WINNING SPINS BY GEORGE kanzler A mainstay on the professional music scene in Chicago for over forty years, Bobby Lewis plays first trumpet in a wide variety of studio and concert settings. But Lewis is also a first-rate jazz player who lives up to this encomium he received from Peggy Lee when he was her musical director: "A sound like no other. I like him best when he plays pastels, but every note is beautiful…is loving. Bobby loves life as he loves music… and I love Bobby Lewis." Lewis can be heard to advantage on a new album, Instant Groove (Southport), out this month just in time for the Lewis quintet's appearance at a JAMS concert in West Palm Beach. The quintet - with Pat Mallinger, saxes; Jim Ryan, piano; Rob Amster, bass, and Jeff Stitely, drums - is the core unit on the CD, which also includes appearances by other musicians, including the impressive Chicago jazz guitarist Curtis Robinson and percussionist Alejo Poveda. The album reflects leader Lewis' eclectic taste and wide-ranging experiences in jazz, from trad to post-bop and Afro-Latin. He even taps a trip he made to India for inspiration on his own "The New Delhi Deli," a piece with a bright melodic line and rhythm more Bollywood than raga. It's done by the quintet with guitar and percussion. Lewis' other original, "Together We'll Stay," is a ballad featuring his flugelhorn playing those "pastels" alluded to by Lee, over Ryan's synthesizer strings and the acoustic bass of Rob Kassinger. On flugelhorn on over half of the twelve tracks, Lewis plays it with an easy facility and warmth that belie the instrument's reputation for skittish difficulty. His command is especially evident in his cogent solo on Wayne Shorter's harmonically shifting waltz, "Edda," and in his spirited exchanges with Mallinger's tenor sax on the swinging "The Evening Star." Mallinger proves even more alluring on alto sax than tenor, conjuring up creamy, Johnny Hodges-like lines on his own ballad "Sauce Melba" and a fetching swing-to-bop attack on "Line for Lyons," the Gerry Mulligan jazz standard. The album is dedicated to the memory of the late electric bassist, Thomas Kini, a longtime colleague of Lewis, and two tracks date from earlier sessions with Kini: Henry Mancini's "Dreamsville" is an impressionistic affair featuring overdubbed flugelhorns and bassoons as a cushion for solo flugelhorn and Harmon-muted trumpet; while "Saudade II" is a loping samba with spirited trumpet, alto sax, piano and guitar solos. Another Latin-tinged delight is Claire Fisher's "Morning," with roguish smears and glides from Lewis' trumpet and a sonically steely guitar solo. The album's most iconoclastic track, a tip of the hat to Lewis' time in trad jazz bands, is Jelly Roll Morton's "Grandpa's Spells." Drummer Stitely and tuba player Dan Perantoni shuffle and stomp behind Lewis, who solos on cornet, both open and muted, while also dubbing in harmony counter lines on the deep-toned alto trumpet. The Bobby Lewis Quintet stars at a JAMS concert at the Harriet Theater in West Palm Beach on February 28. spotlight by paul blair,  GEORGE kanzler, mark sachnoff AND BOB WEINBERG BILL ALLRED'S CLASSIC JAZZ BAND BROWARD CENTER FOR THE ARTS/ FEBRUARY 8 Billed as a tribute to New Orleans jazz, this Gold Coast Jazz Society concert led by veteran trombonist Allred won't get caught up in the moldy fig take of trad bands that feature banjos, tubas and sleeve garters. This band's approach, like its mainstream brass, reeds and rhythm instrumentation, concentrates on reimagining, rather than simply recreating, early jazz. An added attraction of this concert is the chance to hear Allred and his son, John, also a trombonist, in high-spirited musical combat. In 2002, John made a terrific quintet album, Head to Head (Arbors Records) with trombonist Wycliffe Gordon that's a classic of the two-trombone frontline jazz genre. GK BEATRIZ MALNIC VAN DYKE/FEBRUARY 6, 13, 20 AND 27 Don Wilner, Music Director at South Beach's Van Dyke Cafe, positively glows with delight when talking about this Brazilian-born vocalist. "One of the most interesting and alluring singers I've ever had the pleasure to know and work with!" Beatriz moved to South Florida ten years ago. With Loren Dae, Beatriz co-created the Brazilian Voices, a choir of fifty Brazilian women that performs in local events and was recently given a Brazilian International Press Award for musical excellence. She'll soon record a new CD at the Van Dyke, her weekly Monday night gig, that'll include Mike Orta on piano and yes, Don Wilner - long one of her most enthusiastic supporters - playing bass. MS PAUL RISHELL AND ANNIE RAINES BAMBOO ROOM/FEBRUARY 3 Rishell and Raines shake the dust from the grooves of country-blues gems. On this duo's newest