The Soul-Jazz Collective at The Lark Street Tavern April 11th, 2023 – Review – Ed Conway

Review of the Soul-Jazz Collective, by Ed Conway.

If it’s Tuesday, it must be Jazz Night at The Lark Street Tavern. The venerable tavern, first opened in 1934, has gone through several face-lifts over the years, including a nearly total rebuild after a 2010 fire that gutted the building. Back in 2022, new owner Chris Pratt gave it the most recent update and reopened last year, setting up the back room, stage area, as a comfortable listening room, and has made Tuesday nights into Jazz Night featuring various artists each week. This particular night featuring a Catskill Mountains area trio, The Soul-Jazz Collective. As the name suggests, they take a look at soul & R&B standards with a jazz filter.

Guitarist Steve Raleigh is an Adjunct Professor of music at Bard College, SUNY New Paltz and SUNY Dutchess County. His laid back demeanor and smooth style produce an intricate and melodic approach to his improvised solos which fit in perfectly with this bands mission of blurring the lines between Soul & Jazz. Raleigh is joined on the Hammond organ by Woodstock resident, Pete Levin, a person with a who’s who resume of performances.  He also possesses the same smooth style which fits with their basic choice of music.  I’ve seen Pete many times with many different styles of music.  From blues to jazz to pop, he is able to fluidly change his style to fit the song, sometimes on the fly, which makes him a highly sought-after session musician as well.  Keeping everybody in line is drummer Matt Garrity, another Woodstock resident who also has a solid resume, playing with, or recording with an A-list group of NY City artists.  In compliment to the other two, Garrity’s style is also smooth, sitting behind the other instruments but keeping his presence known, until stepping out with a tasty fill or solo.  The blending of the trio works quite well in this formation and really highlights the music, letting their instruments tell the story without any distracting antics. During their set, a masked man walked into the room carrying a small, age-worn leather bag.  Who was that masked man?  It dawned on me during the break, when I heard Raleigh mention the name Chris, it was trumpeter Chris Pasin, who joined the trio for a couple of songs during the second set.  I’ve seen Pasin in a few other bands with varying styles. As always he sat in the pocket with the rest of the band until it was his turn to solo.  And, as always, those solos fit perfectly.

All in all, it was a wonderfully relaxed evening.  Judging by the nearly full room, I wasn’t the only one who thinks a weekly jazz night is a great idea.  While there were some quiet conversations going on here and there, it was mostly a listening audience, which, based on the décor and table set up, is what Pratt seemed to be aiming for.  This was our first time attending a Tuesday session, but it certainly won’t be our last.