Doug Horn Trio at Venue
If you used to shop at Lucky’s Market (née Kroger’s) at the corner of East Stadium Blvd. and South Industrial Hwy. in Ann Arbor, you’ll know how to find Venue. It houses a mix of activities, the main of which is a restaurant. And they host a Sunday Jazz Brunch series from 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.
Today (January 7) it was the Doug Horn Trio, with Horn on tenor sax and flute, Cary Kocher on vibraphone, and Paul Keller (with his trademark fedora) on bass. All three were once music teachers in the Ann Arbor schools but now can dedicate all their time — and talent — to gigs.
The trio played standards — both upbeat and slow — such as “Old Devil Moon,” “Deep Purple,” “This Thing Called Love,” “At the Woodchopper’s Ball,” “Look to the Sky,” “Call Me,” and “Girl Talk” (for the ladies, dixit Horn) along with some TV theme songs that I recognized but couldn’t name. Each of the sets lasted almost a full hour. These three guys have been playing together for many years and they work well off each other, their sounds blending seamlessly.
Ann Arbor is lucky to have such talent and venues like Venue (pun intended). Jazz lovers are spoiled in this town, even though The Bird of Paradise is now long gone. Make sure to find time over the winter months to enjoy some prime music. And Happy New Year 2024.
P.S. If you want to eat to the music, brunch dishes run $8–22.