Scott Hamilton at Bohemian Caverns 9/16/00

by Alan Greenblatt

Now that the swing revival is moribund -- even in San Francisco, where it took root -- it's back to the traditionalists in jazz, the ones who came up to late to play in big bands but love the music, to act as keepers in the flame.

One of the foremost exponents of old mainstream swing is a white tenor sax player named Scott Hamilton, who played this past weekend at Bohemian Cavern. Hamilton has a big, smooth tone and almost no vibrato.

If I can be boring for a moment (more than usual, I mean), there is a great cliche in jazz writing that there are two schools of tenor sax playing: the breathy, from the gut sound of Coleman Hawkins and followers such as Ben Webster; and the lyrical, lighter sound of Lester Young and his acolytes, including Stan Getz.

Hamilton unites these strains, in that his sound is deep, full and gorgeous, but his phrases are light and lissome. During his Sunday night set, Hamilton didn't engage much in improvisation, simply running through choruses of the melody with slight variations along the way.

His set was composed of famous songs such as "Yesterdays" and "All the Things You Are," plus slightly less well-known tunes such as Gordon Jenkins' "This Is All I Ask" and "Robbins' Nest." The show was made up of standard -round-the-bend solos, and Hamilton was backed nicely by a trio of local musicians, including the Redd brothers (pianist Robert and drummer Chuck).

There were only eight or 10 paying members of the audience, a poor showing especially in light of the good crowds Hamilton got when he last played D.C., at the old Nest Lounge at the Willard. The gang at Bohemian Cavern has a good booker, a guy who used to do Blues Alley, but they don't know how to do publicity.

The music happens in a "cave" setting, fake stalagtites and all that, with padded, backless stumps to sit on. The restaurant upstairs is upscale, with motion sensor light switches in the bathrooms and a $2 per check charge for separate checks (bring a calculator).

My suspicion about the place before ever setting foot in it is that DC doesn't need another upscale jazz club, being already the home of Blues Alley (which is kept alive mainly by tourists). We could use some more moderate placed prices, such as the now padlocked One Step Down.

Jazz fans don't drink enough to support a $2 million club. And U Street isn't ready to accommodate that sort of clientele.

Still, great acts are coming into the Cavern. No one left after Hamilton's show was over, and after 20 minutes of lobbying, he graciously agreed to play an encore for us, even though the club wouldn't cough up any more dough for another set.

P.S. - A large part of the Bohemian Caverns poorly publicized appeal lies in its nostalgic aspect. Don Rosendorf offers this recollection of the old days: I was an habitue of the original Bohemian Caverns in the 1960's. They brought in the top names in jazz of the day: Miles, Coltrane, Cannonball, etc. It was run by a guy named Tony Taylor who sported a black beard, shades, and an omnipresent sea captain's hat. He would announce the acts at the beginning of each set. In between sets, he would bring up a guy who played flamenco guitar. The club was trashed during the riots of 1968 and, sadly, never reopened until its present incarnation. I recall being in the old club one evening to hear the blind multi-instrumentalist Rahsan Roland Kirk. Just before the set was to begin, I noticed Kirk inching toward the stage. There was a stalactite (or stalagmite as the case may be) obstructing his path to the bandstand. He put his arms around the stalactite, stood still for a moment, looked at it, and said "Take me to your leader."