And There Was Joy In WineVille!
An absolutely wonderful development should make both denizens and visitors to Napa Valley really really happy. Joyful, even.
It was announced today that an outpost of the great New York jazz club, Blue Note, will be opening in downtown Napa. Assuming that the new venue will be bringing some of the same kinds of talent that shows up at the famed NY club, then devotees of great music should be in heaven!
Add Blue Note Napa to the city’s other music club, Silos—where the talent is good, but not quite up to Blue Note standards—and you have the start of an incredibly vibrant Napa music scene.
To say this resident of Napa is excited about this development is an understatement. Plus, this is one more example of why the town of Napa must now be understood as the premier city/town destination in the Valley and one of if not THE top city destination north of San Francisco.
So, for those who like to skip to the bottom to get the gist, let me repeat:
BLUE NOTE IS COMING TO TOWN!!
I say bah humbug. Not to the line-up, but another dilusional concept, out of sync with the realities of the Napa Valley, much like the ill-fated City Winery misjudged our market. The other franchise Blue Note clubs are located in Milan, Honolulu,Beijing, Tokyo, and Nagoya (Japan’s third largest city at 2.30 million residents in the middle of a metro region of 9.1 million people)
Mainstream jazz has a limited following, made even more limited in a relatively small burg like Napa Valley. And the touristas come here for food and wine, not to take in Maceo Parker, Lisa Fischer, Roy Haynes, or Seu Jorge (whose ticket price is $95 with fee) all of who actually take up a multi day residency at the New York Club. Sure they also book Chris Botti ($95) though David Benoit with Jane Monheit only cost $55 a ticket. I’m sure the owners will have a clause that lets them out of their contract within a year.
In sum very bizarre.
Scrooge
Jazz devotees will travel far and wide to hear good jazz music. In a few weeks, a caravan of such devotees will travel to S. California to hear Carol Welsman, a Canadian jazz pianist/singer who spends most of her time touring Asia and Europe. Sports fans follow their teams as jazz fans follow their favorites. Welcome Blue Note and let’s hope it is a smashing success.
How can Scrooge state that Jazz has a limited following? We do not live in the Napa Valley, but I would not call it a small burg. It is hard to find good Jazz. We hope BLUE NOTE is a huge success and beautiful Napa Valley will be known for its Beer, Wine Food & Jazz !
How can Scrooge state that Jazz has a limited following? We do not live in the Napa Valley, but I would not call it a small burg. It is hard to find good Jazz. We hope BLUE NOTE is a huge success and beautiful Napa Valley will be known for its Beer, Wine, Food & Jazz !