The window sign at Churchill Grounds |
This past
Sunday evening, July 31, 2016, the nearly twenty-year run of Atlanta’s longest
continuously operating jazz club, Churchill
Grounds, came to a glorious but ultimately sobering end. Since April of
1997, when the club first opened its doors, Churchill Grounds has been a labor
of love. The name is curiously the combination of two things that Owner Sam Yi
loves, Churchill size cigars and coffee grounds. This Atlanta institution was
situated adjacent to the Fox Theater at 660 Peachtree NE in downtown Atlanta. Mr.
Yi’s admittedly naïve motivation for such an endeavor? Maybe it would be fun to
have a place where local musicians could play and you could make a little money
providing a platform for the music that you love. Simple and admirable enough,
but hardly the kind of business plan that would inspire a flock of financial
supporters to your cause. That didn’t seem to bother Yi, a mild mannered business
man, who was surprisingly passionate about the music and who decided to live
his life immersed in it. On Sunday night, in an emotional farewell, he recounted
how this endeavor required that he spend much of his life over the last twenty
years at the club, putting in countless hours there, often at the expense of
his family. Poignantly looking back over the years it was obvious that given
the chance, Yi wouldn’t have changed a thing.
Owner Sam Yi; Billy Thornton on bass and Morgan Guerin on drums
It was his
employees who worked there, the musicians who played there and the patrons who respectfully
listened there that collectively became his extended family. He thanked them
all with an emotion laden goodbye.That family
even included two homeless men that became permanent fixtures outside the
club’s front door. One of them, “homeless Joe,” offered his own tearful adage
from the stage, saying how much he was going to miss seeing Sam and the steady ebb
and flow of the club’s patrons. I suspect what Joe will miss most was his
visibility. Sam and many patrons didn’t look past Joe, but acknowledged his
humanity. They didn’t judge him, but looked at him as a soul who was just down
on his luck. They didn’t castigate him as a nuisance, but greeted him with
dignity, including him as part of the extended Churchill Grounds family. It was Sam
Yi who provided this space where people who recognized the power and
inclusiveness of the music were able to congregate and commune with one
another.
And of course there was the music; it swung, it bopped hard or it grooved straight ahead, it fused wildly or it whispered softly and it often funked you to the bottom of your soul. The music
wasn’t merely entertainment, it was history, it was creativity, it was a social
compact and inclusiveness. Churchill
Grounds became the go-to place in Atlanta. The place where musicians of all
levels, professional and acolyte, could come and practice their skills, hone
their craft, commune with each other and connect with their audience. It was
the hometown stage for legends like the late Cedar Walton and the venerable
Freddie Cole. It was the sometime residency for current standouts like Russell
Gunn and Joe Gransden. It was a
stop off joint for visiting celebrities like Wynton Marsalis or Harry Connick
Jr. It was the proving grounds for a new breed of firebrand like Morgan
Guerin, Kenny Banks Jr., the Harper Brothers and Darren English.
A view from the drums at Churchill Grounds photo by organ Guerin |
But what
statistics don’t reveal is the fierce loyalty, love and dedication that this
music brings to those who embrace it. The spirit, reverence and sense of comradery
that is often found within the jazz community as a whole is largely under
appreciated by the general public. Jazz is international in its scope. The
music remains an international language that bridges the widening gap between
peoples of vastly different cultures. Jazz becomes the crucible by which these cultural
differences can be annealed into a commonly shared means of communicating with
each other in a positive and humanistic way.
The music is
often spoken of as music for musicians. That assessment may be partially
correct, as it takes a great deal of skill and dedication to play complex
improvised music, but it also takes soul, heart and empathy to play it in such
a way as it will move the listener.
In this
technological age of diminishing attentions, we are less and less likely to
immerse ourselves in the musical experience, perhaps because we no longer feel
we have the time for such an indulgence. Jazz requires thoughtful listening. The
experience is not always best conveyed through listening to recordings-
although admittedly the great ones transcend the medium-but when we really
listen and participate in the music in a “live” setting the magic of music can
spread all over us like a blanket of warm sunshine. An engaged audience becomes
an active participant in the creative process. Are we really ready to forego
that precious experience?
