Jean Luc Ponty @ Nighttown 11/18/09

Jean Luc Ponty played with Frank Zappa. He also played at Nighttown in Cleveland Heights last month. The jazz-rock-fusion legend who pioneered electric violin mesmerized the packed-in audience.

I loved the music, and I loved Jean Luc's personality. At one point during the show, someone in the audience shouted out “We love you,” and he responded, with a shy taken-aback smile, that he loves people who love him. He was completely charming as he encouraged the younger musicians to jam out and nodded with approval when they did. Witnessing the passion with which he picked up his bright blue violin and made it sing was to witness the fusion of a man with the instrument that he loves.

The musical selection ranged decades, and he gave us some introductions, saying, “and now we go back even further . . .,” and we went back to not long after World War II with him. Jean Luc has been playing violin since he was a small child. He played with a major symphony orchestra, Concerts Lamoureux, when he was sixteen, around 1958. He played at the Monterrey Jazz Festival in 1967. He went on to play with a number of musical legends and recorded twelve critically-acclaimed albums, including “Enigmatic Ocean” in 1977 and “Cosmic Messenger” in 1978, both of which made the Top 40 chart. His newest album, “Atacama Experience” is considered be his best album since “Enigmatic Ocean.”

I experienced the music as a non-stop physical and spiritual immersion. Irish-folk “Celtic Steps” was played as eloquently as his latest jazz fusion. At 67, Frenchman Jean Luc continues to grace the world with great music. There's no hint that he's growing older when one watches his slim but powerful body move with the music and the instrument. The room was awash in magical sound.

The JLP band included keyboardist William Lecomte, Damien Schmitt, and Baron Browne. William Lecomte is a classical jazz pianist and considered to be one of the top French keyboardists. 28-year-old drummer Damien Schmitt is amazingly talented and has toured and recorded with top French jazz-fusion musicians; according to Ponty's website (http://www.ponty.com), Jean Luc was so impressed by “his feeling, technique and creativity,” when he met Damien in December 2007 that he hired him immediately. Baron Browne toured with Ponty from 1983- 1990 and collaborated on several recordings.

We were only two feet away from him at a table for four on our wedding anniversary. It was a great way to celebrate a marriage that's been one of discovering natural and urban places, and music. My husband wanted to celebrate in Cincinnati with Phish but I found something closer to home and his thrill was demonstrated by his constantly-clicking camera phone.

Cleveland is lucky to be en route from Chicago to New York and to have a classic jazz club like Nighttown to attract musical talent. Inside the doorway and all along the walls in the narrow bar, photos of musicians whose music has become part of the fibrous walls of the old building. Nighttown, owned by Brendan Ring, was named after the red-light district of Dublin in Joyce's “Ulysses” and feels like an Irish pub and pays respect to earlier eras with memorabilia. It opened in 1965 and is known for high-quality food. The club has hosted the Count Basie Orchestra, Benny Green and many other jazz musicians.

Nighttown is located a 12387 Cedar Road in Cleveland Heights. For information, write info@nighttowncleveland.com or click on their website http://www.nighttowncleveland.com.Upcoming shows include the Jason Marsalis Quartet on December 11, Jesse Cook on December 15, Helen Welch's “Jingle Bell Swing” on December 17 and 18, and Bill Rudman's “A Christmas Cabaret” on December 20-22. Make Nighttown part of your holiday celebrations with friends and family. Seating is on a first come, first served basis and reservations can be made by calling 216-795-0550.

From Cool Cleveland contributor Claudia Taller, whose passion for words has led to creation of the Lakeside Word Lover’s Retreats, an outgrowth of her work with Skyline Writers. Her favorite foods are red wine, salmon, ice cream, and chocolate. She loves to read, write, tour wineries, ride her bike, ease into yoga, and cook gourmet meals for friends. Find her at http://www.claudiatallermusings.blogspot.com.