NYCity 1-2-3 : What's Happening / Manhattan's WestSide

Selected NYCity Events – THURSDAY, Jun. 27, 2013

For other useful and curated NYCity event info for Manhattan’s WestSide be sure to check out :
“Notable Events-June”, “on Broadway”,  and “Top10 Free” in the header above.
For NYCity trip planning see links in “Resources” and “Smart Stuff” in the header above.

‘The Woolworth Building @ 100’
An exhibition celebrating the 100th anniversary of this Cass Gilbert-designed building — when completed in 1913 it was considered the tallest office building in the world — features blueprints, photographs, contracts and other items.
Skyscraper Museum, 39 Battery Place, Lower Manhattan
The exhibition can be viewed Wednesdays through Sundays from noon to 6 p.m.
$5, $2.50 for students and 65+
(212) 968-1961 / skyscraper.org

Kay Lyra at Caffe Vivaldi
“Brazilian/American bossa nova composer and singer Kay Lyra has captured audiences with her precise, pure voice and impeccable phrasing.  Music critic Nelson Motta labeled her, “The daughter of bossa with a crystal voice,” in an inevitable reference to her musician/composer father, bossa nova veteran/founder Carlos Lyra.”

Check out her website – www.kaylyra.com
to hear why this is one performance you don’t want to miss.
Caffe Vivaldi – 32 Jones Street (btw. Bleecker/W4th St.)
at 9:30pm / no cover.
691-7538 / caffevivaldi.com

A Dancer’s Dream: Two Works by Stravinsky
Alan Gilbert Conducts an All-Stravinsky Finale with Giants are Small
Pirouettes out of reality.
“Doug Fitch masterminded this imaginative theatrical evening at the Philharmonic. Stravinsky’s fantastical “The Fairy’s Kiss” and “Petrouchka” are the score to the surreal story of a girl—the gorgeous City Ballet principal Sara Mearns—on her journey toward being an artist.” —Rebecca Milzoff (NYMag)
Avery Fisher Hall.
Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts
10 Lincoln Center Plz., corner Columbus Ave. and 65th St.
At 7:30pm / maybe sold out
This looks too good to not try all the secondary markets
212-875-5030 / http://lc.lincolncenter.org/

Keren Ann @ City Winery
Songs like good cocktails: so tasty you don’t realize their power.
“The Israeli-born, Parisian-reared chanteuse writes songs that are cool, precise, and deceptive. Her tunes are shapely, her singing pretty, but the songs—usually about romantic strife—deliver a blunt emotional gut-punch. At City Winery, ­ expect to hear music from her six solo albums, her other projects (including an opera), and, perhaps, some new stuff.” —Jody Rosen (NYMag), 
City Winery, 155 Varick st
at 8:00PM / $15 and $20
212-608-0555 / citywinery.com

“ROY HAYNES has played with nearly everyone who’s anyone in jazz, from Lester Young and Charlie Parker to Chick Corea and Pat Metheny. The strength and length of that list is rivalled only by the eighty-eight-year-old drummer’s energy and commitment to continued playing. He shows no signs of slowing down, and often surrounds himself with younger players in his Fountain of Youth Band.” (NewYorker)
BLUE NOTE, 131 W. 3rd St.
At 8 and 10:30pm / $20 and $35
212-475-8592 / bluenote.net

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Before making final plans, we suggest you call the venue to confirm dates and check times, as schedules are subject to change.
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Special Exhibitions @ 3 Museum Mile / Fifth Ave. Museums:

‘Subliming Vessel: The Drawings of Matthew Barney’ (through Sept. 2)
Morgan Library & Museum: 225 Madison Avenue, at 36th St.
(212) 685-0008 / themorgan.org.

‘Cambodian Rattan: The Sculptures of Sopheap Pich’ (through July 7)
‘Velázquez’s Portrait of Duke Francesco I d’Este: A Masterpiece from the Galleria Estense, Modena’ (through July 14) 
‘At War With the Obvious: Photographs by William Eggleston’ (through July 28) 
‘Punk: Chaos to Couture’ (through Aug. 14)
“African Art, New York, and the Avant-Garde” (through Sept. 2)
‘The Civil War and American Art’ (through Sept. 2)
‘Photography and the American Civil War’ (through Sept. 2)
‘The Roof Garden Commission: Imran Qureshi’ (through Nov. 3)
Metropolitan Museum of Art: 1000 5th Ave, at 82nd St.
(212) 535-7710 / metmuseum.org

“New Harmony: Abstraction Between the Wars, 1919-1939” (through Sept. 8)
“Aten Reign” (through Sept. 25)
the centerpiece of James Turrell’s first exhibition in a New York museum since 1980, recasts the Guggenheim rotunda as an enormous volume filled with shifting artificial and natural light. {see review below}
Guggenheim Museum: 1071 Fifth Avenue, at 89th St.
(212) 423-3500 / guggenheim.org.

Light and color wash the Rotunda. 
“Turrell works in a single medium: light. He has sliced into walls, designed seamless rooms with holes in the ceiling, and spent four decades building a giant naked-eye observatory in the Arizona desert—all to provide unexpectedly intimate and mysterious views of the sky, the sun, and the stars. For this segment of a three-part show running concurrently in L.A. and Houston, he’s turned the museum’s atrium into a giant light box. —J.D.” (NYMag)

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Museum Mile is a section of Fifth Avenue which contains one of the densest displays of culture in the world. Ten museums can be found along this section of Fifth Avenue:
• 110th Street – Museum for African Art
• 105th Street – El Museo del Barrio
• 103rd Street – Museum of the City of New York
• 92nd Street – The Jewish Museum
• 91st Street – Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum (part of the Smithsonian Institution)
• 89th Street – National Academy Museum
• 88th Street – Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum
• 86th Street – Neue Galerie New York
• 83rd Street – Goethe-Institut
• 82nd Street – The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Additionally, though technically not part of the Museum Mile, the Frick Collection on the corner of Fifth Avenue and 70th St. and the The Morgan Library & Museum on Madison Ave and 37th St are also located near to Fifth Ave.
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For other selected Museum and Gallery Special Exhibitions see Recent Posts in right Sidebar:

“NYCity Events: Manhattan’s WestSide” dated 06/25 and 06/23.

Selected NYCity Events – WEDNESDAY, Jun. 26, 2013

For other useful and curated NYCity event info for Manhattan’s WestSide be sure to check out :
“Notable Events-June”, “on Broadway”,  and “Top10 Free” in the header above.
For NYCity trip planning see links in “Resources” and “Smart Stuff” in the header above.

“LARRY KRAMER AND THE NORMAL HEART”
Larry Kramer, a co-founder of Gay Men’s Health Crisis, talks about his 1985 play, “The Normal Heart,” with Tony Kushner, in an evening presented in conjunction with the Society’s exhibition “AIDS in New York: The First Five Years.”
NEW-YORK HISTORICAL SOCIETY
170 Central Park W., at 77th St.
at 6:30pm / $30; members $18
212-873-3400 / Nyhistory.org

Oscar Gets Wild and Fitzgerald’s Nick Carraway 
Meets Hemingway’s Jake Barnes!
Ever wonder what some of your favorite literary icons would talk about if they could jump off the page and have a party together? Join us for a fun and unique discussion surrounding two books that add their own flavor to the worlds of The Picture of Dorian Gray, The Great Gatsby, and The Sun Also Rises.

Nicole Audrey Spector takes Dorian Gray to hilarious, super-sexy new heights with her hybrid novel, Fifty Shades of Dorian Gray. Nicole is a writer and editor, contributing weekly to the New Yorker’s nightlife section. She co-runs the Guerrilla Lit Reading Series in Manhattan. Jonathan Richards and Tad Richards are the authors of Nick & Jake, a hilarious, epistolary novel imagining correspondence between classic literary characters Nick Carraway and Jake Barnes. Jonathan is a writer, journalist, and cartoonist whose political cartoons are regularly featured in the Huffington Post. Tad is an author, playwright, and songwriter.
STRAND BOOK STORE, Broadway at 12th St.
At 7pm / Purchase a $15 Strand gift card in order to attend this event.
212-473-1452 / strandbooks.com

Comedy Central Stars Under the Stars
Rumsey Playfield, Central Park
Comics including Jeff Ross, Amy Schumer and John Mulaney play a free show. It should be funny, but you’ll probably want to make sure the kids are nowhere near this one. For more info, visit nyc.gov/parks.

