{"id":30553,"date":"2025-01-16T10:07:17","date_gmt":"2025-01-16T15:07:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/downingtowntimes.com\/?p=30553"},"modified":"2025-01-16T10:07:18","modified_gmt":"2025-01-16T15:07:18","slug":"on-stage-chavous-part-of-new-schedule-at-jameys","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/downingtowntimes.com\/?p=30553","title":{"rendered":"On Stage: Chavous part of new schedule at Jamey’s"},"content":{"rendered":"
By Denny Dyroff,<\/strong>\u00a0 Entertainment Editor, The Times<\/em><\/div>\n
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Lisa Chavous<\/p><\/div>\n

The arrival of a new year frequently means the arrival of new things \u2013 the arrival of changes.<\/p><\/div>\n

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Jamey\u2019s House of Music (32 South Lansdowne Avenue, Lansdowne, 215-477-9985,www.jameyshouseofmusic.com<\/a>) has moved into 2025 by changing one of its weekly traditions.<\/div>\n
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For years, Jamey\u2019s had a jazz-based show every Thursday called \u201cJazz at Jamey\u2019s\u201d and an event every Sunday called \u201cSunday Blues Brunch & Jam.\u201d<\/div>\n
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\u201cStarting January 1, we switched from \u2018Jazz Jams\u2019 to a monthly series with four or five themed shows each Thursday,\u201d said Jamie Reilly, owner and manager of Jamey\u2019s House of Music.<\/div>\n

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The series will slam into high gear on January 16 with a performance by Lisa Chavous and the Philadelphia Blues Messengers.<\/div>\n
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\u201cI\u2019ve been busy doing things \u2013 getting the year started with new entertainment,\u201d said Chavous, during a phone interview Wednesday afternoon.<\/div>\n
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\u201cJamey\u2019s is one of them. I\u2019ll be playing there every third Thursday with different themes — including some doo-wop singers.<\/div>\n
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\u201cMy music covers a lot of genres including Motown, jazz, blues, funk, hip-hop, soul \u2013 mostly soul. When I play Jamey\u2019s, it\u2019s mostly blues.<\/div>\n
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\u201cThis series that Jamey\u2019s is doing \u2013 I think it\u2019s a great idea. Delaware County could use something different. Mature audiences can appreciate it.\u201d<\/div>\n
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Chavous has played Jamey\u2019s numerous times in recent years and has become one of the favorite performers of the venue\u2019s audiences.<\/div>\n
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\u201cI\u2019m excited about this week,\u201d said Chavous. \u201cIt\u2019s a blues revue — \u2018Lisa Chavous and the Philadelphia Blues Messengers.\u2019<\/div>\n
\u201cThe lead guitarist is Mike Albrecht, who has been my guitarist for the last 10 years.\u201d<\/div>\n
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Her band for Thursday\u2019s show also features Gene Hawrylak on guitar and vocals,\u00a0Napolean Black on percussion, Charles Beasley\u00a0on bass, Larry Hambrecht on harmonica and vocals, Tony Day on drums and percussion and Chavous on vocals.<\/div>\n
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\u201cTony is from Atlantic City and the rest are from the Philly area,\u201d said Chavous. \u201cLarry is from Chestnut Hill and Gene is from Germantown.\u201d<\/div>\n
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Chavous\u00a0is a Delaware County girl all the way.<\/div>\n
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\"\"She grew up in Sharon Hill and graduated from Darby Township High School. She studied for a career in nursing at a hospital in Delaware County. Now,\u00a0Chavous\u00a0is a resident of Lansdown and could easily walk to Friday\u2019s gig if she so desires.<\/div>\n
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\u201cI love it there,\u201d said Chavous. \u201cIt\u2019s my neighborhood. It\u2019s right around the corner.\u201d<\/div>\n
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Chavous\u00a0is making a return visit to Jamey\u2019s House of Music \u2013 the venue where she had a CD release party for her most recent album, \u201cBreaking Down the Walls.\u201d<\/div>\n
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\u201cThe CD is dedicated to my late husband Michael Hayes,\u201d said\u00a0Chavous, during a phone interview from her Delco home. \u201cHe died of cancer in 2014.<\/div>\n
