Charles Lloyd Quartet featuring Bill Frisell, Larry Grenadier & Kweku Sumbry
Blue Note131 West 3rd Street, New York 10012
Charles Lloyd brings his quartet to Blue Note with guitarist Bill Frisell, bassist Larry Grenadier and drummer Kweku Sumbry. Lloyd leads the saxophone and flute quartet, a four-player band billed specifically with Frisell, Grenadier and Sumbry.
Born in Memphis, Tennessee, Lloyd has worked across free jazz, rock ’n’ roll, world music and psychedelia. His earlier quartet brought together straight-ahead post-bop, free jazz, rock and world music, and Forest Flower, Live at Monterey sold more than one million copies. Lloyd and Frisell first joined forces in 2013 and have since toured and recorded in duo, trio, quartet and quintet settings; their recordings include I Long to See You, Tone Poem and Chapel Trio. Lloyd’s past collaborators include B.B. King, Cannonball Adderley, Jimi Hendrix and Brian Wilson. The Guardian calls him “a moving ballad player with a uniquely gauzy and vulnerable sound,” praising his “open-handed” bandleading and composing.
Blue Note Jazz Club is a dedicated listening room in the heart of Manhattan's jazz district, where the music is the focus and the space is designed to let the sound fill the room. The club features a stage with a small audience area, and the atmosphere is one of quiet concentration on the music. Shows typically begin at 8:00 PM with a second set at 10:30 PM, and the audience sits on chairs close to the stage. The club has a bar, and drinks are available. The experience is primarily about listening to live jazz, with occasional gospel and soul performances, and the audience often stays to talk and enjoy the music after the sets.