Buddy Guy
“Any discussion of Buddy Guy invariably involves a recitation of his colossal musical resume and hard-earned accolades. He’s a Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee, a chief guitar influence to rock titans like Hendrix, Clapton, Beck, and Vaughan, a pioneer of Chicago’s fabled West Side, and a living link to that city’s halcyon days of electric blues.”
B.B. King Blues Club & Grill, 237 West 42nd Street,
at 8 p.m. / $67 in advance, $75 at the door.
(800) 745-3000 / bbkingblues.com

Savion Glover*
“The renowned tap dancer and rhythmic genius returns to the Joyce Theater with “STePz,” in which he and his ensemble explore the give-and-take between embracing tradition and radically breaking with it. While the musical selections may be recognizable, the movement they inspire may prove more surprising.” (Burke-NYT)
Joyce Theater, 175 Eighth Avenue, at 19th Street, Chelsea
at 8 p.m., $10 to $59.
242-0800 / joyce.org

Marisa Monte* (and next Friday)
“One of the top-selling performers in her native Brazil, this lovely, classically trained singer combines the samba and rock-based hybrid genre of Música Popular Brasileira with softer pop influences. She deploys both for the odd Marvin Gaye or Lou Reed cover. Her latest album, “O Que Você Quer Saber de Verdade” (“What You Really Want to Know”), was released last year in the United States by Blue Note.” (Anderson-NYT)
Beacon Theater, 2124 Broadway, at 74th Street
at 8 p.m.,/ $49.50 to $95.
(800) 745-3000 / beacontheatre.com

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Before making final plans, we suggest you call the venue to confirm dates and check times, as schedules are subject to change ==============================================================================

A PremierPub and 3 Good Eating places – Tribeca

B-Flat
277 Church st (Btw Franklin/White)

There are some places that are tough to find, then add a layer of mystery when you do find them. B-Flat has a nondescript, almost unmarked door at street level – today’s speakeasy vibe. Open this door and you face a dimly lit stairway down to their basement location. It almost takes a leap of faith to follow the stairs down to their interior door. But open that door and a pleasant surprise awaits you.

It’s a basement jazz spot all right, but not like any traditional jazz joint you may have been to before. This place looks as fresh as today, probably because it’s only been open for 6 years. Even though it hasn’t had a chance to age gracefully, the cherry wood accents and low lighting make this small space very inviting.

There is always jazz, often progressive jazz,  playing over their very discrete, stylish bose speakers, setting just the right tone as you find a seat at the bar, or one of the small tables. There is wine and beer available, but this place has some expert mixologists making some very creative cocktails, which I’m told change seasonally, a nice touch.

Come at happy hour and tasty cocktails like the el Diablo or the lychee martini are $8 – not bad. I am a sucker for any drink made with lychee and how can you not try a tequila drink named el Diablo. There is also nice selection of small bites available at happy hour and a food menu that is as innovative as the cocktail menu, so this does not have to be a happy hour only stop.

It wasn’t surprising to find a tasty prosciutto and arugula salad with yuzu dressing, but I did not expect to find such a good version of fried chicken breast on the apps menu. Here it’s called “Tatsuta.” Best bet is to sample happy hour, then dinner on a Monday or Wednesday night, when you can finish with no cover live jazz that starts around 8.

This place is tough to find (look for a small slate sandwich board on the sidewalk out front advertising happy hour) and on some nights when there is no live music it may be a little too quiet for some. But I think it’s worth searching out if you want a place with good music, food, and especially drinks, away from the maddening crowd.

Website: http://http://www.bflat.info/index.html
Phone #: 212-219-2970
Hours: Mo-Wed 5pm-2am; Th-Sat 5pm-3am; no Sun
Happy Hour: 5-7pm every day; $8 cocktails + special prices on apps
Music: Mon/Wed 8pm
Subway: #1 to Franklin; walk 1 blk E to Church; 1 blk N to bFlat

“Pub” is used in it’s broadest sense – bars, bar/restaurants, wine bars, cocktail lounges,  tapas bars, craft beer bars, dive bars – just about anyplace you can get a drink without a cover charge.

Selected NYCity Events – TUESDAY, Jun. 25, 2013

For other useful and curated NYCity event info for Manhattan’s WestSide be sure to check out :
“Notable Events-June”, “on Broadway”,  and “Top10 Free”, in the header above.
For NYCity trip planning see links in “Resources” and “Smart Stuff” in the header above.

BIG BAND SWING
Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis
Dance Instructor: Adam Brozowski teaches Jazz and Lindy Hop with special guest Norma Miller.  DJ: Dawn Hampton

A classic, the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra opens Midsummer Night Swing’s 25th anniversary with a celebration of its own 25th. The JLCO formed when Wynton Marsalis and his septet joined forces with the surviving players of the Duke Ellington Orchestra, creating a group that knows that some jazz masterpieces are meant to be danced to. This beautiful big band will bring back the glory of ballrooms past.
Damrosch Park, 70 Lincoln Center Plaza
62nd Street between Columbus and Amsterdam Avenues
Dance Lesson at 6:30 / Live Music at 7:30
(212) 875-5456

CÉCILE MCLORIN SALVANT
The singer CÉCILE MCLORIN SALVANT, who was born in Miami to a French mother and a Haitian father, is poised for stardom. Her impressive début album, “WomanChild,” deftly and imaginatively revitalizes all manner of standards and also delivers a taste of clever original compositions. She celebrates its release here, with AARON DIEHL (on piano), PAUL SIKIVIE (on bass), and RODNEY GREEN (on drums). (NewYorker)
54 Below, 254 West 54th Street
at 7 and 9 p.m. /
212-476-3551 / 54below.com

Steve Martin and Edie Brickell
New old bohemians.
Brickell still has that limpid swoopy voice we first fell for 25 years ago, and it mates gracefully with Martin’s banjo-playing. Their new album, Love Has Come for You, is pretty sweet, too. (NYMag)
Town Hall, 123 W. 43rd St., New York, N.Y.
8pm / $57 and $87.50
212-840-2824 / the-townhall-nyc.org

Roy Hargrove Quintet (Tuesday through June 30)
‘Hard bop has an able-bodied ambassador in Roy Hargrove, a trumpeter who manages to inhabit the style without rigidity or stifling nostalgia. He’s also a shrewd bandleader with an unfailingly disciplined crew: the saxophonist Justin Robinson, the pianist Sullivan Fortner, the bassist Ameen Saleem and the drummer Quincy Phillips.” (Chinen-NYT)
Village Vanguard, 178 Seventh Avenue South, West Village
At 8:30 and 10:30 p.m. / $25 cover, with a one-drink minimum.
(212) 255-4037 / villagevanguard.com

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Before making final plans, we suggest you call the venue to confirm dates and check times, as schedules are subject to change ==============================================================================

Chelsea is the heart of the NYCity contemporary art scene. Home to more than 300 art galleries, the Rubin Museum, the Joyce Theater and The Kitchen performance spaces,   there is no place like it anywhere in the world.

Come here to browse free exhibitions by world-renowned artists and those unknowns waiting to be discovered in an art district that is concentrated between West 18th and West 27th Streets, and 10th and 11th Avenues. Afterwards stop in the Chelsea Market, stroll on the High Line, or rest up at one of the many cafes and bars and discuss the fine art. My fave is Ovest on W 27th St., where the aperitivo is like Happy Hour on steroids.

Here are a few Special Exhibitions in Chelsea Galleries that you shouldn’t miss:

Ralph Fasanella*: ‘A More Perfect Union’ (through June 29)
If Fasanella (1914-97) had been a trained painter, his political beliefs might have resulted in predictable Social Realist paintings. Instead, this child of the working-class Bronx largely taught himself and evolved an altogether sharper and more original manner, politically and pictorially.

This fantastic little five-decade survey summarizes his development and his ability to weave history, architecture and layered social criticism into remarkable tapestry-like compositions that teem with human activity good and bad, homey details and a spectrum of glowing colors.”(Smith-NYT)
Andrew Edlin Gallery, 134 10th Avenue, near 18th Street
11am-6pm / FREE
(212) 206-9723 / edlingallery.com

‘Ellsworth Kelly at Ninety’ (through June 29)
“An impressive three-part display of new work (mostly from 2012) reveals a seasoned artist who is doing some of his boldest work. Some introduce new forms (but are actually derived from his early collages). Others expand on more recent works with changes in material and color. Keep an eye out for “Black Form II,” “Yellow Relief Over Blue,” “Gold With Orange Reliefs” and the four-panel “Curves on White.” (Smith-NYT)
Matthew Marks Gallery, 522 West 22nd Street
(212) 243-0200 / matthewmarks.com.

