s stage on the theme: Dedication. Get your stories ready and join us! Tickets are $5 at the door or $10 in advance at themoth.org.
Presale tickets guarantee admission, but not seating. We encourage you to try your best at arriving before 5 p.m. to increase the chance of finding a seat.
The Rundown
4 p.m.: Sign up to tell a story, volunteer to be on a judging team or just sit back and listen.
7 p.m.: (SHARP): We’ll pick the first name and the show will begin. Each teller will have 5 minutes to tell his or her tale. After each story, the judges confer, and give a score. The teller with the highest score becomes our StorySLAM winner. The winner will compete with the year’s other winners in our next GrandSLAM Champions.
Be Forewarned
The Moth is for TRUE STORIES. OK, there won’t be a fact-checker there, and the FBI probably won’t dig into your files to verify the names and dates and places, but please know, emphatically, The Moth is not for fiction stories. The tiny fictions and lies we tell ourselves ARE part of our “true stories” but that one about you, Obama, Ghandi and Einstein up in a spaceship eating brownies… not so much.
The Moth is NOT a venue for readings; it is a venue for tellings. No notes, papers, or cheat sheets allowed. Contestants are judged on sticking to the five-minute time frame, sticking to the theme and having a story that sticks — one that has a conflict and a resolution.
Story Tips

No stand-up routines please: The Moth LOVES funny people but requires that all funny people tell funnySTORIES.
Steer clear of meandering endings: your last line should be clear in your head.
Start in the action and set up the stakes.

McKinney Zone Quartet featuring Gayelynn & Carlos McKinney
2016-01-02 21:30 (America/Detroit)
Featuring: Gayelynn McKinney – Drums, Carlos McKinney – Piano, Ralphe Armstrong – Bass, Alex Colista – Saxophone
Award-winning drummer, Gayelynn McKinney is a member of the musical McKinney family and is promoting its legacy as one of the most respected families in Detroit’s cultural community. Her father was the highly revered composer, pianist, and educator, Harold McKinney and her late mother, Gwendolyn Shepherd McKinney, was an accomplished singer. She is also related to Grammy winning record producer/pianist, Carlos McKinney. Gayelynn received the highly coveted Kresge Foundation fellowship which enables her to complete her McKinfolk Project, which pays tribute to her father’s legacy by releasing some of his unheard compositions.
About Gayelynn: Gayelynn has played with some of music’s biggest names including Marcus Belgrave, Randy Brecker, Benny Goldson, Aretha Franklin, Chaka Khan, Freda Payne, Eddie Henderson, Roy Ayers, Roy Hargrove, Larry Coryell and Rick Magitza. You can hear her on Detroit’s own Ralphe Armstrong’s latest project Detroit Rising.
About Carlos:Carlos McKinney is a Grammy Award winning American record producer and jazz pianist. McKinney was born into an eminent Detroit jazz family. He is the nephew to the late pianist Harold McKinney. McKinney has also worked as an arranger and producer. He was assistant composer to James Mtume for the TV show New York Undercover from 1995. He then received a contract from Def Jam, where he worked with musicians such as NIKKO, Case, Keithian, Ciara, Rihanna, Mariah Carey, Whitney Houston, Montell Jordan, Kandace Love, Babyface, and Redman. He has also produced for artists such as The-Dream, J. Holiday, Bobby Valentino, and Jamie Foxx, among others. He won a Grammy Award for his credits and production on the Rihanna Unapologetic album in 2013. He was Elvin Jones’s last pianist.