recording, Goin' Home, they delve into the songbooks of blues pioneers, treating them with reverence but not as stale museum pieces. Rishell's mastery on acoustic and National Steel guitars lets him pick blues and ragtime with authority. His vocals can reflect a sense of fun or existential loneliness, as on his remarkable rendition of Washington Phillips' "I Had a Good Mother and Father." Raines' harmonica wizardry on chromatic and diatonic harps recalls Sonny Terry's. Together for over a decade, the pair earned a W.C. Handy Award for its 2000 album Moving to the Country. BW THE REGULATORS SUSHI BLUES CAFE/FEBRUARY 18 With his colorful suits and trademark shades, Regulators frontman "Dr. Lee" Lowenthal has long kept South Florida audiences juking to fingerpopping jump-blues. A typical set might include songs from Roy Milton, Wynonie Harris, William Clarke and Rod Piazza. After a brief hiatus, the Regulators are back again with a new lineup, featuring guitarist-vocalist J.P. Soares, keyboardist Keith Davis, bassist Rob Remington and drummer Jimmy Daniel. The versatile Soares also plays in the group Gypsy Blue, which performs music reminiscent of Django Reinhardt and Stephane Grappelli; and with any luck, he might unleash some Gypsy-style jazz licks at Hollywood's Sushi Blues Cafe. BW JOANNE BRACKEEN FORT LAUDERDALE MUSEUM OF ART/ FEBRUARY 18 This pianist was not only the first female (1969-71) to serve fulltime as a member of Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers group. She's also contributed mightily to recordings by Stan Getz and Joe Henderson. Albums done under her own name for the Arkadia and Concord labels have further strengthened her rep as both an accomplished swinger and a composer of genuine musical wit. (Her tune titles, we think, are some of the cleverest around.) How to characterize her approach? One writer praises her "muscular but harmonically limpid style." You'll surely come up with a better description than that - but she's definitely worth catching live. PB TONY DESARE HEIDI’S/FEBRUARY 3 AND 4 Unfamiliar with this singer/songwriter/ pianist's name? You may know it better after the opening of "My Date with Drew," a film for which Desare penned and performed the title song. Tony is part of the new breed of singers keeping classic American songbook music alive. He performs regularly with jazz guitarist Bucky Pizzarelli. They recently recorded Want You (Telarc) together. Tony has supplied music for other indie films and won the prize for best soundtrack at the 2003 Houston Film Festival for his work on "My Name is Amber." You can also catch him with his trio (bassist Mike Lee and drummer Brian Czach) at the Palm Beach Country Club on February 2. MS A JAZZ VALENTINE FOR FLORIDA: TERELL STAFFORD by Lesley Mitchell-Clarke Jazz trumpet world great and native Floridian Terell Stafford says he's thrilled to be coming home for what promises to be a memorable concert event on February 14. Although Terell travels the world regularly with jazz giants such as McCoy Tyner (who has referred to him as "one of the great trumpet players of our time"), he rarely finds himself in Florida, and is anxious to reunite with family and friends, as well as interact with local jazz enthusiasts. Although the performance is not specifically billed as a Valentine's Day event, Terell promises to fill the program with plenty of beautiful ballads for lovers, rendered in his warm, expressive and swinging signature style. The concert - produced by the Greater Florida Jazz & Swing Club - will take place at Olympic Heights Auditorium in Boca Raton. Terell Stafford's charmed career has been, in his own words "like a dream come true". Although he began on trumpet at 13, he didn't become interested in jazz until he began playing in the Jazz Band while pursuing a degree in Music Education at The University of Maryland. This was followed by a period of what he recalls as "total jazz immersion". Remarkably, he'd only been playing jazz for about a year when he zoomed to international prominence as a member of alto saxophonist Bobby Watson's group, Horizon, which also included drummer Victor Lewis as co-leader plus jazz organist Shirley Scott. "Shirley was my heart", says Terell. "Being with her was like a history lesson." The experience with Watson paved Terell's way professionally for numerous high-profile gigs, including stints with Benny Golson, Kenny Barron, Jimmy Heath and John Faddis. The "University of Bobby Watson", included on-the-job training as arranger, composer and bandleader, and Bobby's lessons still resonate with Terell. "I tell my students exactly what Bobby told me years ago: 'One of the reasons that I hired you is that you're very easy to get along with onstage and off: no ego. I'm