Scott Philbrick cornet, Lee Prager trombone, Craig Ball reeds, Jimmy Mazzy banjo/vocals, Bobby Reardon drums, Frank Stadler piano, and Al Ehrenfried string bass, filling in for Bob McHenry who is recovering from surgery.
The Acton Jazz Café now has a sign up at their new location, it’s easy to find – just over the Littleton town line at103 Nagog Park on routes 2A and 119 in Acton MA. The sound is great, it has an expanded kitchen, and as always, Gwenn Vivian and her dedicated crew are family-friendly and provide fine service. But between the sunshine, and blue lights – it’s a tough scene to photograph or videotape! They’re working on it.
The Stompers played many tunes they haven’t done in the last six months, starting as always with a rip-roaring At The Jazz Band Ball. Frank announced many ‘moderate’ tunes, but these Stompers don’t comprehend moderation! Please Don’t Talk About Me When I’m Gone, I’ve Got a Feeling I’m Falling.
Craig Ball, Scott Philbrick, Lee Prager
Hot front line, great rhythm section, Bobby Reardon driving the band on drums, and keeping them in time. Please Don’t Talk About Me When I’m Gone was a hot one! Sweet cornet on Someday Sweetheart.
Bobby Reardon
Regular string bassist Bob McHenry is recovering from surgery. Al Ehrenfried was a superb substitute.
Lee Prager trombone was featured on something slow and danceable, I Guess I’ll Have to Change My Plans, ending in a flourish.
It Don’t Mean a Thing If It Ain’t Got That Swing is always a barn burner!
Charlie found a spot up back where he can dance and swing with the ladies. (Evelyn is his favorite.) Charlie is 90, string bass Al Ehrenfried is 90, Frank Newcomb who collects the gate is 90+, but that hasn’t slowed any of them down. Perhaps the answer to an active long life is getting out and enjoying live Dixieland Jazz and Swing!!
Evelyn and Charlie
You Brought a New Kind of Love to Me, Jimmy vocal – Jimmy gets to sing many tunes as well as play his famous single string banjo picking. Sunday, Baby Won’t You Please Come Home.
Jimmy Mazzy
Carrie Mazzy joined the band for I’ve Got a Feeling I’m Falling and Ma, He’s Making Eyes at Me.
China Boy was another familiar war horse.
Craig’s clarinet hit the stratosphere on Shine, while Scotty’s cornet and Lee’s trombone ran up and down the music scale. They were in sync playing vibrato on muted wa-wa trumpet and trombone on Baby Won’t You Please Come Home. This front line is unbeatable!
Lee took his trombone over by Al Ehrenfried’s string bass for a marvelous duet on Bye, Bye, Blackbird. Fantastic string bass! Frank said “This young bassman puts in more effort than the rest of us combined!”
- Al Ehrenfried
They turned up the heat on “Oh Baby!”
This jazz never gets boring. You never know what will happen next. We had a surprise visit from a tap dancer friend of Craig Balls -Tim Tap, (Tim J Hickey), visiting from Seatle. www.timtaps.com. He floated across the floor tapping out the tunes to Ain’t Misbehavin’ and Sweet Georgia Brown. Tim studies rhythm-tap with Jimmy “Sir Slyde” Mitchell.
Craig took out the soprano sax for a sizzling Everybody Loves My Baby, and they closed with my favorite, Limehouse Blues.
They’ll be back, with more surprises, on December 1st here at the Acton Jazz Cafe. We loved Al Ehrenfried on string bass – he plays the 3rd Tuesday of the month with the Blue Horizon Jazz Band at the Sherborn Inn.
And we all wish Bob McHenry a rapid recovery!!