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\u201cWe had a tour in Paris in 2019 and two trips to Puerto Rico. The Puerto Rico shows were tributes to Aretha Franklin and Tina Turner. One of them raised $3,000 for emergency relief in San Juan. Then, the pandemic hit, and everything shut down.\u201d<\/div>\n
Chavous\u00a0has been singing her whole life.<\/div>\n
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\u201cI started performing and singing in church when I was really young,\u201d said\u00a0Chavous. \u201cThe, my mom and dad managed me. Eventually, I got calls from agents. So, I started putting bands together \u2013 Lisa\u00a0Chavous\u00a0and Friends.\u201d<\/div>\n
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In 1989 she began performing with the group Chapter One in banquet halls such as The Twelve Caesars and the Riviera Ballroom. In 1997, Chavous won first prize while competing in the Temple University jazz station talent contest sponsored by B&V outreach.<\/div>\n
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In 1999, she began forming bands that performed for a variety of audiences. These ensembles eventually became known as Lisa\u00a0Chavous\u00a0and Friends.<\/div>\n
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\u201cMy first band was a jazz band,\u201d said Chavous. \u201cWe played a lot of jazz clubs including the Blue Note in New York. I was on the jazz side for a while.<\/div>\n
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\u201cWe were really blessed with being able to book shows at country clubs in Delco. One night, the sax player couldn\u2019t make the show. So, they sent another cat \u2013 and it was Byard Lancaster.\u201d<\/div>\n
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The late, great Byard Lancaster was an alto saxophonist\/flutist from Philadelphia who was part of the wave of free jazz inspired by John Coltrane. His music had many cultures in its DNA such as blues, reggae and Afrobeat and he lived in a variety of places including Chicago, France and Nigeria. But he always returned to jazz and his hometown.<\/div>\n
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After watching Chavous perform many years ago, Lancaster said, \u201cI have recorded with Jonny Copeland, and have known Shemekia Copeland since she was a little girl, when I was on the road with her father. I\u2019ve got to tell you the best female blues vocalist to come along since Shemekia is without a doubt, Lisa Chavous.\u201d<\/div>\n
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This quote came from the musician who discovered Kevin Eubanks, the Roots, and Stanley Clarke.<\/div>\n
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\u201cA couple years later, I ran into Byard at a blues festival in Media,\u201d said\u00a0Chavous. \u201cHe told me there was a blues band \u2014 the Philadelphia Blues Messengers \u2013that needed a vocalist and asked if I wanted to go to Paris. That was in the early 2000s. He opened so many doors for me.<\/div>\n
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\u201cFor me, getting into the blues was a fluke. I was supposed to be going Motown and playing country clubs. Then, blues came in with Byard. I just became an icon in Philly as a blues singer. People wanted the blues, and it never stopped. I realized \u2013 this music is me.\u201d<\/div>\n
Chavous\u00a0is frequently compared to Tina Turner, Etta James, Aretha Franklin, Ruth Brown, and Irma Thomas, who along with Billie Holiday and Mahalia Jackson are among her primary musical influences. She a been singing in church and performing in shows since she was five in a career that encompasses jazz, blues, soul, gospel and rock.<\/div>\n
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Chavous\u00a0has performed with jazz greats Byard Lancaster, Odean Pope, Trudy Pitts, Pat Martino, Jimmy McGriff and Bootsie Barnes, and is regularly backed by former members of Patti LaBelle\u2019s band, as well as by Don Evans, former guitarist for Billy Joel.<\/div>\n
Chavous, who is a nurse, has also donated her talents at a variety of functions that benefit children\u2019s organizations supporting research for multiple sclerosis and the anti-AIDS foundation.<\/div>\n
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Chavous\u2019 forte is her great versatility in singing jazz, blues, and rhythm and blues, all with tons of soul that projects her sincere love and devotion to her music and that creates powerful audience attraction and response.<\/div>\n
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Chavous is close to releasing a new album.<\/div>\n
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\u201cI\u2019ve been back in the studio working on a new album,\u201d said Chavous.<\/div>\n