Marc Quinn: ‘All the Time in the World’ (through June 29)
Four much enlarged, bronze sculptures of seashells made by high-tech 3-D replication seem, at first, like pointless baubles for rich collectors. But they reveal an unexpected inner beauty both literal and metaphorical, as their polished interiors cause their interiors to warmly glow as if supernaturally illuminated from within. Implicitly vaginal, these seeming products of phallic ambition become objects of oceanic, feminine mystery.” (Johnson)
Mary Boone, 541 West 24th Street
752-2929 / maryboonegallery.com.

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For a fine listing of 25 essential galleries in the Chelsea Art Gallery District, organized by street, which enables you to create your own Art Gallery crawl:
Chelsea Gallery Guide (nycgo.com)
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For other selected Museum and Gallery Special Exhibitions see Recent Posts in the right Sidebar: “Selected Events …  : Manhattan’s WestSide” dated (06/23) and (06/21).

Selected NYCity Events – MONDAY, Jun. 24, 2013

For other useful and curated NYCity event info for Manhattan’s WestSide be sure to check out :
“Notable Events-June”, “on Broadway”,  and “Top10 Free”, in the header above.
For NYCity trip planning see links in “Resources” and “Smart Stuff” in the header above.

‘100 Years of Flamenco in New York’
This exhibition traces the popularity of the dance form in the city, from the mid-1800s to the present, through engravings and photographs, printed materials, costume pieces and films and recordings.
New York Public Library for the Performing Arts:
111 Amsterdam Avenue, at 65th Street, Lincoln Center,
Mondays from noon to 8 p.m. / FREE
(917) 275-6975 / nypl.org/lpa

Spoken Word Radio/Podcasting Rock Stars: Catherine Burns, Seth Lind & Jonathan Mitchell
IDEASMYTH.com is excited to present this panel radio/podcast experts of enormously popular award-winning programming: Catherine Burns (Artistic Director, TheMoth.org), Seth Lind (Director of Operations, ThisAmericanLife.org), & Jonathan Mitchell (Creator and Executive Producer, TheTruthAPM.com). Ideasmyth founder, Victoria C. Rowan, will first moderate a discussion about what’s involved in developing and producing great audio shows.

After that, the whole panel will provide laser coaching of the five best pitches submitted from the audience. Everyone is encouraged to come early and stay late to enjoy Iguana’s excellent margaritas and Mexican food.
Iguana New York, 240 W. 54th St.
At 6:30pm / $20 at door
212-842-5956 / ideasmyth.com.
212-765-5454 / http://www.iguananyc.com/

American Ballet Theater*
“The season’s first performance of Sir Frederick Ashton‘s Sylvia will be given tonight, led by Gillian Murphy (Sylvia), Marcelo Gomes (Aminta), Daniil Simkin (Eros) and Cory Stearns (Orion). [Look also for Polina Semionova (on Tuesday) and Natalia Osipova (on Thursday) in the title role.]

A ballet in three acts, Sylvia is set to music by Léo Delibes and features costumes and scenery after original designs by Robin and Christopher Ironside. The World Premiere of the original production of Sylvia was given by The Royal Ballet on September 3, 1952 at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, London, danced by Margot Fonteyn (Sylvia), Michael Somes (Aminta), John Hart (Orion) and Alexander Grant (Eros).” Read more at broadwayworld.com
Metropolitan Opera House, Lincoln Center
at 7:30 p.m. / $20 to $120 (center parterre $205).
212-362-6000 / abt.org

Sherie Rene Scott: ‘Piece of Meat’
“54 Below has now been in business for a year, and it’s already difficult to count the number of Broadway headliners who have done memorable solo shows there. Yet of every show presented by “Broadway’s Nightclub” in its first 12 months, the one that most lingered in the consciousness and demanded to be reprised was Sherie Rene Scott’s “Piece of Meat,” which first ran last October.

Whereas most of the other leading ladies, like Patti LuPone, Donna McKechnie and Marin Mazzie, offered reminiscences, generally of their careers in the theater, Ms. Scott’s turn is essentially a 75-minute comedy monolog that’s soul-searching, touching and tuneful. Rather than focusing on her career, she digresses through her experiences as a vegetarian interspersed not with show tunes but standout pop songs by, among others, Paul McCartney and Joni Mitchell. If they ever make a movie of this show, brilliantly written by the star herself, it would be titled “Eat, Pray, Laugh.” (WSJ)
54 Below / 254 W. 54th St.
At 7pm / $40 and $50, $25 minimum food and drink
(866) 468-7619 / 54below.com

Jim Caruso’s Cast Party
Broadway impresario Jim Caruso hosts a combination open-mic, networking event and party in which the biggest stars on Broadway relax on their night off by performing their favorite songs in an informal setting.
Birdland – 315 West 44th St (Btw 8th/9th ave)
9:30 pm / $20

===============================================================================
Before making final plans, we suggest you call the venue to confirm dates and check times, as schedules are subject to change ==============================================================================

A PremierPub and 3 Good Eating places – Upper West Side

Dinosaur
700 W125th st @ 12th ave

Walk only five minutes from the 125th st. station on the #1 line to find this authentic honky-tonk barbecue joint. Some folks think Dinosaur is just a place to eat ribs. Au contraire. With 24 carefully selected taps, this is a place to drink beer, and eat ribs.

No food goes better with American craft ales than American barbecue. Dinosaur may be the best combo of good beer drinking and hearty eating in town, which makes the trip to Harlem totally worthwhile.

This second incarnation of Dinosaur in Harlem is in an old brick warehouse near the Hudson River. Don’t let that run down exterior fool you. Inside it’s a large space with huge, rough wooden columns and unfinished wooden floors and brick walls – just right for a bbq joint. As soon as you open the door you are hit with that tantalizing aroma of barbecue coming from the large open kitchen. Reminds me of all those great rib joints I frequented when stationed in North Carolina all those years ago. If your stomach wasn’t grumbling before, it is now.

Head to the bar, sit down and try to decide on a beer. It’s not an easy decision – a good problem to have. This is a pretty damn good beer list to choose from, one that most beer bars should be jealous of. I love that they feature NY craft beers. You may want to try the four beer sampler, which is always fun, and in this place may be necessary.

The Mississippi blues music playing in the background will get you in the mood for their North Carolina style barbecue, and even when it’s a full house your order shouldn’t take too long. The food is all slow smoked, so it’s already mostly done and ready to go. I always start with an order of their giant, spice rubbed wings, so good they may make you give up Buffalo wings.

Unfortunately, a place this good does not fly under the radar. There can be some humongous waits at dinnertime. So you need a strategy – avoid prime time, and try not to arrive with your entire posse, which will limit your seating options.

A seat at the bar, a small table in the bar area, or in the summer, an outside table, underneath what’s left of the elevated W. Side Hwy., all may open before a table inside the main dining room. Otherwise, try Dinosaur for lunch, or come very early or late for dinner.

Website: http://www.dinosaurbarbque.com/
Phone #: 212-694-1777
Hours: M-Th 11:30am-11:00pm; Fr-Sa 11:30am-12:00am;
Su 12:00pm-10:00pm
Happy Hour: 4-7pm every day; $1 off all drinks
Music: Fri / Sat 10:00pm
Subway: #1 to 125th st
Walk 2 blk W on 125th to Dinosaur Bar-B-Q,
just past the elevated highway

“Pub” is used in it’s broadest sense – bars, bar/restaurants, wine bars, cocktail lounges,  tapas bars, craft beer bars, dive bars – just about anyplace you can get a drink without a cover charge.

Selected NYCity Events – SUNDAY, Jun. 23, 2013

For other useful NYCity event info for Manhattan’s WestSide be sure to check out :
“Notable Events-June”, “on Broadway”,  and “Top10 Free”, in the header above.
For NYCity trip planning see links in “Resources” and “Smart Stuff” in the header above.

‘On Time/Grand Central at 100’
This multimedia exhibition, commissioned for the occasion, features 18 artists’ impressions of time, travel and the commuters who flood the terminal each day in pieces incorporating painting, video photography and sculpture. (NYT)
New York Transit Museum Gallery Annex and Store, Grand Central Terminal, near the Station Masters’ Office
Sunday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. / FREE
(212) 878-0106 / grandcentralterminal.com/centennial

Femi Kuti and the Positive Force
The vivacious Mr. Kuti, the eldest son of Fela Kuti, laces his Afrobeat ancestry with fluid funk and topical hip-hop. He also collaborates regularly with some of the most incisive rappers around, including Common and Yasiin Bey. Mr. Kuti’s slow-burning “Tension Grip Africa,” from his 2008 record, “Day by Day” (Downtown), is an especially remarkable peak in his recent catalog. He performs as part of the SummerStage Festival, with Sinkane.” (Anderson-NYT)
Central Park SummerStage, Rumsey Playfield, midpark at 70th Street,
at 3 p.m. / FREE
(212) 360-2777 / summerstage.org

SYLEENA JOHNSON
Syleena Johnson knew about the music business before she ever got into it: her father, Syl Johnson, was a Chicago blues singer whose work also shaded into soul and funk… She has since released five uniformly excellent albums of measured, contemplative R. & B., mostly self-written.

