Sarah Gardner Sass & Bones at Primavera Ristorante August 24, 2017

Posted on August 24, 2017 by admin

Sarah Gardner’s Sass & Bones

Sarah Gardner leader/vocals, Jeff Hughes cornet, John Clark clarinet and alto sax, Herb “Pops” Gardner keyboard, Albie Bernard tuba, Bill Reynolds drums

Sarah is a gentle sparkplug that touches the heart and spirit, a wonderful, lyrical vocalist. For years she has been teaching children with her songs, and created many CDs. This was her first foray into leading a band; she chose our top musicians to support her. It was such a blast for all involved, they can’t wait to do it again!

It began with an instrumental, Royal Garden Blues, to warm up the guys. Not that they needed it – there is a camaraderie that exists between these musicians. Their love and expertise for this music fell right into place and it all came together.

Bill Reynolds on drums and singing into mic

Bill Reynolds Sings

Sarah sang many songs, but left ample spaces for ensembles and solos, even sharing vocals. Who knew drummer Billl Reynolds could sing? He was in fine voice for All of Me and Embraceable You. He’s a creative drummer – using his hands on Please Don’t Talk About Me When I’m Gone.

Herb Gardner

“Pops” Herb Gardner sang songs that he composed: Summer People about crowds going to the beaches, and Gun Shots and Sirens about a man who moved from a busy city to the quiet country, and missed those. (His sleep was disturbed by crickets.)

Sarah composed tunes for her CD Jazz for Lil Jumpers that John and Jeff had never heard – they played by reading her charts. Bill’s drums were featured on Its Raining Cats & Dogs!

clarinet and cornet bent forward reading charts

John and Jeff playing tunes they never heard before.

Al Bernard on very old Helicon

Al was on a Helicon that was over 100 years old and solo’d on My Mother’s Son in Law and Keep Your Hands Off It (Sarah composition.)

Jeff Hughes on Vintage French Besson cornet

Jeff Hughes was on an amazing 150-year-old Besson cornet!

John Clark

Multi-instumentalist, John Clark, stayed with clarinet and alto sax.

Jerry Wadsworth, a faithful follower, drove for two hours from vacationing in Chatham on the Cape to Primavera in Millis to hear Sarah and her new band.

They closed with Goodbye, Sing This Song, also on her Jazz for ‘lil Jumpers” CD. She wrote that one too. That perfectly describes Sarah; uplifting and warm, lilting energy filled with sparkling songs. They will be back!!

TUNES
Royal Garden Blues
Everybody Loves My Baby
I Had The Craziest Dream
All of Me – Bill R
After You Get What You Want, You Don’t Want It
Come Rain or Come Shine
Summer People – Pops
I’m Flying High
Sentimental Gentleman from Georgia
Jazz For Little Jumpers
Happy Feet
My Mother’s Son in Law
Gun Shots and Sirens – Pops
Cheek to Cheek
It’s Raining Cats and Dogs
Me Myself and I
Embraceable You – Bill R
Keep Your Hands Off It
Please Don’t Talk About Me When I’m Gone
Comes Love
Step Down For Kids
Goodbye, Sing This Song

Eli and The Hot Six with Elaine Woo and Sarah Nova at Primavera Ristorante, April 14, 2016

Posted on April 20, 2016 by admin

Eli and The Hot Six

Bo Winiker trumpet/flugelhorn, Ted Casher clarinet, tenor and soprano sax, Herb Gardner back on trombone, Bob Winter keys, Jimmy Mazzy banjo/vocals, Eli Newberger tuba, Bob Tamagni drums.

by Marce

Eli and The Hot Six presented a delightful evening of great Jazz, introducing new tunes with inspired playfulness and skill, making it up as they went along. They enjoyed it as much as the appreciative audience. Eli included two fine vocalists, Elaine Woo and Sarah Nova, and Carolyn Newberger on washboard.

Honoring Benny Goodman and Gene Krupa, Bob Tamagni introduced Swing, Swing, Swing, His unique methods of maintaining the Trad beat on drums are priceless! After the intro, the Hot Six went WILD!

Don’t Get Around Much Anymore, Bo moved from trumpet to flugelhorn, Jimmy scatting, trombone and tuba trading 4’s.