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\u201cI have some great music we\u2019ve written over the last few years. We\u2019ve been recording it at MorningStar Studio (Glenn Barratt\u2019s highly acclaimed studio in East Norriton).<\/div>\n
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\u201cI have a lot of shows coming up including Ashley\u2019s in Glen Mills, Cigar Republic in Conshohocken, Riverside Yacht Club in Essington, La Cena Restaurant in Bensalem, the Sage Diner in Boothwyn and La Porta in Media and, of course, Jamey\u2019s.<\/div>\n
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\u201cFor the shows at Jamey\u2019s, we\u2019ll do two. We\u2019ll play some originals. We\u2019ll also do blues standards \u2013 songs by Muddy Waters, KoKo Taylor and Litle Walter.\u201d<\/div>\n
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Video link for Lisa\u00a0Chavous\u00a0\u2013 https:\/\/youtu.be\/3N0iG_x7u44<\/a>.<\/div>\n
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The show at Jamey\u2019s on Thursday will start at 8 p.m.<\/div>\n
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Tickets are $20 in advance and $25 at the door.<\/div>\n
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Jamey\u2019s House of Music has evolved into one of the premier clubs at its level not only in the Philly area but also around the entire Mid-Atlantic region.<\/div>\n
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Around 20 years ago, Jamie Reilly and his wife Suyun ran a small, intimate and well-loved music venue in their house in Overbrook called Psalm Salon. It their first version of a \u201cLive House.\u201d<\/div>\n
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Live house\u00a0(\u30e9\u30a4\u30d6\u30cf\u30a6\u30b9) is a small live music club concept which originated in Japan. The term is a Japanese coinage (wasei eigo) and is mainly used in China, Japan and South Korea.<\/div>\n
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It most frequently refers to smaller venues, which may double as restaurants or bars, especially featuring rock, jazz, blues, and folk music.<\/div>\n
American live house is an East Asian concept which is tailored to the tastes of a discerning western audience. JHOM is a new incarnation of a venerable Philadelphia night spot \u2013 Psalm Salon.<\/div>\n
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Jamey’s House of Music is a multi-award winning, superbly crafted intimate 60-seat venue for live music set in a comfortable, air conditioned, world class listening room, with a taproom and full-service restaurant. JHOM boasts sound, lighting, video and musical equipment worth over a quarter million dollars.<\/div>\n
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JHOM serves a modestly priced, freshly prepared Asian-inspired American menu, sinful desserts, and fresh brewed coffees and espressos made with quintuple filtered water, and fine beers on tap from Conshohocken Brewing Company.<\/div>\n
The real value of Jamey\u2019s can be found in the music rather than the bank \u2013 or the kitchen. The new Thursday night series is another example of Reilly catering to the musical tastes of the venue\u2019s fans.<\/div>\n
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\u201cWe had success with the Thursday jazz shows but we wanted to give our audiences more,\u201d said Reilly. \u201cThe first Thursday of the month will be the Philadelphia Blues Society.\u201d<\/div>\n
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Formed in 2023, the Philadelphia Blues Society exists to fulfill its mission by enabling live performance and helping to educate the community about the history and expression of a truly American artform.<\/div>\n
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The mission of the Philadelphia Blues Society is to present, promote and preserve the blues and in all its forms throughout the greater Philadelphia region and support local, regional and national talent, nurturing an appreciation of the blues in school and community settings.<\/div>\n
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\u201cThe second Thursday will be Dueling Pianos and Lisa Chavous will have her show every third Thursday,\u201d said Reilly. \u201cThe fourth Thursday will be A.C. Steel and the Perpetrators. There will be a movie night in the five months when there is a fifth Thursday.\u201d<\/div>\n
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This weekend\u2019s shows at JHOM will be the Empty Belly Blues Band featuring Alabama Sam on June 17 and The Porkroll Project and Kane & Company on January 18.<\/div>\n
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Every Sunday, Jamey\u2019s presents \u201cSUNDAY BLUES BRUNCH & JAM\u201d featuring the highly acclaimed blues group the Girke-Davis Project as the host band.<\/div>\n