Her records are so writerly, in fact, that they are titled as chapters…The most recent, “Chapter 5: Underrated,” in 2011, made more direct overtures to contemporary production trends, but Johnson’s outsized vocals and her moving, clear-eyed ballads stood out. She knows her voice is her strength: her latest EP, “Acoustic Soul Sessions,” is a stripped-down version of songs from “Chapter 5.” (Ben Greenman-NewYorker)
Highline Ballroom, 431 W 16th (btw 9/10Ave.)
At 8pm / $30
(212) 414-5994 / highlineballroom.com

Mark Turner Quartet*
MARK TURNER, an ever-increasing influence on contemporary saxophonists, continues to turn heads through his work with the trio Fly and the Billy Hart Quartet. Tonight he leads a lean quartet in this venerated club with the trumpeter Avishai Cohen. (NewYorker)
Village Vanguard, 178 Seventh Avenue South, at 11th Stre
at 8:30 and 10:30 p.m./ $25 cover, with a one-drink minimum.
(212) 255-4037 / villagevanguard.com

Swingadelic: ‘Toussaintville’
“What’s in a name? “Swingadelic”—a relatively compact big band, with three saxes, four brass and four rhythm—is an astute handle for this swinging orchestra with a distinctly 1960s vibe. The group’s last album, “The Other Duke,” celebrated Duke Pearson, a soul-jazz composer with pop leanings.

Its new release, “Toussaintville,” does the same for the legendary New Orleans songwriter. Allen Toussaint’s work is favored by pop and blues artists, but not enough by jazzmen), a situation that this package will surely remedy. Swingadelic specializes in reinterpreting hits (both vocal and instrumental), like Mr. Toussaint’s “Java,” in a way that shows funk and swing are more closely related than many might suspect.” (WSJ)
Swing 46 / 349 W. 46th St.
at 8:30 / $12
(212) 262-9554 / swing46.com

Sadao Watanabe
“Mr. Watanabe, who turned 80 this year, is one of the most accomplished of jazz elders in Japan, with a saxophone style that suits a host of musical settings. He hasn’t been a regular presence in the United States over the last two decades; he appears here as part of the Blue Note Jazz Festival, with a New York rhythm section consisting of Lawrence Fields on piano, Yasushi Nakamura on bass and Greg Hutchinson on drums.” (Chinen-NYT)
Blue Note, 131 West Third Street, Greenwich Village
at 8 and 10:30 p.m., $35 cover at tables, $20 at the bar, with a $5 minimum.
475-8592 / bluenote.net

===============================================================================
Before making final plans, we suggest you call the venue to confirm dates and check times, as schedules are subject to change.
================================================================================

Special Exhibitions @ 3 Museum Mile / Fifth Ave. Museums:

‘Subliming Vessel: The Drawings of Matthew Barney’ (through Sept. 2)
Morgan Library & Museum: 225 Madison Avenue, at 36th St.
(212) 685-0008 / themorgan.org.

‘Cambodian Rattan: The Sculptures of Sopheap Pich’ (through July 7)
‘Velázquez’s Portrait of Duke Francesco I d’Este: A Masterpiece from the Galleria Estense, Modena’ (through July 14) 
‘At War With the Obvious: Photographs by William Eggleston’ (through July 28) 
‘Punk: Chaos to Couture’ (through Aug. 14)
“African Art, New York, and the Avant-Garde” (through Sept. 2)
‘The Civil War and American Art’ (through Sept. 2)
‘Photography and the American Civil War’ (through Sept. 2)
‘The Roof Garden Commission: Imran Qureshi’ (through Nov. 3)
Metropolitan Museum of Art: 1000 5th Ave, at 82nd St.
(212) 535-7710 / metmuseum.org

“New Harmony: Abstraction Between the Wars, 1919-1939” (through Sept. 8)
“Aten Reign” (through Sept. 25)
the centerpiece of James Turrell’s first exhibition in a New York museum since 1980, recasts the Guggenheim rotunda as an enormous volume filled with shifting artificial and natural light. {see review below}
Guggenheim Museum: 1071 Fifth Avenue, at 89th St.
(212) 423-3500 / guggenheim.org.

Light and color wash the Rotunda. 
“Turrell works in a single medium: light. He has sliced into walls, designed seamless rooms with holes in the ceiling, and spent four decades building a giant naked-eye observatory in the Arizona desert—all to provide unexpectedly intimate and mysterious views of the sky, the sun, and the stars. For this segment of a three-part show running concurrently in L.A. and Houston, he’s turned the museum’s atrium into a giant light box. —J.D.” (NYMag)

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Museum Mile is a section of Fifth Avenue which contains one of the densest displays of culture in the world. Ten museums can be found along this section of Fifth Avenue:
• 110th Street – Museum for African Art
• 105th Street – El Museo del Barrio
• 103rd Street – Museum of the City of New York
• 92nd Street – The Jewish Museum
• 91st Street – Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum (part of the Smithsonian Institution)
• 89th Street – National Academy Museum
• 88th Street – Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum
• 86th Street – Neue Galerie New York
• 83rd Street – Goethe-Institut
• 82nd Street – The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Additionally, though technically not part of the Museum Mile, the Frick Collection on the corner of Fifth Avenue and 70th St. and the The Morgan Library & Museum on Madison Ave and 37th St are also located near to Fifth Ave.
=======================================================

For other selected Museum and Gallery Special Exhibitions see Recent Posts in right Sidebar:

“NYCity Events: Manhattan’s WestSide” dated 06/21 and 06/19.

Selected West Side Events – SATURDAY, Jun. 22, 2013

For other useful NYCity event info be sure to check out :
“Notable Events-June”, “on Broadway”,  and “Top10 Free”, in the header above.
For NYCity trip planning see links in “Resources” and “Smart Stuff” in the header above.

Paul Winter Consort Summer Solstice Concert
“This annual concert by the Paul Winter Consort is a musical greeting to summer. This year there will be a new configuration of the performance space, Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine: audience members will be seated in the middle, with the band surrounding them.” (NYT)
Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine,1047 Amsterdam Avenue, at 112th Street, Morningside Heights
From 4:30 to 6:30 a.m. / $35.
(212) 316-7540 / stjohndivine.org

Board the Ships in Hudson River Park
Get your sea legs.
“Those old ships along the West Side that you’ve always passed by with faint curiosity? Time to satisfy it: The Lehigh Valley Railroad Barge No. 79, Pegasus, and Lilac, all at Pier 25, are open to tours.” (NYMag)
Hudson River Park / noon to 5 p.m. Free.

Tropfest New York 2013
Music and film will be in full supply along with fresh air at this free festival in the Nethermead of Prospect Park, reachable from the 16th Street and Prospect Park Southwest entrance.

It begins at 3 p.m. with music by an assortment of indie bands, including Chairlift, Bear in Heaven and People Get Ready. As night falls, about 8 p.m., screenings of short films will begin; the actor Liev Schreiber is the host. It’s all free, but reservations are suggested and can be made at: tropfestnewyork2013.eventbrite.com; tropfest.com/newyork.

American Ballet Theater*
“Of all the roles in the classical repertory, there are few that test a ballerina’s technical strength and dramatic range like Odette/Odile in “Swan Lake.” (Burke-NYT)
Metropolitan Opera House, Lincoln Center
at 7:30 p.m. / $20 to $245.
212-362-6000 / abt.org

Sharon Clark: ‘Then… and Again’
This veteran jazz singer from Baltimore is only now being discovered by audiences in New York. She doesn’t imitate Sarah Vaughan, but it’s hard to imagine any fans of the Divine One who wouldn’t also adore Ms. Clark.

Her second show at the Metropolitan this year ingeniously mixes songs with similar themes from multiple generations, leading to some juxtapositions that are so audacious as to be almost perverse: Count Basie’s “Li’l Darlin'” with the Beatles’ “Oh! Darlin’,” or Irving Berlin’s “How Deep Is the Ocean” with the Bee Gees’ “How Deep Is Your Love.”

