Joe Huron Trio makes Sunday jazz day

His is a familiar face at Sticky Fingers, Barrie’s home for jazz, and is as much a fixture in this town as the Spirit Catcher.

Joe Huron gives regular Sunday concerts at the place of hot licks and hot wings, and his legion of fans recognize what this guitar player and his trio have contributed to the jazz scene in Simcoe County.

First off, the Arnprior, Ontario-born Huron points to Barrie’s proximity to Toronto as one of the reasons the city has become a haven for jazz players and aficionados.

“Jazz traditionally relies on a large population base,” Joe tells BarrieToday. “We like to take advantage of this by having some of the best jazz players in the country come up from Toronto and be our special guests on Sunday afternoons at Sticky Fingers.”

Huron, 57, has obviously a wide range of music and disdains the idea of a favourite piece, though making his name with piece like Johnny Green’s Body and Soul, as well as Solar and Moore Blues.

“I do find that the songs that I play the most frequently with other musicians become part of my identity. Songs like Out of Nowhere (another Green-penned tune made famous by Ella Fitzgerald and Bing Crosby), Stella by Starlight, Days of Wine and Roses (a Henry Mancini chestnut) and Someday my Prince will Come (from Disney’s Snow White) are examples of these.

“Another reason to play these standards is that they are commonly known by jazz musicians. We can perform these types of tunes with someone that we have never met before.”

As mentioned before, Joe’s “axe” is the guitar, something which didn’t become a “star” part in jazz bands until the 1930s with Charlie Christian. It was Charlie, Joe points out, who “was one of the first recorded electric guitarists,bringing his swinging single-note lines to the forefront of the Benny Goodman Band.”

And to give more credit where credit is due, “Barney Kessel and Chuck Wayne were a couple early beboppers that had a huge impact. Then Wes Montgomery changed everything with his tone, use of octaves and chord melodies.”

Then came more “modern” guitarists in the 1960s and 70s, like “John Scofield, Pat Metheny, John Abercrombie and Mike Stern. Also, Miles Davis released the first jazz rock fusion album Bitches Brew in the 60s with John McLaughlin on guitar. That caused an eruption of jazz-rock guitarists in the 70s.”

Let’s not forget Canadian guitarists like Lenny Breau (even though he came here from the States), Ed Bickert and Sonny Greenwich, who paved the way “for present day greats like Lorne Lofsky, Reg Swagger and Ted Quinlan. We have the great fortune to be able to play with some of these guys here in Barrie.”

Joe Huron and drummer Tim Moore have played together since about 1990, and “knows my playing better than I do. Since we have played so much for so long, there is a lot of intuitive musical interaction going on between us.”

Stu Steinhart used to play bass with the band till moving out of town, so “we have switched gears and have Kene Hyatt on acoustic bass. Tim and Kene lock in so well as a rhythm section, making the music a real joy to play.”

Sticky Fingers, 150 Dunlop St. W., is the home of the Joe Huron Trio and great local jazz.

And the “Welcome” mat is out.

“If anything, I would like to encourage people to come out and see live jazz. It really is the best way to develop an appreciation for it.”

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