Stew Cutler
Arthur's Tavern57 Grove Street, New York 10014
Stew Cutler leads a Stew Cutler and Friends set at Arthur’s Tavern, drawing on more than four decades as a guitarist, composer, arranger, bandleader, and teacher. The listing does not name the friends joining him, but frames Cutler’s work through a long-running blend of jazz, blues, gospel, R&B, American roots, originals, and covers. It is a chance to hear a musician closely associated with the club: his working band held a standing Sunday-night residency here, later documented on the 2017 studio release Every Sunday Night.
Born and raised in New York City, Cutler began professionally at 19 with blues singer Z.Z. Hill, then worked with avant-garde figures Bobby Previte and Elliott Sharp and spent time in Woodstock alongside bassist Harvey Brooks. His sideman credits span soul and blues artists Percy Sledge, Eddie Floyd, Wilson Pickett, Fontella Bass, Earl King, and Jimmy Castor, plus David Sanborn, Bill Frisell, Lester Bowie, Charlie Hunter, and Wayne Horvitz. His early records Trio Music and Insignia combined “R&B, jazz, melody, and noise”; later releases reached into blues, roots, jazz, and soul. Cutler’s guitar also appears on the soundtracks to The Irishman and The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel.
Arthur's Tavern is a basement club in the West Village where jazz, Latin, and blues are played with deep roots and modern energy. The stage is small, the room intimate, and the audience sits close to the musicians, often with a few people standing near the back. Shows start around 5 PM and go late, with some sets extending into the early hours. The club has a history of hosting top-tier performers since 2001, including regular appearances by Yuichi Hirakawa Jazz Group. It's a place where music is the center, and conversation flows naturally between the audience and the performers.