Having a
venue that can offer musicians and music lovers a chance to experience what it
is like to participate in a live jazz performance is crucial to very existence
of the art form. That’s why the closing of Churchill Grounds is so distressing.
Sam Yi and Russell Gunn
If anyone
needed proof positive of the outpouring of love and affection that this music
can generate, they should have been at the final few performances at Churchill
Grounds. Local musicians and stalwart patrons came in force and solidarity to
pay homage to the closing of an Atlanta institution. The City of Atlanta issued
a proclamation naming the day Churchill Grounds Day and so did Fulton County, perhaps
too little too late.
Kevin Bales, Billy
Thornton, Russell Gunn and Morgan Guerin
Local trumpet
legend Russell Gunn was the informal musical director of the proceedings when I
attended on Sunday night. He was joined by the pianist Kevin Bales, the bassist
Billy Thornton and the drummer Morgan Guerin. They played with a palpable
intensity in a mostly hard bop style to an appreciate crowd of aficionados and
well-wishers. Probably one of the most moving performances of the night was a
rendition of the Bill Evan’s classic “Blue in Green.” Mr. Bales sensitive
opening led to Mr. Gunn’s poignantly playing the melody on his muted trumpet
that evoked memories of Miles Davis, an obvious influence. The young rhythm section
was equally impressive.
The players
frequently changed throughout the night as each one who came wanted to pay
tribute in their own most personal way. At one point the stage was packed with
four well known trumpet players-Russell Gunn, Georgia State educator Dr. Gordon
Vernick, Joe Gransden and Darren English-in a trumpet show down that was par
excellence. The trio section of Bales, Thornton, now with Marlon Patton on
drums kept the frantic pace as the four guns had a high powered shoot out.
Here is a
partial video of that show down posted on Darren English’s Facebook
page: click here
Pianist Kenny
Banks Jr. took over the piano chair and improvised on a beautiful rendition of “Con
Alma.” His thoughtful ruminations on the melody were captivating. Here is a
sample of that performance posted by saxophonist James Patterson. click here
Pianist Gary
Motley took the piano chair and lent his elegant swing and facile chops to the
proceedings. A seasoned professional as well as the Director of Jazz Studies at
Emory University, Motley also accompanied several vocalists with a revolving rhythm
section, this one including Craig Shaw on bass and Darren English on drums.
Some of the other
artists that performed that night included tenor man Mike Walton, drummer Kenny
Bostick, bassist Dishan Harper, trumpeter Terrence Harper, saxophonist James Robinson,
flautist Rasheeda Ali and vocalists Laura Coyle and Julie Dexter. My apologies
to those who I’ve missed.
Now that the
lights are switched off and the doors are shuttered, the best way to describe
the proceedings of this last evening at Churchill Grounds is to liken it to a joyous
New Orleans style funeral march. A celebration of life not a demonstration of sorrow
at the passing. Sam Yi was honored for his years of service, his defense of the
cause and his unbridled passion for this music.
Make no
mistake, this is a gut check for all of us who live in Atlanta and its
surrounds. As a City of six million people can we really afford to lose yet
another institution that promotes the arts? Do we really believe that the
quality of our lives all comes down to dollars and cents on a ledger sheet?
Mr. Yi has
said that he is looking for another venue, a rebirth of Churchill Grounds,
hopefully in the near future. We should all hope he succeeds so that Churchill
Grounds doesn’t become another distant memory like “Jeff’s Jazz” or “Dante’s
Down Under.” Instead of lamenting another lost treasure, let’s all try to make
this happen through community activism. You can help by donating to a special
go fund me site by clicking here.
It seeks to raise seed money to help secure another venue for Mr. Yi and
hopefully, with our help. Churchill Grounds closing will be but a temporary blip in its long and illustrious history.
Wonderful writing, Ralph. But why did club close? Rent raised? Got the impression Yi is retiring - but then you say he's looking for a new venue - confusing!
ReplyDeleteNice post, Ralph. Of course it's an audience that sustains places like Churchill Downs, which have to be welcoming, comfortable, special -- all as you've described -- in order to attract regulars and occasional visitors. Growong that audience is what jazz media is basically about. Letting people know there's fun and enrichment to be had! Go out, hear live music!
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