Ms. Clark continues to be woefully under-represented on CD, but there are some marvelous full-length concerts from earlier this year (filmed in Tel-Aviv and Afula) viewable on YouTube. I haven’t even mentioned the mash-up of Ravel (in the form of “The Lamp Is Low”) and Bob Marley (“Turn Your Lights Down Low”). (WSJ)
The Metropolitan Room, 34 W. 22nd St.
At 7pm / $20 + 2 drink minimum
(212) 206-0440 / metropolitanroom.com

Jazz Piano Summit: Cedar Walton and Barry Harris* 
“Cedar Walton and Barry Harris, two of the leading pianists in the bebop lineage, both National Endowment for the Arts Jazz Masters and mentor-instructors besides, take their stations at a pair of nine-foot Steinways for this concert, dedicated to the memory of Mulgrew Miller, a beloved peer.

The evening, presented by Jazz Forum Arts as a part of the Blue Note Jazz Festival, will feature solo and duo piano elements, as well as the efforts of the bassist Buster Williams and the drummer Willie Jones III.” (Chinen-NYT)
Allen Room, Frederick P. Rose Hall, Jazz at Lincoln Center,
60th Street and Broadway
at 7:30 and 9:30 p.m. / $55 to $95.
721-6500 / jalc.org

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Before making final plans, we suggest you call the venue to confirm dates and check times, as schedules are subject to change.
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A PremierPub and 3 Good Eating Places – Greenwich Village

Caffe Vivaldi
32 Jones Street (btw. Bleecker/W4th)

Café Vivaldi is a classic, intimate club located in Greenwich Village on Jones Street, the street featured on the cover of Bob Dylan’s second album, “Freewheelin’ ”.

Each night Ishrat, the long time proprietor and impresario, carefully curates and schedules an eclectic series of musicians. You can often see him at his table in the corner, hard at work reviewing music videos and listening to cd demos on his laptop, scouting out future bookings. Musicians come from all over to play and sing in a club in Greenwich Village. Some are local New Yorkers, others are just passing through, in town for a few days.

There is a small bar, seating maybe 10. It’s close to the stage and I find it’s a perfect spot to sip a glass of red wine while listening to the music. The room itself has the performance area at one end and a cozy fireplace at the other. The performance area here is small, dominated by a large black Yamaha Grand piano. Tables are bunched together and most people at the tables are eating lite meals or sampling the wonderful desserts.

There is also a good selection of wines and lite meals, fairly priced, but you are here because of the music. You can never be quite sure what you’re going to find, and that’s half the charm of this place. It’s not a home run every night, but many nights it’s pretty special.

I remember the night I saw the most talented bossa nova group, just in from San Paulo. As I listened, I wondered if there was any better music playing anywhere else in New York City that night. And at Caffé Vivaldi there is never a cover charge. I should note that their recently redesigned web site does give you a better idea of the type of music playing each night.

At one time Greenwich Village was filled with clubs just like this, but times change. Real estate interests have impacted the village, and not for the better. Even Caffé Vivaldi had a rough time recently, when a new landlord raised the rent exorbitantly. Fortunately, Ishrat has built a loyal following over the years, and a fund raiser and slightly more reasonable rent has kept Café Vivaldi in business.

When Woody Allen and Al Pacino wanted to make movies featuring the timeless quality of Greenwich Village they came to Vivaldi. It’s important that we keep this special place alive, for if we lose Cafe Vivaldi, NYC will have lost a piece of it’s soul.

Website: http://caffevivaldi.com/
Phone #: (212) 691-7538
Hours: Music generally 7:30pm – 11pm, but varies
Lunch/Dinner 11am-on
Subway: #1 to Christopher st
Walk 1 blk S on 7th ave S to Bleecker st, 1 blk S/left on Bleecker to Jones st, 50 yards E/left on Jones st to Caffe V

“Pub” is used in it’s broadest sense – bars, bar/restaurants, wine bars, cocktail lounges,  tapas bars, craft beer bars, dive bars – just about anyplace you can get a drink without a cover charge.

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3 Good Eating places 
It’s not difficult to find a place to eat in Manhattan.
Finding a good, inexpensive place to eat is a bit harder.
Here are a few of my faves in this neighborhood:

Fish – 280 Bleecker St (just a bit S. of 7th ave South)
This was an easy pick – the best raw bar special in town. $8 gets you 6 of the freshest oysters or clams + a glass of wine or beer. Don’t know how they can do it, but I tell everyone I know about this place. And it’s located right in the heart of some of the best no cover music in town.

Bleecker Street Pizza – 69 7th ave S (corner of Bleecker)
The place is tiny and not much to look at, but this is one good slice. They like to brag that they have been voted “Best pizza in NY” 3 years in a row by the Food Network. I believe them. I would have voted for them.

Num Pang – 21 E 12th st (btw. University place/5th ave)
This is a Cambodian banh mi sandwich shop that kept me well fed while I was in class nearby recently. You may have to wait a few minutes, because everything is freshly made, but it’s worth it. Can you believe – an unheard of 26 food rating by Zagat.

The focus for “3 Good Eating places” is on Fine Fast Food – NYCity Style
(pizza,  burgers,  food trucks/carts,  vegetarian/falafel,  soup & sandwiches,  salad bars,  hot dogs,  bbq,  picnic fixins’,  raw bars & lobster rolls – no reservations needed).

—————————————————————————–—————————–———–———
There are also some casual dining, chain restaurant locations in this neighborhood that have decent food and free Wi-FI:

A. Pret a Manger @ 821 Broadway (betw 12/13 st)
Subway: #1/2/3 to 42nd st; transfer to n/q/r to 14th st/union sq

B. Potbelly @ 41 W14th st (betw 5th/6th ave)
Subway: #1/2/3 to 14th st

C. Cosi @ 53 E 8th st (betw greene/mercer)
Subway: #1/2/3 to 42nd st; transfer to n/r to 8th st

◊ For a few more PremierPubs and Good Eating places see previous Featured Neighborhoods in the right sidebar.

◊ For all my picks of 54 Good Eating places and descriptions of my favorite 18 PremierPubs in 9 Neighborhoods (plus 27 eating places with free Wi-Fi) order a copy of my e-book: “Eating and Drinking on NYCity’s WestSide” ($3.99).

Selected West Side Events – FRIDAY, Jun. 21, 2013

For other useful NYCity event info be sure to check out :
“Notable Events-June”, “on Broadway”,  and “Top10 Free”, in the header above.
For NYCity trip planning see links in “Resources” and “Smart Stuff” in the header above.

Make Music New York 
“The first official day of summer gets off to a tuneful start, with musicians swarming sidewalks, parks and other outdoor spots to serenade New Yorkers in all five boroughs throughout the day. Notable shows this year include a performance of Song Reader (Beck’s all-sheet-music album, released in 2012) at a block party outside Joe’s Pub at the Public Theater and Tilt Brass playing R. Murray Schafer’s Music for Wilderness around, fittingly, the Central Park Lake.” (TONY)

“It’s the annual day of too much music in New York, as ensembles and performers fan out across the city in a great swarm of avant-garde sounds. Mungo Thomson’s Crickets stridulates on the High Line; Kent Tritle leads all who show up to sing Fauré outside St. John the Divine; and Mantra Percussion wanders all over Manhattan with Cornelius Cardew’s virtually never-­performed The Great Learning. That’s nothing: Make Music New York has scheduled nearly 1,000 more events that day.” —Justin Davidson (NYMag)
Various locations / Until Sat Jun 22 / FREE
For a complete schedule and map, see makemusicny.org.

