The Village Vanguard in NYC is a national treasure

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by action pact, May 17, 2018.

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  1. bluesbro

    bluesbro Forum Hall of Shame

    Location:
    DC
    I wish it was. Sadly, one day this will be turned into a Starbucks.
     
  2. Orange T-Rex

    Orange T-Rex Forum Resident

    Location:
    Illinois
    Love this thread, and strongly agree with its title! I saw Bill Frisell and the Vanguard Jazz Orchestra on consecutive nights at the Vanguard this past March while on vacation in NYC, and have seen George Coleman and David Murray there in years past. Truly magical stuff; the recent "coffee table" book about the Vanguard Jazz Orchestra (entitled "50 Years at the Village Vanguard" I think) is a great historical resource about that band and its relationship to the club, and I have heard that Lorraine Gordon's book about her history at the club is a good read too.

    Lorraine Gordon loves Frisell's playing, and she was in the club the night I saw Frisell there; he played "Sweet Lorraine" that night, and I suspect that choice was driven by Lorraine being in the room. My understanding is that Lorraine comes and goes from the club as her health permits (I think she's around 95 now), and that, for many years, the place has been owned by Max and Lorraine's daughter Deborah Gordon and managed by a man named Jed Eisenman. I have not met any of these folks, so that's just some information I have pieced together from visiting the club and doing a little research. I did chat briefly with the two folks running the door as well as the bartender, and I left with the impression that the younger woman running the door may be a Gordon family member (maybe Max and Lorraine's granddaughter?). They let me leave the club and grab a slice of pizza next door without having to pay another door charge for the late set, which was nice.

    Anyway, if you're in NYC and you have even a passing interest in jazz, don't think twice about it - go to the Vanguard and enjoy the music and the vibe. However, it is a good idea to check the calendar and think about buying tickets in advance for some shows, depending on the notoriety of the artist; it's not a big room and they do sell out. :righton:
     
    Last edited: May 17, 2018
  3. Pickering33

    Pickering33 Forum Resident

    Location:
    London, UK
    I was chatting to someone recently at Ronnie Scott’s who claimed to have stood beside Mingus in the gents there. He said it was his only claim to fame.
     
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  4. Jeff Kent

    Jeff Kent Forum Resident

    Location:
    Mt. Kisco, NY
    A Complete(?) List of Albums Recorded at the Vanguard.

    Albums
     
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  5. action pact

    action pact Music Omnivore Thread Starter

    I read some of that in Yelp and Google comments, and all I can say is... they just don't dig, you dig?
     
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  6. Jeff Kent

    Jeff Kent Forum Resident

    Location:
    Mt. Kisco, NY
    Tourists
     
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  7. Otlset

    Otlset I think I am I think

    Location:
    Temecula, CA
    What a place! I have so many albums of live performances there. Good for you.
     
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  8. chervokas

    chervokas Senior Member

    I think capacity is circa 125, so, yeah, make a reservation and show up early too so you can get a front table. It's a great room wherever you're sitting, but it's a whole different experience when you're three feet from the musicians, or less!
     
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  9. action pact

    action pact Music Omnivore Thread Starter

    Even though the VJO plays every Monday, there was still a big line of people outside waiting to buy tickets when we arrived at 7:30. Fortunately we had already ordered ours online!
     
  10. Jack Lord

    Jack Lord Forum Resident

    Location:
    Washington, DC
    I lived in New York for years and NEVER went. Walked by it a million times. My liking for Jazz was just beginning as I left the City.

    Guess its high time to remedy that, eh?
     
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  11. misterdecibel

    misterdecibel Bulbous Also Tapered

    That's right by one of my other favorite Manhattan landmarks, Nico's Cigar Shop.
     
  12. C6H12O6

    C6H12O6 Senior Member

    Location:
    My lab
    I've been there numerous times, mostly to see John Zorn and Joe Lovano, who sometimes play together. I really regret missing Paul Motian when I had the chance.

    A friend of mine went sometime in 2009 and was amazed to see Elvis Costello and Madonna sitting together in the audience, so it gave me a laugh to see this mentioned in Elvis's book (apparently he was going there regularly with his Dad before he became too ill, and on that particular occasion, Madonna just happened to be there).
     
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  13. Sordel

    Sordel Forum Resident

    Location:
    Switzerland
    I’ve been to the Vanguard and it's a rite of passage for a jazz fan, but of course there are other significant Jazz venues in NYC and an infrequent visitor to the city has to pick carefully. The problem with the Vanguard is that it can have a stunning residency on the month you're not there and then revert to its regular (and rather conservative) programme when you are. I do envy people who are able to take advantage of its more mouth-watering concerts though ... it’s always thrilling to see a living legend in such a tiny room.
     
