Buck Hill

An excellent evening of classic and experimental jazz from two of the greats. Both are playing with long time friends are are showing the audience why they are the most respected at what they do. A show for any fan of music, not just jazz :-)

Earl Klugh and the Band were truly playing at the top of their game Thursday night and the Birchmere was a perfect venue to establish synergy between the band and the crowd. Earl did not miss a beat and his band members were individually were well worth the price of admission. The saxophone player (I believe Tom Braxton) was truly exceptional. I highly recommend you attend if given an opportunity to do so. PS: A good selection of beer and wine. The food at the Birchmere was very good.

A special evening with a venerable quartet which decided to carry on after the death of their founder, Tim Hauser, with Trist Curless stepping into his baritone shoes. Janis Siegel, who is now 65, has never sounded better on songs like "Mystery" and "Boy from NYC," and Alan Paul, a founding member and veteran of the 1971 Broadway version of Grease, has his same smooth tenor. Cheryl Bentyne, with TMT since 1979, has had health issues but bounced all over the stage like a whirling dervish, hitting notes only dogs can hear. Trist isn't Tim, and doesn't try to be -- he has a great voice, but a humble demeanor. They sang four songs from their new CD, which is excellent, and a good assortment of old favorites. And, as a bonus, they came out after the show to sign autographs, chat with fans, and pose for pictures. Alan in particular was very accessible and forthcoming about the group's loss of their leader and how they dealt with it. I can't say they are at the top of their game, but they're pretty darn close for a group that's been at it for 45 years.

The show was fantastic, my seat was in a great location. The only problem was the performance was not long enough. Hugh Masekela has so many excellent "jams". It was just under 2 hours. But it was still a good show!

Terrific! Played long set; Pat spoke briefly in the middle - Gwilym Simcock is amazing/-- the Stravinsky like piano and guitar stuff was way over my head!

Reignwolf is by far the best show I have ever experienced! Yes... not "seen".. but "experienced"! This guy is the real deal, and I will be attending his show every time he is in my area. Besides completely melting your face off with his raw power, he is the nicest person you could ever meet. If you haven't experienced Reignwolf yet, you MUST make a point to check out their show. 5 stars isn't enough! Regarding "The Basement" ... Nothing special there. However, the small atmosphere was great for a show like Reignwolf.

We originally had reservations at the restaurant and the last minute this was canceled. Not the end of the world. Then at the last minute, we received an email telling us that we needed to find an off-site parking lot and no valet, etc. We are probably among the oldest folks attending and it is not easy or practical for us to search around and then walk to the theatre. After calling both Ticketmaster and Gold Coast, we were told there was nothing they could do and in checking with friends, it was too late for them to use them. We understand this was thrust upon Gold Coast but perhaps those who came for the mourning could have parked at a distant lot instead of the paying customers. Too bad, as Broward Center is our favorite venue and Shelly Berg is one of our very favorite musicians. So we have 2 tickets waiting to go out in the trash.

The highly anticipated show with the new Return to Forever IV lineup did not live up to the hype. Even before the band took the stage, there was trouble brewing. Following an exciting performance by Zappa Plays Zappa, the shear brilliance and tin ears of a sound engineer took center stage. The overall PA volume was cranked up to provide a constant buzz and hiss even when there was no sound being generated by an instrument. Grand pianos don't buzz on each note. This is 2011, not the 70's. There is no reason not to have crisp, full sound, especially in a decent theater. Zappa Plays Zappa was an excellent experience. Undaunted, Return to Forever IV took the stage bowing to the crowd and each other, a little over the top. The music was focused on electronic based tunes with a couple of acoustic numbers blended in. Being a fan of these guys in various other bands and configurations this performance lacked the creativity and expertise that could have been. It was apparent they had played these songs to death, so why bother there are so many other songs to play. They could have been so much better. For these prices this didn't measure up. Catch them in a different configuration. Zappa Plays Zappa delivered on almost every tune. Frank Gambale joined them for an encore performance of Hot Rats. Great tune and performance.

This show was just about everything I could ask for plus more. Lee Ritenour as always was great. Having Dave Grusin appear with him was an unexpected bonus. It's hard not to just give these guys praise. Although I did enjoy them and they were spectacular, they were a bit on the loud side. This is very nice, very classy jazz, they did not need to blow the roof off volume wise. Spyro Gyra were also exceptional even with all the microphone issues, something that it appeared they tried to take care of unsuccessfully before the show began. Their frustration with the issues on stage were evident. However, they played through it and more than met my exceptions. I've followed Spyro Gyra since their days in Buffalo and they never disappoint. Both Spyro Gyra And Lee Ritenour had nice song selections with a nice mix of favorites and newer material.

The hotel & venue staff at both The Inn and the Doubletree were fantastic, friendly, and organized. It was a very nice and pleasant atmosphere. Gerald Veasley's Midnight Jam was awesome. I'm planning to attend at least 2 of them next year.