Poor Papa, written by Hoagie Carmichael, was new with Jim singing the sad vocal, backed by tuba.

Mama’s got shoes, Mama’s got clothes
Mama’s got these and Mama’s got those
But poor Papa, poor Papa, he’s got nothin’ at all

The mood changed with a roaring take off of Alexander’s Ragtime Band

Bob Winter

Bob took a solo on Ida, with stunning harmonies and sudden key changes that took our breath away. He would suddenly pause, leaving all of us anticipating the next note.
He loves playing with this band!

Eli introduced Elaine Woo, another Doctor, who is a Primary Physician in Geriatrics. She captivated the audience with It’s All Right To Me, and reading the lyrics to Body and Soul off a telephone without missing a beat!

Carolyn was a vital spark on washboard, She joined Elaine on an upbeat Darktown Strutters’ Ball. What an amazing duo! They returned with the band for an exilarating Route 66.

Carolyn on washboard, the band, and Elaine Woo singing

Carolyn Newberger and Elaine Woo – two captivating ladies!

Artist Carolyn Newberger keeps busy sketching the musicians, when she’s not performing. Her drawings, paintings and collage have achieved recognition and awards in juried and solo exhibition. Here’s Jimmy:

Everyone was having fun! But we had more surprises.

Eli joined Elaine on vocal!!

Eli and Elaine got together for
I Can Give You Everything But Love. (No mistake in the title.)

Who knew Eli could sing, too?

Vocalist Sarah (Gardner) Nova teaches Jazz for kids at libraries and Kindergardens all over New England. She has several CD’s, Jazz for Lil Jumpers and Jazz For Babies; Its Raining Cats & Dogs!

Having been raised with this music, she has an intuitive grasp of musical dynamics, The band backed her in stop time with the warning, Keep Your Hands Off It! Sarah was invited to stay on for another tune, Me Myself & I, with Dad backing her on trombone.

Sarah singing with Herb on front line playing trombone

Father and daughter make a great Jazz combination!

Herb was featured on the Platters’ Only You, singing, and playing rich, burnished tone on trombone..

Eli and The Hot Six continued with a rip-roaring Instrumental, Dinah, with Ted on tenor sax, and Bob Winter playing astounding keyboard. This was pure joy!

Bo with trumpet in the air holding a large handkerchief

Bo Winiker conjures up Louis Armstrong

Bo Winiker was featured on What a Wonderful World, playing trumpet and evoking Louis Armstrong with his vocal.

looks like a piece of cork near the clarinet's mouth piece

Ted and his new moose clarinet

Ted took the breaks on clarinet with a new addition – an actual piece of moose horn that gives it a distinctive sound – as if he needed it!

Bob hides the tambourine.

Our favorite was a lullaby that Eubie Blake wrote for his wife, Good Night Angeline. Jimmy puts heart and soul into this melody, like no other. We could hear a soft dinging in the background. It took some time to realize that Bob Tamagni was softly tapping an unseen tambourine on his bass drum.
His drum set is comprised of two drums and a hi hat (that he hardly used, except to tap the cymbal).

Jimmy Mazzy and Eli Newberger have played together for years.

Basin Street was an instrumental with marvelous tuba by Eli and Jimmy scatting throughout the whole song. The two are always in sync!

The repertoire and caliber of these musicians has made this a classic band. Fortunately for us, Eli and The Hot Six will be here regularly at Primavera on the 3^rd Thursday of the month. Spread the word and mark your calendars!

Check out their CD:
Eli & The Hot Six LIVE, Contemporary Classic Jazz $17 Purchase

Eli and The Hot Six at Primavera, November 19, 2015

Posted on November 24, 2015 by admin

Eli and The Hot Six – Bob Winter, Eli Newberger, Jimmy Mazzy, Jeff Guthery, Ted Casher, Bo Winiker, Herb Gardner © Ray Drueke

Photos © Ray Drueke, Austin Lane Studios
Videos by Marce

This was the last Jazz Concert of 2015 at Primavera, and a very worthwhile one. The Hot Six reached deep down playing their hearts out creating beautiful music. They just love playing Jazz!