  14. NaturalD

    NaturalD The King of Pop

    Location:
    Boston, Mass., USA
    Made the same special stop last time I was in NYC and by a nice coincidence Ravi Coltrane and his quartet were there that week.
     
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  15. anth67

    anth67 Purveyor of Hogwash

    Location:
    PNW USA
    I had the delight to see a show down there two years ago on a visit to NYC. We stumbled on it walking around the Village and I just about went down on my knees in homage. We immediately procured tickets for the next night. Wonderful.
     
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  16. NettleBed

    NettleBed Forum Transient

    Location:
    new york city
    I go a few times a year. I'll never forget the first time - it was in the 199os, when I first started getting into jazz. I hope I get to go there for many more years.
     
  17. action pact

    action pact Music Omnivore Thread Starter

    I had the same reaction the first time I came upon it by accident while wandering.

    Anyone familiar with the history of jazz can't help being awe-struck the first time you see it. Photos can't instill that feeling, but the place itself just has an aura.
     
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  18. C6H12O6

    C6H12O6 Senior Member

    Location:
    My lab
    Some of my favorite albums were recorded there, and it really is something to be in that space after becoming so familiar with those albums. For starters, it's tiny as hell, and you can see why the audience and clinking glasses came in so clear on the Bill Evans recordings.
     
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  19. BluesOvertookMe

    BluesOvertookMe Forum Resident

    Location:
    Houston, TX, USA

    Didn't see it, but my vote is A Night at the Village Vanguard by Sonny Rollins.
     
  20. Radio

    Radio Forum Resident

    Location:
    Michigan
  21. SteveFff

    SteveFff Forum Mekonista

    Location:
    Kalamazoo, MI
    I know it’s off topic but if I could click “love” here I would. When I take my wife and son back to New York, the only reason they tolerate the sometimes forty-five minute wait at Ess-a-Bagel is the sheer joy I have on my face when I’m eating the Signature bagel sandwich with nova lox. I won’t compare it to a great set at the Vanguard, but man, just your mention got my mouth watering. And now back to “the worlds most famous basement”.
     
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  22. Sneaky Pete

    Sneaky Pete Flat the 5 and That’s No Jive

    Location:
    NYC USA
    Absolutely agree! It is a magic place I recommend everyone who loves jazz make a pilgrimage there.
     
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  23. 131east23

    131east23 Person of Interest

    Location:
    gone
    This was me. I was there in the late 80's/early 90's and never went. More of CBGB/Pyramid Club type of guy back then.
     
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  24. PHILLYQ

    PHILLYQ Forum Resident

    Location:
    Brooklyn NY
    During high school(1970-1974) I went to the Vanguard a bunch of times in '72/'73'74. One week I went to see Sonny Rollins three times in a week. At that time he had Rufus Harley playing soprano sax & bagpipes, and Harley wore a different outfit every night for different occupations! One night he was wearing hospital whites, and as he went down the stairs I was waiting to get in, so I asked if there was a doctor in the house. Harley replied 'Which doctor', but he could have meant it both ways. Everybody within earshot was laughing at our exchange. That week was monumental in my understanding of jazz, as Rollins played the same tunes every night but the versions were radically different every night, as if they were using the tunes like Silly putty and stretching and shaping it differently every night.
    Another time in high school I went to see Joe Farrell, and he had Joe Beck in his group then. Their set was three tunes, each about 25 minutes. Farrell would play a long solo and then hang out at the bar for awhile, then saunter back to the stage.
    About 5 years ago I went to see Cecil Taylor in duet with Tony Oxley and I sat right at the lip of the stage. It was mind-altering.
    It's a magical place, and I recall a musician saying that looking at all the photos on the wall and thinking about all the greats who've played there made him bring his 'A' game.
     
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  25. jamo spingal

    jamo spingal Forum Resident

    Location:
    Europe
    It was the highlight of my trip to NYC in Nov '16. I saw the Harold Mabern Trio - and Harold had some great stories. What got me was the unchanged nature of it. You could even see e.g. where Bill Evans sat with Scott La Faro and Paul Motian. So many classic albums recorded on that little stage, and the place was tiny. What a history inc in 1938 where the Revuers were formed, Comden, Green, Bernstein and Judy Holliday.
    Obituary: Betty Comden
     
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