Perhaps you were aware that Kenny G is rolling through our area this week, with concerts in Ocean City and Lancaster? We’ll leave him out of this, because he doesn’t need our help packing a hall. Besides, there are so many other shows we can recommend this week, without the slightest reservation. Stay cool out there! — Nate Chinen
Spotlight: Stanley Clarke N•4EVER, Bob James — Friday, Keswick Theatre
It has been more than 50 years since the heralded debut by Stanley Clarke, and as an electric bassist he retains the rare ability to leave jaws on the floor. Clarke, a former prodigy from Philly, will turn 73 at the end of this month; his latest band, 4EVER, consists of similarly wired musicians who could mostly pass for his grandkids, including tenor saxophonist Emilio Modeste, keyboardist Beka Gochiashvili and drummer Jeremiah Collier. Judging by recent footage of the band in concert, you can expect a mix of steroidal Clarke throwbacks like “School Days,” evocative fusion expeditions like Return to Forever’s “No Mystery,” and ecstatic outright jams.
Sharing this bill is keyboardist and composer Bob James, who like Clarke has been a key amalgamator in jazz since the 1970s; if you missed his recent Tiny Desk Concert, you may not be aware that it included both his theme from “Taxi” and a drop-in by DJ Jazzy Jeff and Talib Kweli. (For this stop on his tour, which precedes a stint at the Blue Note in New York, James is likely to reenlist Andrey Chmut on saxophone, Michael Palazzolo on bass and James Adkins on drums.)
June 28 at 8 p.m., Keswick Theatre, 291 North Keswick Avenue, Glenside, $59-$99; tickets and information.
Jason Marsalis — Sunday, South Jazz Kitchen; Thursday, Kennedy Plaza, Atlantic City
When we last got a taste of Jason Marsalis, it was as a member of the Marcus Roberts Trio, performing a centennial tribute to Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue with The Philadelphia Orchestra. He was on drums in that concert, confidently co-piloting a symphonic masterpiece; here, he’ll mostly play vibraphone, as on a series of sharp recent albums for Basin Street Records.
June 23 at 6 and 8:30 p.m., South Jazz Kitchen, 600 North Broad Street, $35; tickets and information. June 27 at 7 p.m., Chicken Bone Beach Jazz Series, Kennedy Plaza Stage, Atlantic City, NJ, free.
Michael Foster with Strings — Thursday, Solar Myth
Michael Foster is a saxophonist whose engagement with the avant-garde conveys a particular point of view: as he notes about one of his projects, The Ghost, it was formerly partly “as a middle finger to the suffocating heteronormative establishment of improvised music.” Foster works here with a chamber ensemble of sorts, featuring Webb Crawford on guitar and hurdy gurdy, DoYeon Kim on gayageum, Zosha Warpeha on hardanger fiddle, Leila Bordreuil on cello and Nava Dunkelman on percussion.
June 27 at 8 p.m., Solar Myth, 1131 South Broad Street, $25; purchase tickets.
Zawinul Legacy Band — Thursday and Friday, South Jazz Kitchen
As the name implies, this project goes beyond the mere act of tribute, summoning the spirit of Joe Zawinul’s music for Weather Report and the Zawinul Syndicate — with the crucial help of alumni from both bands. Among them: keyboardist Rachel Z, drummer Omar Hakim, saxophonist Bob Franceschini, and bassist Gerald Veasley, who doubles as host of the Unscripted Series, on which this engagement unfolds.
June 27 at 7 and 9 p.m., June 28 at 7 and 9:30 p.m., South Jazz Kitchen, 600 North Broad Street, $49 to $59; tickets and information.
Victor North, Tim Brey, Ben Turner Quintet — Friday, Chris’ Jazz Cafe
A surefooted saxophonist with decades of experience on the Philly scene, Victor North operates as the first among equals in this band, alongside Tim Brey on piano and Ben Turner on guitar.
June 28 at 7:30 and 9:30 p.m., Chris’ Jazz Cafe, 1421 Sansom Street, $25, $80, and $100, with dinner packages; purchase tickets.
