The (Lullaby of) Birdland Jazz Club again..."Ich bin ein Hamburger"

”Hello Music Lovers...” was back in the days, the first you would hear after the opening signature jazz piece had faded out…the familiar, since a long time back subdued whiskey tinted voice of Leif ”Smoke Rings” Andersson  greeting you, always on late Sunday evenings on the steam radio, when I was just a young and inexperienced ”jazz rookie”.

That voice has, sad to say, faded out to infinite silence long ago, but he is well in memory among all us moldy, grey and probably dusty old Swedish jazz freaks. 

But nowadays our ”hearing aid paraphernalia” is technically top class, as always!

Why these retrospective sad thoughts now…?

- Well, yesterday nite, when I was younger and happier than I have been for a long time…, it was the greatest jazz nite Iv’e had for several years! As a matter of fact, I was last nite in Birdland, Hamburg.! The famous  NY jazz club Birdland has evidently a little satellite in Hamburg…by the same name!

This visit at the small, close & intimate jazz club, with seating capacity for 100-150 hungry-for-jazz souls - (apparently also starved for live jazz music during two tough covid-pandemic years, like many of us), was a treat from my dear german friend Jan, who invited me there.

What a great place! What a feeling, great impressive acoustically, and it also superbly lit, made me feel fully at home there in an instant!. Our reserved seats, at the rear of the small stage was not bad at all,  once the musicians got started! And a glass of wine to go with it, was just the perfect setting!

The band for the nite was the fairly new Canadian group, vocally led by the quickly rising star Ms. TIA BRAZDA, and her supportive and inspirational group with Alex Bird at the piano, Alex Bird on base, the drummer Alex Bird, trumpet & flygelhorn (?) player Alex Bird,  and the the eminent guitarist Alex Bird. _{*footnote: I didn´t catch the names of the various musicians, but I believe that one of them was the magnificent Alex Bird....sorry to have failed concerning their names! That´s why I named them all Alex Bird, they were all just great musicians!} 

TIA BRAZDA, the vocalist for the evening was, who have had a pause of a couple of years since her latest stage appearance, and now this gig in Birdland Hamburg was her first in two years. She is fr.o.m. Vancouver BC and Toronto Ontario, and the other band members come e.g also from Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver, and Nelson B.C (the drummer had in his early years lived in the Nelson area!). This dream team - a ”six-pack” that was definitely shaped in just my favorite jazz group design! And Tia’s interpretation of Charlie Chaplin’s  well-known “Smile” with that sensitive backing, really brought about a “wee (small) tear” into my eye!

All young musicians - one would of course have expected that given the occasion and the location, ”Lullaby of Birdland” would have been a natural (and prepared) closing number for this enthusiastic Hamburg audience - but, as their answer to concerning my humble request to perform that “jazz standard” was, it was sadly not possible that night - due to a pre-rehearsed "playlist" - a fully acceptable reason! 

Only warm and feelings just the same - I get happy as a child when I hear such good jazz music!

The covid virus safety measures that had been taken by the club management, impressed me as the careful Swede I am, i.e. a careful check of mandatory virus vaccination certificates, and ID-proof for each visitor,  must definitely have contributed to the fantastic  open and  intimate air there and then. Personally I was indeed relieved to be able to place the tedious-to-wear breathing mask in my pocket for a few hours!

Summary:  A really great night - do follow them to Berlin for their next stage appearance within short - you definitely won’t regret it, I promise you!

Lovingly yours, _{(what words did Leif ”Smoke Rings” Andersson close his radio sessions with? - I can´t remember!)}

signed Börje Norhager from Östersund ("the Biathlon WC’s Capital"), SWEDEN

Lullaby of Birdland