Monday Night Jazz Jam at Bar Louie.

Posted on by Thor

On the first Monday of each month, Bar Louie (7335 W. Sand Lake Rd. Orlando, Fl) comes alive with some of Orlando’s top Musicians and Vocalists performing live Jazz. Some of the talent is Internationally known. The show features Joseph Jevanni on the Keys, Jacqueline Jones doing Vocals, Carl Lewis on the Sax, Doc on trumpet, Franklin on flute, Jerome on the drums and many more. the evening is hosted by Yvonne Coleman, MNJJ Co-Founder and Radio Personality Jazzy103.com

I arrived at around 7:30pm and the musicians were setting up the stage. Yvonne welcomed me warmly and suggested I sit in the area set aside for musicians between sets. Musicians and vocalist rotated throughout the night on stage. These Jane performers are a warm tightly knit community. Some singers including Jacqueline Jones are in their golden years but like a fine wine, age only enriches their musical spirit and love of life.

Carol Stein got on stage and performed on the keys. With one song, she didn’t know all the lyrics, so she made up lyrics on the fly to hilarious effect. She and Jacqueline are board members of the Steinway Piano Society for Under Privileged Youth. This charity supplies pianos and piano lessons to underprivileged children who might otherwise never be exposed to music. All tips went to the Steinway Piano Society. Each month money is raised for some local charity.

This sketch was actually sold to John Glassman Gardner even before it was created. John has a large hand bound sketchbook with rough  watercolor paper. He hires an artist to fill a spread and then hands it off to another artist. When it is filled, it will be quite a collectors item. I’m honored to be the second artist to contribute to the sketchbook. The first artist was Pekar, who painted a sexy green Medusa in 2010.

Super Bowl

Posted on by Thor

On Super Bowl Sunday Terry and I went to the Enzian Theater to see the animated shorts that had been nominated for an Oscar this year. My favorite short was called “Adam and Dog“. It was set in a gorgeous natural paradise. The backgrounds were beautifully painted with bold digital brushwork. The dog explored the world with curiosity. In one scene he playfully chased fire flies. Adam and the dog meet and continue exploring the world together until one day Adam meets Eve. He leaves with her abandoning the dog. The dog eventually finds Adam and Eve as they leave paradise ashamed and wearing clothes. All the animals look on in wonder then disappear into the woods. The dog however goes out to meet the couple. Glen Keene was a consultant for the film which was directed by Minkyu Lee. Disney’s “Paper Man” was a close second on my list.

On the drive home, Terry wanted to scout out a bar where we could watch the Super Bowl. World of Beer had no food, while Bar Louie had descent flat screen TVs and a great menu.  When game time rolled around, we went to Bar Louie (7335 W Sand Lake Rd  Orlando, FL). The place wasn’t very crowded. Terry ordered a huge burger and I had a spinach dip with chips. She was drinking martini’s while I had a Blue Moon with a slice of orange. I finished my sketch by half time. Beyonce wowed the crowd with fireworks and some sexy hip moves. Lights flashed, the stage flamed and I’m pretty sure she was singing for real. The Ravens had dominated the first half. I hadn’t really noticed since I was sketching.

When the second half came, I put the sketch away and started rooting for the 49ers. There was a movie preview for a new J.J. Abrams directed Star Trek movie titled “Into the Darkness.” The lights went black in the stadium. Probably a fuse was blown from the halftime show. I wouldn’t doubt that all of New Orleans might have blacked out. A five minute delay stretched out to half an hour. I got to see replays of all the touchdowns I had ignored in the first half. Most of the patrons left the bar. The 49ers began a steady come back  after the lights came back on and in the last minutes of the game the stood 5 yards away from victory. Four plays at the five yard line resulted in no yards gained. A pass to the corner of the end zone wasn’t caught and I slammed my hand down on the table and shouted sending cutlery and dishes bouncing loudly. They blew it. They had every opportunity and they blew it. It was a tale of two halves and probably the longest Superbowl ever.

Bar Louie

Posted on by Thor

After a fun evening of comedy, Terry, Amanda Chadwick and I went to Bar Louie which is in the same complex of restaurants and clubs on Sand Lake Road, a neighborhood referred to by some as Sandlando. The place was packed and the music was loud. Terry and Amanda went out on the dance floor and I started sketching. There were no seats available so I stood behind an empty table that was reserved. As I worked a group of women in gorgeous dresses and men with their hair slicked back sat at the table. It must have been a retro night since some men were dressed like John Travolta in “Saturday Night Fever.” They had long pointy collars and vests. I started to think that some guy dressed to the nines would take a swing at me as a way to impress his girl.

When the band stopped, Terry and Amanda went outside. I finished applying washes to the sketch. I never found out the name of the group playing. I closed the sketchbook and went to join Terry and Amanda outside. A huge plate sized beetle was scurrying awkwardly across the pavement. It looked like it was gasping for breath through its neck. Amanda was skyping Matt in Seattle. I waved to the video image of him but couldn’t hear anything he said over the crowd. We didn’t stay much longer. The band was about to start another set as we walked out to the parking lot.