Summer Solstice Celebration
“Pack a picnic and spread out at this year’s solstice bash at Socrates Sculpture Park. Join the drum circle and pound rhythms along with the Toca & Alé Alé Drummers while urban shaman Mama Donna leads a ritual ceremony at sunset. Design your own ancient costume in their Mesoamerican art workshop or recharge with some sunset yoga, but make sure to grab a spot on time for high-flying masked Mexican wrestlers in a lucha libre exhibition (5pm).” (TONY)
Socrates Sculpture Park, 32-01 Vernon Blvd, Long Island City, Queens
Subway: N, Q to Broadway
718-956-1819 / socratessculpturepark.org

Baby Gramps
“With his oft-braided gray beard and troubadour-turned-carnie comportment, the singer and guitarist Baby Gramps can seem like something of a novelty act. But while there’s humor in his work, Baby Gramps is also a genuine American oddball, and his fast-moving folk and blues songs are wildly entertaining and occasionally virtuosic things.” (Amanda Petrusich)
Terra Blues, 149 Bleecker Street, Greenwich Village
at 7 p.m. / $10.
(212) 777-7776 / terrablues.com

Savion Glover*
“The renowned tap dancer and rhythmic genius returns to the Joyce Theater with “STePz,” in which he and his ensemble explore the give-and-take between embracing tradition and radically breaking with it. While the musical selections may be recognizable, the movement they inspire may prove more surprising.” (Burke-NYT)
Joyce Theater, 175 Eighth Avenue, at 19th Street, Chelsea
at 8 p.m., $10 to $59.
242-0800 / joyce.org

Chucho Valdés and the Afro-Cuban Messengers
Playing selections from their new album Border-Free
Cuba’s foremost pianist has developed a brand new repertoire. Boasting a new line-up for his band, The Afro-Cubans Messengers, his new album takes us through an eclectic range of pieces. His dazzling virtuosity as a pianist, his prodigious talents as a composer, and his ingenious arrangements unite to create a music that enthralls.

Alongside new sources of inspiration (the music of the North American Indians and of the ArabAndalusian culture), the album is infused with the verve of Valdés’ early trailblazing Cuban Jazz ensemble Irakere, his nostalgia for Cuban big bands, the punch of hard bop, the magical rhythms of the Yoruba drums, and of course the spiritual lyricism which is the mark of all great jazz
Produced in association with Blue Note Jazz Festival
The Town Hall, 123 W. 43rd St.
at 8pm / $45, $50, $55
307-4100 / the-townhall-nyc.org

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Before making final plans, we suggest you call the venue to confirm dates and check times, as schedules are subject to change.
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SPECIAL EXHIBITIONS @ 
3 Museums (WestSide & the BklynMuseum) & 3 Chelsea Galleries ==========================================================

‘Claes Oldenburg: The Street and the Store’ and ‘Claes Oldenburg: Mouse Museum, Ray Gun Wing’ (through Aug. 5)
‘Performing Histories (1)’ (through Aug. 5)
‘Bill Brandt: Shadow and Light’ (through Aug. 12)
‘Ellsworth Kelly: Chatham Series’ (through Sept. 8)
Museum of Modern Art: 11 W 53rd St,
(212) 708-9400 / moma.org.
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‘Against the Grain: Wood in Contemporary Art, Craft and Design’* (through Sept. 15)
Museum of Arts and Design: 2 Columbus Circle,
299-7777, madmuseum.org.
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‘Ellsworth Kelly at Ninety’ (through June 29)
“An impressive three-part display of new work (mostly from 2012) reveals a seasoned artist who is doing some of his boldest work. Some introduce new forms (but are actually derived from his early collages). Others expand on more recent works with changes in material and color. Keep an eye out for “Black Form II,” “Yellow Relief Over Blue,” “Gold With Orange Reliefs” and the four-panel “Curves on White.” (Smith-NYT)
Matthew Marks Gallery, 522 West 22nd Street
(212) 243-0200 / matthewmarks.com.

Wolfgang Tillmans (through June 22)
The nomadic German photographer Wolfgang Tillmans addresses globalization in a curiously offhand way. This is true even in his latest works, which assert themselves more strongly as art objects thanks to Mr. Tillmans’s experiments with inkjet printing; they are lush and almost painterly in their rich concentrations of pigment. Only after connecting the dots of the installation — which moves from downtown Los Angeles to Kilimanjaro, a Masai hut to a construction site in Shanghai, a car headlight to a close-up of mold spores — do you sense transformation and upheaval.(Rosenberg-NYT)
Andrea Rosen Gallery, 525 West 24th Street,
(212) 627-6000 / andrearosengallery.com.

Marc Quinn: ‘All the Time in the World’ (through June 29)
Four much enlarged, bronze sculptures of seashells made by high-tech 3-D replication seem, at first, like pointless baubles for rich collectors. But they reveal an unexpected inner beauty both literal and metaphorical, as their polished interiors cause their interiors to warmly glow as if supernaturally illuminated from within. Implicitly vaginal, these seeming products of phallic ambition become objects of oceanic, feminine mystery.” (Johnson)
Mary Boone, 541 West 24th Street
752-2929 / maryboonegallery.com.
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‘John Singer Sargent Watercolors’  (through July 28) [see review below]
‘Gravity and Grace: Monumental Works by El Anatsui’ (through Aug. 4)
‘LaToya Ruby Frazier: A Haunted Capital’ (through Aug. 11)
Brooklyn Museum: 200 Eastern Parkway, at Prospect Park,
(easy ride from midtown on #2 or #3 subway to Eastern Pkway/Bklyn Museum)
(718) 638-5000 / brooklynmuseum.org

John Singer Sargent Watercolors
“The exhibition brings together 93 of his watercolors and 9 oil paintings from the Brooklyn Museum and the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. Both institutions acquired significant quantities of his work early on, the Brooklyn Museum from Sargent’s career debut show in New York in 1909 and the Boston museum from a solo show there in 1912. The beauty of Sargent’s watercolors is in how seemingly effortlessly yet exactly he captured outdoor light and complicated man-made and natural forms. In landscapes, close studies of fruit and flowers and portraits of women you see at once the supremely deft action of the brush and the illusions of a sun-drenched halcyon world that it conjures. Prepare for bedazzlement.” (KEN JOHNSON-NYT)
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For other selected Museum and Gallery Special Exhibitions see Recent Posts in right Sidebar: “NYCity Events: Manhattan’s WestSide” dated 06/19.

Selected West Side Events – Thursday, Jun. 20, 2013

For other useful NYCity event info be sure to check out :
“Notable Events-June”, “on Broadway”,  and “Top10 Free”, in the header above.
For D-I-Y NYCity trip planning see links in “Resources” and “Smart Stuff” in the header above.

Matuto
These engaging Brazilian forró rockers borrow from jazz and funk in their lively sets. They took that alchemy through West Africa as recent participants of the State Department’s American Music Abroad diplomacy program. The band celebrates the release of a new album, “The Devil and the Diamond” (Motema-NYT).
David Rubinstein Atrium, Lincoln Center
at 7 p.m. / FREE
atrium.lincolncenter.org

American Ballet Theater*
“Of all the roles in the classical repertory, there are few that test a ballerina’s technical strength and dramatic range like Odette/Odile in “Swan Lake.” (Burke-NYT)
Metropolitan Opera House, Lincoln Center
at 7:30 p.m. / $20 to $245.
212-362-6000 / abt.org

JOHN MCLAUGHLIN
Veteran guitar grandmaster JOHN McLAUGHLIN has earned a place in the top echelon of the six-string pantheon.
His virtuosity has been on display in a number of divergent settings throughout his celebrated career, beginning in the early 1960s as the electric guitarist for Georgie Fame’s rocking Blue Flames.

The veteran guitar aficionado celebrates his 70th birthday year with the announcement of Now Here This (Abstract Logix) as he ups-the-ante even further with greater fire, finesse and freewheeling interplay with his latest group, The 4th Dimension.
Blue Note, 131 West Third Street, Greenwich Village
at 8 and 10:30 p.m., $55 cover at tables. $35 at the bar, $5 min.
475-8592 / bluenote.net

David Murray Infinite Quartet
A new David Murray “joint”—in his case, a combination of project, band and album—is always a welcome event, and his Infinite Quartet (with pianist Marc Cary, bassist Jaribu Shahid and drummer Nasheet Waits) is up to the tenor saxophonist’s customary high standards. Mr. Murray, with the World Saxophone Quartet and other groups, was among the first to combine postmodern jazz with R&B, and the mixture bears remarkable fruit in the new “Be My Monster Love.” One of Mr. Murray’s most song-driven projects, “Monster Love” showcases emerging jazz-soul singer Gregory Porter and the well-known Macy Gray in some of the most impressive vocal tracks that either has recorded. Mr. Porter’s vocals here (“Army of the Faithful,” “About the Children,” “Hope Is a Thing”) are highly spiritual, whereas Ms. Gray (who will be appearing with Mr. Murray this week) gets to sing “Be My Monster Love”—”Be my wolfman / I’m your catwoman!” (WSJ)
Sub Culture Arts Underground
45 Bleecker St., (212) 533-5470

Savion Glover*
“The renowned tap dancer and rhythmic genius returns to the Joyce Theater with “STePz,” in which he and his ensemble explore the give-and-take between embracing tradition and radically breaking with it. While the musical selections may be recognizable, the movement they inspire may prove more surprising.” (Burke-NYT)
Joyce Theater, 175 Eighth Avenue, at 19th Street, Chelsea
at 8 p.m., $10 to $59.
242-0800 / joyce.org

Mark Turner Quartet*
The tenor and soprano saxophonist Mark Turner has often been reluctant to step out front as a bandleader — his main outlet of late has been Fly, a collective trio — but he’s making a move with this quartet, which has just recorded an album for the ECM label. Given the graceful compression and streamlined erudition of his playing, it’ll be good to hear him up front, playing new music with a pianoless band featuring Avishai Cohen on trumpet, Joe Martin on bass and Marcus Gilmore on drums.” (Chinen-NYT)
Village Vanguard, 178 Seventh Avenue South, at 11th Street
at 8:30 and 10:30 p.m. / $25 cover, with a one-drink minimum.
(212) 255-4037 / villagevanguard.com

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Before making final plans, we suggest you call the venue to confirm dates and check times, as schedules are subject to change.
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A PremierPub + 3 Good Eating places / Midtown West

Russian Vodka Room
265 W 52nd st (btw 7th/8th ave)

Sure, you could travel to Minsk or even Brighton Beach, for an authentic Russian experience, but why bother. On those days when you feel you must wash down your dish of kasha with a few glasses of icy, cold vodka, the Russian Vodka Room will definitely satisfy your urge.

