Joy, soul, and swing 🎶

I was already up in age—closing in on 50—when my dear friend Cap opened my ears to the wonders of jazz. [READER]( The Daily Reader I was already up in age—closing in on 50—when my dear friend Cap opened my ears to the wonders of jazz. Before that I was mostly interested in pop music from the 60s and 70s. But Cap, raised in a home where jazz was played all the time, had been grooving to the greats almost since the day he was born. fact, as a youngster, Cap was sort of the entertainment when his parents had a party. His father called him to the living room as some great jazz record was playing on the hi-fi. And they’d have something like the following exchange . . . Daddy Cap: Who’s playing the piano? Cap: McCoy Tyner. At which point, Daddy Cap’s friends would roar with disbelief. Years later, Cap took me under his wing. I’d be at his house watching the Bulls or Bears and when the game was over, he’d bring out the prized LPs he’d inherited from his parents. So it was then that I listened to everyone from Oscar Peterson to Jimmy Smith to Gene Ammons to Coleman Hawkins to Shirley Scott & the Soul Saxes to Gene Harris to Cannonball Adderley and on and on and on. One day, Cap put on a record by an organist named Joey DeFrancesco. As the sounds of the Hammond B3 boomed through the basement room, Cap gave me the play by play . . . Joey learned to play from his father, also a jazz organist. He was a prodigy. Toured with Miles Davis at age 16. Also played trumpet and sax. A musical genius! We loved Joey D. He brought so much joy, soul, and swing to his music. Our favorite number was “100 Ways.” The [live version]( Jason Brown on drums and Dan Wilson on guitar (that [Dan Wilson]( is no joke, by the way). We must have listened to that version of “100 Ways” at least 100 times. One day I saw in the Reader that Joey D was coming to town. Playing the Jazz Showcase. Of course, we had to go—me and Cap and our wives. Joey didn’t disappoint. We were his biggest fans in that room. My wife even got up and danced. After the show, Joey was sitting near the front of the club, chilling out. Cap and I stopped by to tell him how great he was. I took a picture of Cap and Joey D. And he told us—“I saw you guys. You were having a blast.” And he invited us to be his guests for the second set—which was even better than the first. After the show we promised Joey D we’d see him next time he came to town. Fast forward to last spring. Joey D was due back at the Jazz Showcase. Cap and I were fired up and ready to go, when . . . I got COVID. Damn COVID. Screws things up again. So we missed that show. But we vowed to see him next time—for sure. But Joey D died last week. No cause announced. He was only 51. To me that’s young—too young. By chance, Cap and his wife came over Friday. We drank a toast to the great Joey D and played his music. “100 Ways,” of course. Never gets old. So thank you, Cap, for introducing me to the great Joey D. And thank you, Joey DeFrancesco, for all your joy, soul, and swing. Listen to [The Ben Joravsky Show]( [What Ben's Reading] [The Murder Rule]( novel by Dervla McTiernan. In this mystery, Hannah, the protagonist, finagles her way onto an Innocence Project team in order to prove that the person everyone else is trying to save is actually guilty. Nice twist. [Kelly Garcia]( on Illinois ride-share drivers making their demands [Ben Joravsky]( on the lies our leaders tell us about the Red Line extension TIF [Best of the Ben J. Show]( [Mueze Bawany]( for alderperson against the Machine [Mike Allemana]( you need to know about this year’s Chicago Jazz Fest [Allison Jordan]( the truth about mental trauma in the Black community [Scorched Tundra XII celebrates heavy music from Sweden, Chicago, and beyond]( by [Monica Kendrick]( [Sidi Wacho sing of a revolution that will be danced]( by [Catalina Maria Johnson]( 💞 Forget the apps. [Place a FREE Reader matches ad]( and try your luck at finding love the 90s way 📰 [Issue of August 18 - 30, 2022 Vol. 51, No.]( [Download Issue]( [View this e-mail as a web page]( [@chicago_reader]( [/chicagoreader]( [@chicago_reader]( [Chicago Reader on LinkedIn]( [/chicagoreader]( [chicagoreader.com]( [Forward this e-mail to a friend](. Want to change how you receive these e-mails? You can [update your preferences]( or [unsubscribe from this list](. Copyright © 2022 Chicago Reader, All rights reserved. Our mailing address is: Chicago Reader, 2930 S. Michigan Ave., Suite 102, Chicago, IL 60616