Happy Canada Day
I spent Canada’s 141st birthday at Granville Island, taking in the sights and sounds of the Vancouver International Jazz Festival. My tastes in music have morphed over time; I find I enjoy the small 3-6 piece ensembles a lot more than the booming big band music that first attracted me to jazz music. Don’t get me wrong, I still love the off-beat bass pulses of Dave Brubeck and the eclectic piano riffs of Count Basie, but there’s something more intimate about a jazz trio or quartet that lets you connect more with the music. Besides, if you can do that while consuming some awesome beer in the Granville Island Brewery Taproom, all the better!
As I was walking around today between sets at the Taproom, I stumbled upon an actual honest-to-God dixieland band, complete with tux shirts and bow ties. Once I process the pictures off of my camera, I’ll post them. The harmonies, brisk bass line and some wicked cool clarinet riffs made for quite an interesting set. This kind of thing makes me annoyed that I forgot about the Jazz Festival until mid-week last week. All these different styles of music, whether it be new kinds of fusion or revived styles, come together at the Jazz Festival, and it really is pretty neat to see and hear them all. Next year I’ll have to write myself a reminder so I can catch stuff like the Gastown Jazz that happened two weekends ago. There’s also usually really good groups performing at the Roundhouse.
On a funnier note, I saw Gordon Campbell walking with who I assumed was his daughter when I was heading out of Granville Island to the bus stop. In a way, I was kind of surprised he didn’t have some kind of security contingent with him. For one, he’s the premier, so it’s probably in the budget. Today was also the day that the gas tax kicked in, adding another 2.4 cents per litre to the price of gasoline. Then again, the worst thing ever done to a Canadian politician was a pie to the face, so I guess he really didn’t have a whole lot to worry about.