San Francisco Jazz Greats will honor the legendary Lu Watters in an afternoon 'Tea Dance' on October 23, 2004

SAN FRANCISCO (San Francisco Traditional Jazz Foundation/ www.riverwalk.org/ www.sftradjazz.org) - A group of traditional jazz greats will present music from San Francisco's glorious jazz era of the 40s and 50s in a special "Concert/Tea Dance" performance honoring Lu Watters, the Bay Area jazz legend. The event will take place on Saturday, October 23, from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. at the Townsend Center in San Francisco, 650 Townsend Street in the SOMA district. The San Francisco Traditional Jazz Foundation is sponsor for this event.

Watters, a brilliant trumpet player, had a profound effect on the jazz scene locally, nationally and internationally, when his group, the Yerba Buena Jazz Band, opened up at the Dawn Club in San Francisco in the fall of 1939, performing "righteous jazz" based on the New Orleans style.
Later, the group moved to Hambone Kelly's in El Cerrito. Watters's band featured musicians like Turk Murphy, Bob Scobey, Bob Helm and Clancy Hayes. Murphy played at Earthquake McGoon's well into the 1980s in the basement of the last house of ill repute in downtown San Francisco, the William Tell Hotel at 630 Clay Street.

The band for this tribute concert will showcase a number of top musicianswho played with Turk - Leon Oakley, on cornet, Bill Carter on clarinet, and John Gill on banjo. The rest of the band includes Turk's favorite trombone player, Tom Bartlett and the young traditionalists Clint Baker, drums; Marty Eggers, piano; and Ray Cadd, tuba.
Leading the group will be Jim Cullum, cornet, whose band performs every week on Public Radio International's radio series, Riverwalk Jazz.
The program, now in its 15th season, originates from KSXT in San Antonio and can be heard on over 150 public radio stations.
His group can be heard locally on the jazz station, KCSM, 91.1 FM, Sundays from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m., as well as online at https://www.riverwalk.org. Many jazz fans and critics consider Cullum the most prominent traditional jazz musician in America today.

The "Dance" format also pays tribute to Watters's fundamental belief that"Classic Jazz was originally performed for the Dancers."
Tickets for the concert are $20 and may be obtained from City Box Office, by phone, 415-392-4400 or on the website at https://www.Cityboxoffice.com For background on Lu Watters and Jim Cullum, or for photos, visit our website: sftradjazz.org/watters81304.html