not saying that to create one - but to keep one away'. In 1997, Terell received a call from Tyner. At first, Terell didn't believe that it was actually McCoy on the phone, as a few bored New York jazz musician friends had recently been making prank calls, pretending to be a major jazz figure calling about a gig. "It really wasn't until McCoy gave me his agent's phone number that I believed it was really him!" New Beginnings is the title of Terell Stafford's most recent CD, his first for the MaxJazz label. The hit recording features Mulgrew Miller, Dick Oatts, Harry Allen and Jesse Davis. Terell is constantly inspired by the players he's been fortunate enough to work with, as well as by the current emerging musicians on the jazz scene. "A young student of mine, Tatum Greenblatt, played incredibly at a recent jazz Convention in New York City. After I heard him, I ran back to my room and started practicing!" Terell's melodic trumpet can also be heard on the soundtrack of the film "A Bronx Tale". He's appeared on NBC's "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno" and (with Watson) on Bill Cosby's recent TV game show, "You Bet Your Life." Terell Stafford's continuing musical relationship with McCoy Tyner has included recent appearances at New York's Blue Note and the 2005 Newport Jazz Festival. Continuing his work as jazz educator, Terell Stafford is currently Director of Jazz Studies at Temple University in Philadelphia. Terell Stafford will perform at Olympic Heights Auditorium in Boca Raton February 14 for the Greater Florida Jazz & Swing Club. hot flashes by Bob weinberg RIVERWALK BLUES & MUSIC FESTIVAL Despite Hurricane Wilma's best efforts, the Riverwalk Blues & Music Festival rolls on, taking place February 9-12 along the New River in downtown Fort Lauderdale. Miraculously, organizer Don Cohen was able not only to book many of the acts originally scheduled to play in November but even add a few more as well. Among the headliners who reupped, count guitarist Bob Margolin's Legends of the Chicago Blues, featuring Howlin' Wolf guitarist Hubert Sumlin, along with Muddy Waters band alumni Pinetop Perkins on piano and Willie "Big Eyes" Smith on drums. Also still on the schedule are such next-generation blues greats as Elvin Bishop, who made his name in the 1960s with the Butterfield Blues Band; Austin's Fabulous Thunderbirds, led by harmonica virtuoso Kim Wilson; Canada's bar-band royalty Downchild Blues Band, who influenced the Blues Brothers; and Roomful of Blues, the veteran Rhode Island jump band with one of the sharpest horn sections around. Other not-to-be-missed acts include the singularly powerful songwriter and performer Otis Taylor, whose mesmerizing songs and haunting presence always leave a deep impression, and a reunited Roach Thompson Blues Band, the popular Miami blues and R&B revue that won Best Unsigned Blues Band honors in Memphis. A couple of additions to the original lineup also demand your attention. The extraordinary Corey Harris is a musical adventurer whose music ranges from the deepest Delta blues to the music of Africa and the Caribbean. For boogeying piano blues that's sure to make you wiggle, catch Kenny "Blues Boss" Wayne, whose 2005 release Let It Loose showcases his barrelhousing mastery; and the superb Kelley Hunt, who has rocked this festival before with her rippling 88s. Blues fans may also want to sit in on discussions with Alligator Records chief Bruce Iglauer and blues author and photographer Dick Waterman. Check out www.riverwalkbluesfestival.com for more information and a full schedule of events. Jazz anecdote by Bill Crow Jazz bassist Bill Crow's popular book "Jazz Anecdotes" has been released in a new edition, "Jazz Anecdotes, Second Time Around," with added stories. It, and his second book, "From Birdland to Broadway," can be found at your favorite bookseller, both published by Oxford University Press. Omar Clay and Al Plank were playing a duo gig in a club. A customer dropped a dollar on Al's piano along with a request for four tunes. During the next break, Al stopped by the man's table, apologized for only knowing three of the tunes, and handed him a quarter. One night a couple of sailors wandered into Jim and Andy's, the musicians' bar, looking for some action. The guys at the bar told them that no single women came there, but there was a good place nearby called the Green Lantern. "Just look for the green light by the doorway," they told them, and then gave them directions to the nearby police station. Bob Cranshaw, who is best known for his bass playing with Sonny Rollins, once played with the Clancy Brothers, and made some records with them. He said, "When I was with them, they called them The Clancy Brothers and The Brother."