Urban Flute Project

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First pit stop: Chicago!

In psychologically preparing myself for a 2-day bus marathon across the continental United States, I was looking forward to my first longish stopover (‘layover’ in the U.S. vernacular, and a term I would get all too familiar with in the coming days!) scheduled for the next afternoon in Chicago.

It seemed to me that a few hours to discover the Urban Vistas and Acoustic Spaces that the Windy City might offer, to maybe record in yet-un-named Deco Lobbies, catch wafts of busking I had been told about, or source out a Jazz Club or two: that these possibilities alone would be worth the price of a round trip ticket to New Mexico! As I piece things together now, a couple of weeks later, I realize that my expectations were not unrealistic!

Frustratingly, however, I was informed that my bus from Toronto would not be leaving at 8 pm as I had been informed originally, but rather at 1 the next morning! The good news was that despite this delay my connections weren’t affected, and I would still be arriving in Albuquerque two days later as scheduled.

What would you do, given 4 hours to wander around downtown Toronto? I made the best of an unexpected situation, and went to the Simpsons Movie at the nearby Paramount, the same theatre complex where earlier in the year, in a splendid study in contrasts, I had managed to get the final seat for one of the Met’s Live Simulcasts: hey, it’s all culture! Homer turned out to be the perfect primer for my Odyssey through the American Hinterland…the bus even stopped in two different Springfields en route!!

And still with a couple of hours to kill, I grabbed a beer en route back to the station. So, I hate to burst your bubble, but this ain’t Chicago Jazz, this is Tuesday Open Mic night at the REX on Queen Street, and hopefully the message is clear: support your local music scene!

Approximately 12 musicians took the stage non-stop in various quartet formations, and were simply outstanding, as the capacity audience would agree. The star of the evening? Surely the 74 year old drummer featured in this take, though not actually pictured above: this guy’s a monster player, and he consistently laid out an elaborate, imaginative foundation for the younger, equally talented players to solo over!

Now that the secret’s out, you’ll just have to head down to the Rex Hotel Jazz & Blues Bar to see what the buzz is about!