When the first notes were played this evening, there were more musicians in the jazz club than customers. The seven-member band included two on congas, stand-up bass, drums, electric piano, trumpet, and sax. I was anticipating Tito Puente, Poncho Sanchez, and Joao Gilberto. There was a touch of that, but it ended up being more Pat Metheny, Chick Corea, and Ornette Coleman. As The Doorman, I was a miffed to see a young guy whiz past as I was collecting the door cover from a couple of customers. When I caught up with the grifter, I learned that he is underage and a student of the saxman in the band. I consulted with the bartender and we agreed to let him hear a few songs and then to boot his sorry ass out, knowing that the law doesn’t understand “enrichment and education” as an excuse. I had learned that the saxman has pulled this in the past, inviting students to the club but failing to make it clear they’d need to bring a parent along to make it kosher. There was a young couple sitting at the bar. I had noticed that the young woman had a music case under her feet. I asked what instrument she plays and she said, “The sax…. That’s my teacher playing.” We chatted for a bit in between my door duties. I liked her and her husband/boyfriend/friend. The band returned to the stage for their final set of the night and was happy to see that she had been invited up to play Mile Davis’ “So What.” She was nervous, but played competently. Later I introduced her to the leader of another jazz group who had dropped in. Introduced her as a fabulous sax player who sat in on an earlier song, figuring that like most people all she needs is an opportunity or two to become fabulous. The band leader collected her name and number while saying, “This is great, I always seem to struggle finding a fill-in sax player when I need them.”
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