December was an outstanding month for Jazz in Denver as many local and national acts came to visit the Rocky Mountain Region. But my favorite group to stop by in December was from my hometown of Minneapolis.
Being from Minnesota means I MUST love all things Minnesotan, from Joe Mauer to Spam, however even if I was from Kuala Lumpur I would still be a fan of The Bad Plus. It’s just a big plus that I was born and raised in the same city they come from.
The trio, consisting of Ethan Iverson on piano, bassist Reid Anderson and drummer Dave King graced the Dazzle Jazz stage for two nights (Dec 11 & 12) in support of their new album, Never Stop:
With their unique blend of everything from straight-ahead to avant-garde Jazz the three Midwesterners played many of their originals (with various long and interesting titles) along with standards and covers of pop and rock tunes.
All of the sounds The Bad Plus makes are appealing and fun to listen to, but my favorite piece of theirs is, “1972 Bronze Medalist,” from their second album These Are The Vistas (2003):
And not only are the three mild-mannered Jazzmen excellent musicians, they are also three of the nicest guys I've met. Especially drummer Dave King who I got to talk with many times over their stay about (what else) all things Minnesota. We discussed bands from the area, people we both knew, radio stations like Radio K and the collapse of the Metrodome.
Dave plays with another Minneapolis-based group called Halloween, Alaska. You should check them out too!
I was lucky enough to see the Bad Plus perform around 10 years ago at the old Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis and I must say that they blew me away then and have not lost a beat along the way.
-Nos
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