This week is, of course, my birthday.  But in lieu of presents I’m just asking friends to read a good book and stop posting pictures of their pets and babies on Facebook one week.  : )

I had a fun interview on Dr. Mara Karpel’s radio show.  You can hear it at

http://drmarakarpel.com/sun-july-10-quentin-vennie-exercise-jazz-sax-musician-paul-klemperer-laura-gelezunas-puerto-vallarta/

I’m on the last 15 minutes (the entire show goes 1  1/2 hours).

I’m happy to announce that I’m hosting a weekly jazz show at one of the coolest dives in Austin, Texas. The good folks at the Skylark Lounge asked me to turn Wednesday into a regular jazz event, so people know they can come to the Skylark midweek for an excellent show in an intimate setting. This is great especially for folks in the neighborhood, but also for anyone who doesn’t want to mess with the brave new world that is downtown Austin these days.

I love jazz, and if some wealthy benefactor gave me a bag of money to play bebop every night I would jump at the chance. But I know that many people don’t dig it, and also I want to show folks that jazz is a big tent containing many styles and moods. So I decided to use the Wednesday Skylark sessions as a way to showcase the many aspects of jazz, in a way that would be fun and educational for everyone.

So far the shows have been excellent, with great musicians and enthusiastic audiences. Week 1 we featured Soul jazz, Week 2 it was Brazilian jazz. Week 3 will always feature my band Manteca Beat (9/16). For 9/23 we will explore Gypsy jazz, and 9/30 will feature the wonderful singer Sarah Sharp.

The lesson of the universe these days seems to be “Take your vitamins, you’ll need to keep your strength up.” Lots of good stuff happening, lots of bad stuff, lots of sad stuff. The rains, as everyone knows, brought havoc to many in Central Texas. I was lucky, just some property damage from a 100 year old oak falling near my house. Many of my friends are cleaning layers of mud from their houses, sorting through flood-damaged possessions, etc.
Many artists and musicians are lending their talents to raise money to help, and I’ll be playing with a group to do just that on June 13. Global to Local: A concert for Central Texas Flood Relief will feature world musicians from Texas and India in a night of great music for a good cause.

Over the last few months several friends passed away, including music brother Slim Richey. I first met him in 1983, at a jazz jam at the Driskill Hotel. I thought “Who is this guy with the long beard?” But when the jazz started coming out of his finger tips, all questions were answered. I had the real privilege of playing a bunch of shows with him, with the Jazz Pharaohs and later with the Jitterbug Vipers. So many many songs!

I have a few more shows lined up for June (check the calendar), and then June 19 I’ll be heading out of town, making my way back to Boston to see my parents, and playing some shows around New England for much of the summer.

After cold rains, cedar pollen, and other hints of winter in Texas, the skies have been blue, the sun has been warm, and I have tried not to feel too guilty about enjoying it, as my family up North weathers huge snowstorms and cooooold.  Of course, snow is beautiful too, in its own way, but here my thoughts are turning toward the harbingers of spring: blossoms on trees, plans for SXSW and, of course, Mardi Gras.

This year I’m helping to put on a pretty big deal Mardi Gras party, as an alternative to the 6th Street stagger-a-thon.  Of course I like to see people in skimpy costumes screaming for beads, but that only can take you so far.  If you’d like a more lasting memory, join me at the Skylark Lounge on Feb 17 for good food, drinks, and dancing to great music.  I have been playing with a fun new band lately, Gumbo Ya Ya, dipping into the New Orleans funk bag.  It brings back a lot of memories from my days with Marcia Ball and all the Mardi Gras shows we did in New Orleans.  The songs have deep roots, and it’s a joy to play them again:  Professor Longhair, Dr. John, The Funky Meters, Fats Domino… All kinds of down and dirty beats to sink your teeth into.

After Gumbo Ya Ya, the John Gaar Band will finish out the night, with their trademark rich vocal harmonies.  Mmmmm!