When Garrin Hertel puts on his bowlers hat and black jacket, gets out his rhythm guitar and enters the stage with his band, the Hot Club of Spokane, people get out of their seats and cheer. Such was the reaction at their gig last weekend in the Panida Theater of Sandpoint, Idaho.
About 115 fans of gypsy jazz sat mesmerized in the classy, ornate venue, half way between Coeur d'Alene and Canada. On stage, all the regulars were in attendance: Garrin on rhythm guitar, Steve Bauer on lead guitar, Daini Hertel on vocals, Michael Lenke on trumpet and vocals, Robert Folie on alto and baritone saxes, Kim Plewniak on upright bass, Andrew Wilson on violin,and Patricia Bartell on accordion.
Garrin tells a little story about song before they play it, which lends an additional air of authenticity to the concert and really pulls the audience in. With each announcement, the audience waited with baited breath, then gasped and whispered to one another about the song once the title was announced, such as "The House Of The Rising Sun" and "Jump, Jive and Wail."
The Hot Club of Spokane plays a style of early jazz known as jazz manouche or gypsy jazz, which is inspired by the original Hot Club of Paris, France, starring Django Reinhardt, the legendary guitarist who defined the gypsy jazz sound over 70 years ago.
The music has created quite a buzz around the Inland Northwest and is a prime mover in the Think Swing Jazz & Blues Festival, founded by Garrin, coming to venues all over Spokane in time for post-Election Day celebrations. The Panida appearance was one in a series of pre-event concerts leading up to the three-day autumn music extravaganza, commencing on November 7.
The Hot Club of Spokane will be playing six more gigs in the Spokane area prior to Think Swing. The schedule is available on their MySpace page. Also, 16 additional images of the concert are available. Go to "Photo Galleries > Panida Theater > Hot Club of Spokane, 2008-09-20" to see them.
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