Closed for New Years Day
2016-01-01

Closed for the Holiday
2015-12-25, 2015-12-24

Alex Harding & Organation
2015-12-20 18:00 UTC
“.. what I really, really dig is Harding’s bluesy adventurousness. He has a swagger and doesn’t hesitate to blow…” – Kalamu ya Salaam
Featuring:
Rayse Biggs trumpet /
Gerard Gibbs Organ /
Alex White Drums /
Alex Harding Baritone sax
Alex Harding was born on April 5, 1967 in Detroit, Michigan. At the age of six, Alex knew what he wanted to do in his lifetime: to be a musician. He started to pursue his dream. Alex started on the tenor sax as a child, but as time went by he mastered playing the tenor, soprano, alto, baritone, clarinet and flute. Mr. Harding took band classes in elementary and middle school, entering musical competitions and shows. He chose to attend Northwestern High School so he could study music under the direction of Mr. Ernest Rogers, a renowned musician. It was during high school that Alex decided to make the baritone sax and bass clarinet his main instruments.
Alex Harding studied music in his early years with Yusef Lateef, Beans Bows and Herbie Williams, and had a chance to play with Wynton Marsalis and Donald Byrd while still in high school. Alex went on to win music scholarships to the University of Massachusetts and the Aspen School of Music. Alex’s first European engagement in 1990 was in Porgy and Bess. A year later, he went to Mexico to the Arts and Music Festival with percussionist Francisco Mora.
After settling in New York in 1993, and a stint touring with Phatoms, a Haitian group, Alex joined Julius Hemphill’s Saxophone Sextet. He also began performing with Muhal Richard Abrams, Craig Harris, Lester Bowie, Frank Lacey, Oliver Lake and David Murray’s Big Band.
In 1996, Alex joined Hamiet Bluiett’s Baritone Group and appeared with the Mingus Big Band, Jayne Cortez Firespitters and Lester Bowie’s Hip-Hop Philharmonic. He also recorded with Greg Osby, Frank Lowe, David Lee Roth and Rodney Whittaker. The following year, Alex recorded At Doctor King’s Table with the Julius Hemphill Sextet, a CD with Hamiet Bluiett’s Baritone Group, and he made his debut with the Sun Ra Arkestra under Marshall Allen’s leadership. In 1998, Alex was part of the Sun Ra All-Star Project that premiered at the North Sea Jazz Festival and the Montreux-Detroit Jazz Festival. More recently Alex has performed with the Roy Hargrove Big Band and with Aretha Franklin.
In the October ’97 issue of Jazz Times, the review of Hamiet Bluiett’s Baritone Band said that Alex Harding: “…attacked the music with steamroller momentum and uncommon ferocity…it was sheer fireworks.”
A powerful and innovative saxophonist, Alex Harding has a unique and contemporary baritone sound. The sincerity of his musical _expression and the dynamism of his performance reach out and touch the human spirit and soul

http://www.alexharding.net/live/

Thornetta Davis
2015-12-17 20:00 - 2015-12-18 00:00 UTC
For over twenty years this multi-talented native Detroiter has graced and dominated Michigan’s most attended events. She has performed over two hundred shows a year with grace and stamina. Her voice is strong, commanding, melodic and smooth. She tells her stories with incredible delivery and leaves her audiences wanting more.
She first gained attention in 1987 when she became back up singer for the Detroit soul band “Lamont Zodiac and The Love Signs”. Shortly after, the lead singer left the band and the name changed to “The Chisel Brothers featuring Thornetta Davis”. In 1996 Thornetta recorded her first solo album “Sunday Morning Music” with former members of Detroit Rock band Big Chief on the Seattle based label “Sub Pop” which received a rave revue in the national Entertainment Weekly magazine. The song “Cry” from that album was featured on the HBO hit cable drama “The Sopranos”.
Thornetta has opened for legendary blues and R&B greats such as Ray Charles, B.B. King, Gladys Knight, Smokey Robinson, Etta James, Buddy Guy, Koko Taylor, Junior Wells, Lonnie Brooks, Johnnie Johnson, Betty LaVette, Keb Mo’, and many more…her history is extensive and her performances are memorable…like the time she opened for Bonnie Raitt at Michigan’s Ann Arbor Blues & Jazz festival in 1992. Bonnie asked Thornetta to join her and Katie Webster (queen of the swamp boogie) for an encore song which received a standing ovation.
http://www.thornettadavis.com/