From the outside this place looks a bit drab, and with no windows, a bit mysterious. Midtown tourists walk right by on their way to see “Jersey Boys”, just down the block.

Those in the know enter a secret hideaway, a dimly lit front room with soft jazz playing – a perfect spot for an illicit late-night rendezvous, or maybe a meet-up with your Russian spy handler, but that’s later in the evening. Early in the evening the large U-shaped bar fills with the after work happy hour crowd, a group made very happy by the much reduced prices.

Their website says: “Welcome Comrades”. Of course, this welcome focuses on dozens of different vodkas, including their own special infusions, which marinate in giant, clear glass jugs visible around the room. The large vodka martinis ensure that you won’t confuse this place with your mother’s Russian Tea Room.

But man does not live by vodka alone. Eat some food, especially the tapa like appetizers. Be decadent and try the cheese blintzes with chocolate, or try a main dish like beef stroganoff with kasha.

Your best bet is to go on a night when the piano man is playing. This guy, who looks like he has eaten a lot of those cheese blintzes, plays five nights a week from 7 to 12 (no Mondays and Thursdays). When the piano man is playing American pop tunes, and you are at the crowded, dimly lit bar testing the horseradish infused vodka, that’s when the RVR shines.

It’s the kind of place where the noise gets louder and the crowd gets happier as the night goes on. I’m generally a beer guy, but I like to come here with a group of friends. We find a table in the back room; we eat, and we drink vodka ‘till it hurts (and it will hurt).

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Website: http://www.russianvodkaroom.com/
Phone #: 212-307-5835
Hours: 4pm-2am; Fri-Sun closes 4am (that could be trouble)
Happy Hour: 4-7pm every day
$4 shots infused vodka (2oz), $5 cosmos; $4 czech draft beer
Music: FR-SU; TU-WE / 7pm-12am
Subway: #1 to 50th St.
Walk 2 blk N. on B’way to 52nd St.; 1 blk W. to RVR
Confusingly, the Russian Samovar is right across the street, on the  S. side of 52nd St.
The RVR, your destination, is on the N. side of 52nd St.
Update: music some nights includes a sax player with a younger, trimmer piano man.

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“Pub” is used in it’s broadest sense – bars, bar/restaurants, cocktail lounges, wine bars, tapas bars, craft beer bars, dive bars – just about anyplace you can get a drink without a cover charge.
================================================================================

Selected West Side Events – Wednesday, Jun. 19, 2013

For other useful NYCity event info be sure to check out :
“Notable Events-June”, “on Broadway”,  and “Top10 Free”, in the header above.
For D-I-Y NYCity trip planning see links in “Resources” and “Smart Stuff” in the header above.

Word for Word: Jami Attenburg and Fiona Maazel with Tedy Wayne
Jami Attenberg, author of “The Middlesteins,” and Fiona Maazel, author of “Woke Up Lonely,” will discuss their novels. Teddy Wayne, author of “The Love Song of Jonny Valentine,” will host.
Bryant Park Reading Room, 6th Ave. at 40th St
At 12:30 p.m. to 1:45 p.m. / FREE
(212) 768-4242, bryantpark.org

Liaquat Ahamed and Andrew Ross Sorkin
Liaquat Ahamed, an economist, Pulitzer Prize winner and author of “Lords of Finance: The Bankers Who Broke the World” (2009), will discuss the current economic situation and historic roots of the global economy with Andrew Ross Sorkin, a columnist for The New York Times. This talk will take place in Pierpont Morgan’s 1906 Library and will coincide with the exhibition “Treasures From the Vault,” (through Oct. 6) which commemorates the death of Mr. Morgan 100 years ago. (NYT)
Morgan Library & Museum, 225 Madison Avenue, at 36th st. 6:30 p.m./$15, $10 for members, free for students.
(212) 685-0008, Ext. 560 / themorgan.org

Laurie Anderson
As part of the free River to River festival, Laurie Anderson presents “The Language of the Future,” a series of collaborative projects co-presented by LMCC and Battery Park City Authority.. On Wednesday, for the “Songs” portion, Ms. Anderson will take the audience back to 1983 and her electronic opera, “United States I-IV,” to re-explore themes of transportation, politics, money and love. She will be joined by Richard Devine, on electronics; Doug Wieselman, on horns; Eyvind Kang, on viola; Jacob Garchik, on horns; and Yuka Honda, on keyboards. (NYT)
Rockefeller Park,
River Terrace & Murray Street, Battery Park City
at 7 p.m. / FREE
Rivertorivernyc.com / (212) 219-9401

Juneteenth: Gospel Choir Concert
The Marble Community Gospel Choir concert falls on Juneteenth this year, the anniversary of the day in 1865 when slaves in Galveston, Tex., thought to be the last enslaved people, learned they were free. The program will include “Center of My Joy” by Richard Smallwood, “Swing Low, Sweet Chariot” and other gospel spirituals. (NYT)
Marble Collegiate Church, 1 West 29th Street
at 7:30 p.m., $15 advance, $20 at door, $10 for students and 65+
686-2770 Ext. 412 / marblechurch.org

Suzanne Vega
She kicks off the 2013 Mad. Sq. Music: Oval Lawn Series. Vega is an American singer-songwriter of rare poetic genius and emerged as a leading figure of the folk-music revival of the early 1980s. Bearing the stamp of a masterful storyteller who “observed the world with a clinically poetic eye,” Suzanne’s songs have always tended to focus on city life, ordinary people and real world subjects.

Notably succinct and understated, often cerebral but also streetwise, her lyrics invite multiple interpretations. Vega’s musical influences and favorites include Leonard Cohen, Bob Dylan, Lou Reed, Laura Nyro and The Smiths. Vega is “widely regarded as one of the most brilliant songwriters of her generation,” (Biography Magazine).
Madison Square Park, Madison Ave@ 23rd St
at 7pm. / FREE
212-538-5058 / madisonsquarepark.org

Papo Vazquez Mighty Pirates Troubadours 
“Papo Vazquez, a trombonist and composer-arranger, draws from “Oasis” (Picaro), the most recent album by his Afro-Puerto Rican band, Pirates Troubadours. His partners are Willie Williams on saxophones, Rick Germanson on piano, Dezron Douglas on bass, Alvester Garnett on drums, and Anthony Carrillo and Carlitos Maldonado on percussion.” (Chinen_NYT)
Dizzy’s Club Coca-Cola, Frederick P. Rose Hall, Jazz at Lincoln Center, 60th Street and Broadway
at 7:30 and 9:30 p.m. / $35 cover, with a $10 minimum.
(212) 258-9595 / jalc.org

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Before making final plans, we suggest you call the venue to confirm dates and check times, as schedules are subject to change.
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SPECIAL EXHIBITIONS @ 3 MUSEUMS:

(Museum Mile & other Fifth Avenue area Museums)

‘Subliming Vessel: The Drawings of Matthew Barney’ (through Sept. 2)
Morgan Library & Museum: 225 Madison Avenue, at 36th St.
(212) 685-0008 / themorgan.org.