Herb Gardner ©

This was Herb Gardner’s evening, bringing old school musicality to vocals and on trombone with Ain’t She Sweet, and The Sheik of Araby – with the band members responding: ‘Without No Pants On’.

He started another vocal on Basin St. Blues, then turned it over to Jimmy with a trombone intro, the band playing in stop time behind him. Herb ended with a rambunctious trombone flourish.

Eli Newberger, celebrated tuba virtuoso and keyboardist, leads the band, pointing at whoever gets to play next. This is Jazz, no charts.

He plays tuba with a deep, sonorous tone, maintaining that contemporary classic beat and managing difficult straight four/four notes by circular breathing.

They paid tribute to the French with Ted’s sweet arrangement of Petite Fleur on clarinet. Lovely! This was also the hundredth anniversary of Sidney Bechet.

Jimmy Mazzy ©

Jimmy sings with sensitivity, Someone To Watch Over Me, changing the words from: “Although he may not be the man some girls think of as handsome, to my heart he carries the key.” to “Although she may not be the Squaw some boys think of as awesome, to my heart she carries the key.”

We’re thrilled to have Jimmy back with the Hot Six; he’s been travelling. He changed moods with Our Love is Here to Stay. He is also in The Tuber Trio with Eli and Ted Casher. We hope he’s here to stay.

Bob Winter ©

Bob Winter finesses amazing sounds out of that keyboard, starting with soft melodic single-note piano lines on Some Of These Days, gradually rising to an astounding variety of piano styles.

He is the pianist for the Boston Pops, but also loves this music and plays skillful, soft commentary behind the soloists and vocals.

In Memoriam: We lost Jimmy Enright 28 years ago today. The Hot Six played Everybody Loves My Baby, with Jimmy Mazzy’s passionate voice rising to the infamous Jimmy “Holler’.

Bo Winiker on flugelhorn

Jimmy continued with C’Est Si Bon, backed by Ted’s clarinet, with Bo on flugelhorn. Bo’s rhythmic annotations on trumpet and flugelhorn lift the whole band.

Sizzling 12th Street Rag

Carolyn Newberger arrived and dug out the washboard. The band played a tune that her Mother used to play for her growing up, fairly soft and subtle, Tico Tico.

Bob and Carolyn always connect and inspire each other; their duets are sparkling and exciting!

Ted Casher ©

Ted plays gut-wrenching saxophone on Blue and Sentimental. There were no lights on the band so my videos were really dark. Ray Drueke came to the rescue and lightened them somewhat. Just close your eyes and listen to Ted play a dreamy Coleman Hawkins tenor sax.

Jeff with a big smile looking to his right

Eli had everyone clapping in time to a fiery Limehouse Blues. Jeff Guthery let loose on drums. He is the youngest member of the band, and recently had his recital at Berklee College of Music.

This was one of those never ending tunes, with Eli giving each musician a turn on the final verse.

Sarah Nova ©

Herb Gardner’s daughter, Sarah Nova was in the audience – a fine songstress in her own right. Sarah teaches jazz to young children with her CD, Jazz For Lil’ Jumpers. She gave us a lively version of Them There Eyes.

Eli and The Hot Six closed this evening of great jazz with Bo on flugel horn and Jimmy singing Louis’s Sleepy Time Down South. This was the Primavera Finale for the year 2015. Jazz will return to Primavera Ristorante on January 7th, 2016.

Eli and The Hot Six with Rebecca Sullivan will be at Sculler’s Jazz Club on December 17th – celebrating Eli’s 75th birthday!

Professional photographer taking pictures

Ray Drueke, Austin Lane Studios

Photos Copyrighted by Ray Drueke, Austin Lane Studios (401) 635-0163.

30 High-resolution photos available for sale.

New England Traditional Jazz Plus

Swing, Traditional Jazz, Dixieland Jazz, Big Bands

Tag Archives: Sarah Nova

Sarah Gardner Sass & Bones at Primavera Ristorante August 24, 2017

Eli and The Hot Six with Elaine Woo and Sarah Nova at Primavera Ristorante, April 14, 2016

Eli and The Hot Six at Primavera, November 19, 2015