Pax Wallace Quintet Feat. Kelley Johnson & Jay Thomas

Pax Wallace, an innovative jazz pianist brings his top flight quintet to Ott & Hunter's cabaret room for an evening of original, harmonically advanced jazz.  This show will feature Seattle based singer Kelley Johnson, renowned saxophonist Jay Thomas along with Scott Swanberg (bass) and George Bullis (drums).  Experience some forward thinking jazz with this must-see show!

Kelley Johnson is an international award winning jazz vocalist who is known and respected as an arranger, poet and lyricist with a personal body of recordings. Kelley’s lithe velvety voice mixes with a dynamic delivery and tricky colorful arrangements to showcase her interpretive finesse and inspired soloists. An organic groovy singer with a direct approach, Kelley reaches her audience with storytelling, subtlety, soulfulness and swing.

"Johnson has an uplifting brightness in her vocal delivery... Her lovely voice stands out for it's emphatic clarity and for it's direct approach. She pulls the blues out of thin air. It’s genuine. Johnson is a true communicator."
- Jim Santella, All About Jazz

https://kelleyjohnson.com/

Jay Thomas, a native of Seattle, is a versatile multi-instrumentalist (trumpet, flugelhorn, alto, tenor, soprano, and flutes). He is a consummate craftsman and an emotionally charged improviser. Anyone who has encountered Jay's music during his 50-odd-year career will testify to numerous qualities synonymous with the heart of jazz.  Jay has performed on over 100 CDs, including 21 as leader or co-leader. Thomas has also recorded with many heavy-weight players, most notably Cedar Walton, Billy Higgins, Ray Brown, and Elvin Jones. Jay has a sound characterized by warmth, lyricism, and rhythmic drive — and he's funky! Hear him when you can. You won't be disappointed!

https://www.jaythomasjazz.com/

Steve “Pax” Wallace is a composer, pianist, and an intrepid musical adventurer. Inspired by the likes of Wayne Shorter, Ralph Towner, Kenny Wheeler, Keith Jarrett, and Chick Corea, Wallace marries influence and curiosity into his compositions. “A lot of my music sounds like it’s written by different people because every composition has its own individual identity. I try to be of service to that composition. Sometimes I don’t have an adequate vocabulary to complete a composition, so I table it and come back to it later, sometimes years later. Composition is an act of musical inquiry.” While being aware of and loving the traditions of his predecessors, he doesn’t feel a strong desire to replicate them in his compositions. “I have always been drawn into a set of personal aesthetics and criterion drawn from odd sources.”

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