Karen’s Quirky NY Takes a Tour Exploring City’s Jazz Landmarks

All the jazzcats in New York City love when April rolls around. The Smithsonian declared April to be Jazz Appreciation Month in 2001. We always amp things up a notch here in the undisputed jazz capital of the world. This April, to celebrate, Village Preservation released one of their wonderful, interactive maps of the history of the Village, and this time it’s all about jazz.

The Village Preservation jazz map is loaded with fascinating information about the jazz clubs, musicians, writers, and recorders of jazz music in the Village, from more than 100 years in the past (such as the Pepper Pot at 146 W. 4th St., later called Club Chantilly) to a few clubs and people that are still around today.

I took my crew on a bop through the West Village to visit five locations from the map. It was the first warm Saturday of the season, and people were giddy with joy and perhaps tipsy from boozy brunching at all the outdoor cafes.

* Our first stop was 55 Fifth Ave., home of the Columbia Phonograph Company (1926-1934), now known as Columbia Records. Here, legendary record producer John Hammond produced recordings that advanced the careers of major jazz musicians and helped break the color barrier in the industry. His momentous recordings included the first sessions by Billie Holiday, whom he discovered singing at a Harlem speakeasy, and the first major hits by a young Benny Goodman.

* Our second stop was 106 W. 13th St., home of John Hammond (1910-1987), a driving force behind the racial integration of the music industry during the 1930s. He saw Bessie Smith perform in Harlem, and this inspired his career in music. He helped launch the careers of several generations of major musicians.

* Our third stop was 200 W. 12th St., former location of the Sheridan Theatre (1921-1969), the first motion picture theatre south of 42nd Street. Edward Hopper captured the mood of the sumptuous, 2,500-seat venue in his 1937 piece “The Sheridan Theatre.” In 1957, the theatre launched a series of jazz concerts called “Music for the People.” Billie Holiday headlined the first concert, which also featured the Modern Jazz Quartet, the Charles Mingus Quintet, and the Randy Weston Trio. The site is now the NYC AIDS Memorial Park at St. Vincent’s Triangle.

* Our fourth stop was the aptly named Village Vanguard—a nightclub that is synonymous with jazz and a key player in the vibrant jazz scene in the Village. Established in 1935 by Max Gordon, the Vanguard became an exclusively jazz venue in 1957 due to the influence of his wife, Lorraine Gordon, who fell in love with jazz as a teenager in the 1930s. More than 100 albums have been recorded live at the Vanguard in the acoustically brilliant triangular room, including landmark sessions by Bill Evans, Sonny Rollins, and John Coltrane.

* Our fifth and final stop on the tour was 138 W. 10th St., the former home of distinctive jazz pianist and vocalist Blossom Dearie (1924-2009). A classically trained pianist who began playing at age five, Dearie recalls finding her voice in 1950, when she started doing solo sets at Club Chantilly (which was at 146 W. 4th St.). By the 1960s, she was an established artist, sharing the bill at the Village Vanguard with the likes of Miles Davis, who reportedly said, “She’s the only white woman who ever had soul.” Indeed, throughout her career, Dearie was considered a “musician’s musician.” Bill Evans said she was one of his models of piano playing. In 1974, Dearie launched Daffodil Records, becoming the first woman to launch a successful record label in the United States.

It was intoxicating to feel the impact of these jazz landmarks in my neighborhood. Next thing I knew, a beautiful woman was sitting with me on Blossom Dearie’s stoop for a smooch. I think jazz was definitely in the air that spring day, floating like Blossom’s petals drifting from the trees.

* Since we were steps away from the world-renowned Smalls at 183 W. 10th St., we finished the tour there. It’s a major oversight that Smalls is not on the Village Preservation map, with its 32-year history and warm-hearted contribution to the jazz scene in the Village. When we arrived at Smalls, a couple of guys were hanging out at the entrance after playing at the afternoon jam session. I told Steven and Saul about our jazz tour, and they agreed that it was a travesty that Smalls was not on the jazz map.

Steven Blane, an accomplished singer-songwriter, said that when you enter Smalls, “You’re transported.” Recalling Smalls’ opening in 1994, guitarist Saul Rubin said, “Smalls has always been the most important cultural center for jazz in New York since then. Because it’s a musician’s place.”

Smalls’ owner Spike Wilner has opened a new club, Jazzcultural, located at 349 W. 46th St. Jazzcultural is dedicated to the spirit of pianist and educator Barry Harris and his legacy, to jazz music, and to the jazz community. The club has a music room and a café/bar that opens at 12 noon.

If you are a fellow jazzcat, try out the Village Preservation jazz map to learn more about the enthralling history of jazz in the Village. You never know who you might meet (and kiss) when you prowl on your own self-guided jazz tour.

Karen Rempel is a New York-based writer, model, and artist. Her Karen’s Quirky New York column illuminates quirky clothes and places in Manhattan. For an expanded version of this story, see https://karenqs.nyc.