‘Cambodian Rattan: The Sculptures of Sopheap Pich’ (through July 7)
‘Velázquez’s Portrait of Duke Francesco I d’Este: A Masterpiece from the Galleria Estense, Modena’ (through July 14) 
‘At War With the Obvious: Photographs by William Eggleston’ (through July 28) 
‘Punk: Chaos to Couture’ (through Aug. 14)
“African Art, New York, and the Avant-Garde” (through Sept. 2)
‘The Civil War and American Art’ (through Sept. 2)
‘Photography and the American Civil War’ (through Sept. 2)
‘The Roof Garden Commission: Imran Qureshi’ (through Nov. 3)
Metropolitan Museum of Art: 1000 5th Ave, at 82nd St.
(212) 535-7710 / metmuseum.org

“New Harmony: Abstraction Between the Wars, 1919-1939” (through Sept. 8)
Guggenheim Museum: 1071 Fifth Avenue, at 89th St.
(212) 423-3500 / guggenheim.org.

Selected West Side Events – Tuesday, Jun. 18, 2013

For other useful NYCity event info be sure to check out :
“Notable Events-June”, “on Broadway”,  and “Top10 Free”, in the header above.
For D-I-Y NYCity trip planning see links in “Resources” and “Smart Stuff” in the header above.

Celebrating Sammy Cahn
One of the last great old-school songwriting teams, Sammy Cahn and Jimmy Van Heusen—both coming up on their centennials—are frequently remembered as the composer contingent of the Rat Pack. (Van Heusen, in particular, inspired Sinatra in ways that went beyond music.)
But the scope of their work extends throughout Hollywood, Broadway, and jazz. On Tuesday at Stage 72 (formerly the Triad), it’s a veritable Cahn film festival, as singer-pianist twosome Eric Comstock and Barbara Fasano join forces with the sugar-throated Jeff Harnar.
Stage 72, 158 W. 72nd St.
At 7pm / $25, + 2 drink minimum
(800) 838-3006 / stage72.com

George Gershwin’s “Blue Monday”
“This isn’t “Porgy & Bess,” but it’s a fascinating step (more likely a chromatic half-step) that the composer made along the path to his great American opera. (It’s also a predecessor to “Rhapsody in Blue.”) Likewise, the current Cotton Club on 125th Street isn’t the legendary venue of the Harlem Renaissance—it’s about 20 blocks and 75 years away.

Put the two together and you get an early attempt at a “jazz opera” in a unprepossessing roadhouse off the West Side highway, a potentially fascinating evening of what the presenter has labeled “on site opera.” The excellent soprano Alyson Cambridge stars as “Vi,” and the rest of the “Afro-American” cast (as Gershwin and libbretist Buddy DeSylva called it in 1922) includes Chase Taylor and Lawrence Craig. The one-act, 30-minute presentation is preceded by “cocktails and dancing.” The opera hasn’t been written that wouldn’t benefit from both.” (WSJ)
The Cotton Club, 656 W. 125th St.
maybe sold out. will keep our eye on this club.
(212) 663-7980 / cottonclub-newyork.com

Buffy Sainte-Marie
“The leading chanteuse of American Indian activism packs one of the most warbling, deliberately halting voices in all of folk. Yet the informed protestations behind that instrument are steadfast, especially the heart-rending refrain of the Academy Award-winning “Up Where We Belong,” which she wrote with Jack Nitzsche and Will Jennings. With Del Barber.” (Anderson-NYT)
B. B. King Blues Club & Grill, 237 West 42nd Street
at 7:30 p.m., $30 in advance, $40 at the door.
(800) 745-3000 / bbkingblues.com

JOHN MCLAUGHLIN
Veteran guitar grandmaster JOHN McLAUGHLIN has earned a place in the top echelon of the six-string pantheon.

His virtuosity has been on display in a number of divergent settings throughout his celebrated career, beginning in the early 1960s as the electric guitarist for Georgie Fame’s rocking Blue Flames.

The veteran guitar aficionado celebrates his 70th birthday year with the announcement of Now Here This (Abstract Logix) as he ups-the-ante even further with greater fire, finesse and freewheeling interplay with his latest group, The 4th Dimension.
Blue Note, 131 West Third Street, Greenwich Village
at 8 and 10:30 p.m., $55 cover at tables. $35 at the bar, $5 min.
475-8592 / bluenote.net

Unpacked Treasures – CMF at The Italian Academy
Discover the treasures of 400 years of music from Italy and Britain, including Corelli’s Concerto Grosso in B flat, an oboe concerto by Giovanni Platti, Elizabethan madrigals with Ensemble Amarcord, as well as “Variations on an Elizabethan Theme” for string orchestra featuring arrangements by six leading British composers of the 20th century including Benjamin Britten.
7:30pm | Italian Academy, Columbia University | $45 | Curated Gala Reception
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A PremierPub + 3 Good Eating places 

Jimmy’s Corner
140 W 44th St (btw B’way & 7th ave) 
Jimmy’s Corner is right in the heart of Times Square, but you won’t find it on the corner, it’s mid-block. Enter this long narrow bar and you are struck by the walls covered with mostly black-and-white boxing photographs, and memorabilia. Soon enough you learn that “Corner” refers to proprietor Jimmy Glenn’s long career as a corner man for some of boxing greats – Liston, Tyson, even “the greatest”, Ali.

Jimmy’s is a sort of time machine, taking you back to a time and place that no longer exists. All around you Times Square has cleaned up, grown up, assumed a new identity. Jimmy’s probably hasn’t changed a bit since it first opened in 1971. Certainly the bar itself looks original and the prices haven’t changed much either. When I brought a friend, who owns her own bar, she was surprised when she got the small tab for a round of drinks. Figured there must be a mistake, that maybe they forgot to charge for all the drinks.

Times Square today is filled with neon glitz and wandering tourists from Dubuque, but not Jimmy’s. You’ll likely find some old timer’s at the bar nursing their drinks, some younger locals at tables in the back, and maybe a few adventuresome tourists clutching their trusty guidebooks. There’s no food served here because this is just a bar, and sometimes that’s all you need.

On nights when no local team is playing, it’s a fine place to sip some drafts and listen to a great old time jukebox (40s, 50s, R&B, and soul). On sports nights this very narrow bar can get a bit claustrophobic, filled with excited fans watching their team on the TVs. Either way, Jimmy’s is the place to be if you are looking for an old time bar in the new Times Square.
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Website: are you kidding !
(although there is a facebook page with lots of photos –
facebook.com/jimmyscornernyc)
Phone #: 212-221-9510
Hours: 11am – 4 am, except Sunday they open 12 noon
Happy Hour: not necessary, low prices all day, every day
Subway: #1,2,3 to TimesSquare 42nd st
walk 2 blks N on 7th ave to 44th st; ½ blk E to Jimmy’s

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“Pub” is used in it’s broadest sense – bars, bar/restaurants, cocktail lounges, wine bars, tapas bars, craft beer bars, dive bars – just about anyplace you can get a drink without a cover charge.

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3 Good Eating places 
It’s not difficult finding a place to eat in Manhattan.
Finding a good, inexpensive place to eat is a bit harder.
Here are a few of my faves in this neighborhood:

Patzeria Perfect Pizza – 231 W46 st (Betw 7th/8th ave)
Perfect name for a pizza joint. On a street filled with Broadway theaters, this is a real hole in the wall, but don’t let the dive look scare you away. You can never go wrong with a slice of NYC pizza, and this one is a classic thin crust. Only a few seats here, but pizza was made to eat standing up.

Shake Shack – 691 8th ave (Betw 43rd/44th st)
Danny Meyer has revolutionized the high quality burger in this town. Now he has a branch on the West Side that was desperately needed, with none of the insane lines that you find at the Madison Sq. Park location. Plus, it may be the cleanest joint to eat in all of Hell’s Kitchen.
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The focus for “3 Good Eating places” is on a quick bite, what I call “Fine Fast Food – NYCity Style”.
That covers a wide range of food – pizza,  burgers,  food trucks/carts,  vegetarian/falafel,  soup & sandwiches,  salad bars,  hot dogs,  bbq,  picnic fixins’,  raw bars & lobster rolls.
No reservations necessary.

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There are also some casual dining, chain restaurant locations in this neighborhood that have decent food and free Wi-FI:

A. Pret a Manger @ 11 W 42nd st (Betw 5th/6th)
Subway: #1/2/3 to 42nd st / times square

B. Potbelly @ 30 Rockefeller Plaza (Betw 49/48 st)
Subway: #1 to 50th st

C. Pret a Manger @ 1200 6th ave (Betw 47/48)
Subway: #1 to 50th st

For all my picks of 54 Good Eating places and extended descriptions of 18 PremierPubs in 9 Neighborhoods, order a copy of my e-book:
“Eating and Drinking on NYCity’s WestSide”.