25
April 15, 2022 • Schneps Media
Smooth sounds on LES
Jazz by Jorei bring Sunday jazz jam sessions to Sour Mouse
BY BOB KRASNER
The jazz jam session. If you
know what that means,
you’re probably picturing a
late-night back room where you
don’t even think about getting on
stage without a good amount of talent
and even more guts, because every
player there is ready to play you
off the stage and they don’t really
care if you never come back.
Then again, there’s the Sour
Mouse, where the “Jazz by Jorei”
Sunday afternoon sessions organized
by Katherine Joyce-Reilly and
Johnny Johnson are basically an alternative
universe to that scene.
Newcomers are encouraged no
matter where their musical level is
and if you sign up, you get to strut
your stuff. It might only be one song,
but it’s in front of a swinging house
band with an appreciative audience.
Johnson and Joyce-Reilly are both
veteran singers (jazz and R and B,
respectively) who met ten years ago
and decided to team up to produce
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
a jazz session at Perks, a well-known
club in Harlem.
After moving around a bit
they settled downtown into the
Sour Mouse at the invitation of
co-owner Aaron Ho, who loves
having them there.
“They have a passion for sharing
music with others,” he notes. “We’re
grateful to be working with people
who, like us, want to give something
back to the community.”
“We’re trying to create a supportive,
positive environment,” says
Joyce-Reilly, who has sung with
Stevie Wonder and Martha Wash,
among others. “We hear from the
musicians and singers that they love
coming here – that they don’t get
that support at other open mics.”
Johnson, who spent some time
singing with The Fabulous Aftabs
– a group that opened for
the O’Jays and the Delfonics at
the Apollo – concurs.
“You’ve got to lift people up! I
learned that from my father and my
uncle. Sometimes you’ve just got to
say, you’re not there yet, but you can
get there.”
The free sessions start around 3
p.m. on Sunday with a featured performer
who is backed by the house
band led by pianist Steve Niles with
Motoki Mihara on bass and Rich
Rodriquez on drums. Singers drop
in and sign up to sing one or two
tunes with the combo and sometimes
end up getting their own
featured slot.
One of those lucky ones with an
upcoming gig is Deborah Auer, who
has nothing but praise for the setup.
“The house band has a really nice
PHOTOS BY BOB KRASNER
Johnny Johnson and Katherine
Joyce-Reilly, organizers of the
Sunday afternoon jazz sessions
at Sour Mouse
groove, the singers and musicians
are happy to see each other and the
staff at Sour Mouse are welcoming
and supportive,” she says, adding,
“It’s been a great place to come back
to singing since the pandemic!”
Johnson is just as happy to have
her there, saying that “Deborah is
great – she don’t need me to teach
her nothing. She always brings
something to the table.”
Frequently in the audience is
Lamon Fenner, a DJ with a jazz radio
show at WHCR who goes by the
moniker “The Voice of Harlem.” He
comes by because “it’s a good vibe.
What stands out is that the players
love the music and they reflect
it. They’re not young Turks, they’re
seasoned warriors.”
At least one exception was
18-year-old Calvin Rey, on vacation
from Seattle, who had read about
the jam on the internet and showed
up with his dad and his baritone sax
hoping to play. Mike Young put him
in the horn section and gave him a
couple of solos.
“I wanted to hear him play more,”
said Fenner. “He reminded me of
Gerry Mulligan.”
The audience also includes the
people who have come to play pool
or ping pong, as the musicians take
up just a portion of the sizable basement
space. There are times when
the tip bucket gets passed around
and Joyce-Reilly takes in more from
the pool players than the jazz folks.
“We were worried that the
younger folks wouldn’t enjoy it, but
sometimes I catch them dancing!”
she says.
Adding to the atmosphere is the
frequently changing art, curated by
Evan Salton with input from Ho
and contributions from local artists.
It’s all part of the venue’s desire to
connect with the neighborhood and
give something back.
As for Johnson and Joyce-Reilly, it
seems that they are in the right place
at the right time.
“There are always some problems,”
Joyce-Reilly admits, ” but the
best part is being immersed in music
and art and seeing people enjoy it.
It’s a lot of work but it feels good. It
feels like the right thing to do.”
More info about Jazz by Jorei
online at jazzbyjorei.com and on
Instagram at @jazzbyjorei.
The Sour Mouse is located at 110
Delancey St. can be found on Instagram
at @sourmousenyc and online
at sourmousenyc.com
Sax-E-One serenades the singer with a sax solo.
/jazzbyjorei.com
/sourmousenyc.com
