The Silver Bell Jazz Band

The West Coast traditional jazz scene has been gaining steam recently with phenomenal new bands stepping up as many from a previous generation retire. I'm not talking about young spasm bands knocking around, these are adult musicians, some with decades of playing under their belt.  Among the most exciting is the Silver Bell Jazz Band of San Francisco. The Silver Bells were recently organized by Ryan Calloway who in addition to being a professional dance instructor and visual artist plays clarinet for several bands. His swing-oriented band, the Hot Baked Goods, has a popular gig at Amnesia in San Francisco and plays Lindy Hop events all over. This March found them at Swingbreak in Mexico. He is joined in both groups by veteran multi-instrumentalist Clint Baker. (Clint's daughter Ramona makes her Syncopated Times debut with a column in this issue.) The Silver Bell Jazz Band has a straight and hot traditional jazz sound focused on dancers. Not too fast, clear delineation in the ensemble playing, and sometimes, a lot of blues.Silver Bell Jazz Band featuring James McClaskey by Silver Bell Jazz Band The bluesy feel is prominent on their self titled studio album released last April. The album features New Orleans guitarist James McClaskey who with his Rhythm Band of Nola trad players