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Brought together by fate while playing at Jamey’s House of Music, something clicked and their mutual respect for one another and deep abiding love for the blues bonded them into something greater than each of them alone – and thus was born, the Girke-Davis Project.<\/div>\n
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This supergroup committed to get together at Jamey’s to celebrate the vast repertoire of blues music \u2013 the African American art form that paved the way for jazz, rock n roll and even country music.<\/div>\n
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The band features Roger Girke, guitarist, singer and writer; John Colgan-Davis, harmonica and vocals; Jamey Reilly, bass; Glenn Bickel, piano and Hammond organ; and Paul Albrecht,\u00a0drums.<\/div>\n
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Video link for the Girke-Davis Project — https:\/\/youtu.be\/LMHzfrrkRCQ<\/a><\/div>\n
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The open mic jam runs from 1-3 p.m. The host band lays down a set from noon-1 p.m. to get things rolling and then supports guest jammers as needed. The always rocking \u201cSUNDAY BLUES BRUNCH\u201d rocks a Happy Hour from noon-1 p.m.<\/div>\n
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\u201cWe\u2019re keeping the Sunday brunch the way it has been,\u201d said Reilly. \u201cKeeping it free and keeping it fun.\u201d<\/div>\n
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Uptown! Knauer Performing Arts Center (226 North High Street, West Chester, www.uptownwestchester.org<\/a>) will host \u201cJunie B. Jones: The Musical\u201d now through January 19.<\/div>\n
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Junie B. Jones, America\u2019s favorite elementary school student, comes to life onstage in this adaptation of three books in Barbara Park\u2019s popular book series of the same name.<\/div>\n
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Clad with purple glasses and all, Junie B., along with her classmates, parents, and teachers, sings and dances her way through the first grade, and while chronicling her adventures in her \u201ctop secret personal beeswax\u201d journal, she learns the importance of facing obstacles head-on and turning bad situations into good ones.<\/div>\n
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\u201cJunie B. Jones: The Musical,\u201d though written as a piece of theatre for young audiences, is fun for the entire family and highlights the timeless themes of friendship, acceptance, and humility.<\/div>\n
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It\u2019s Junie B.\u2019s first day of first grade, and a lot of things have changed for her: Junie\u2019s friend, Lucille, doesn\u2019t want to be her best pal anymore and, on the bus, Junie B. makes friends with Herb, the new kid at school.<\/div>\n
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Also, Junie has trouble reading the blackboard and her teacher, Mr. Scary, thinks she may need glasses. Throw in a friendly cafeteria lady, a kickball tournament and a \u201cTop-Secret Personal Beeswax Journal,\u201d and first grade has never been more exciting.<\/div>\n
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Performances will be staged on January 18 at 1 p.m. and January 19 at 3 p.m.<\/div>\n
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Tickets are $20 (13 and over) and $15 (12 and under)<\/div>\n
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Kennett Flash (102 Sycamore Alley, Kennett Square, 484-732-8295, http:\/\/www.kennettflash.org<\/a>) will present The Laugh & Run Show\u00a0on January 17 at 7 p.m.<\/div>\n
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The Laugh & Run Show is all about bringing people together through laughter and running. The founder of this show,\u00a0Tommy McClellan-Willard, is a U.S. athlete and stand-up comedian who\u2019s been seen on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.<\/div>\n
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This show features an \u201call paces welcome\u201d group run before the show starting and ending at Kennett Flash followed directly by the show with Tommy and some up-and-coming comedians.<\/div>\n
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Tickets are $20.<\/div>\n
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On January 18, Kennett Flash will host \u201cAn Evening With Leslie Mendelson!\u201d<\/div>\n
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Showtime is 8 p.m. Tickets are $20 in advance and $25 at the door.<\/div>\n
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The Colonial Theater (227 Bridge Street, Phoenixville, thecolonialtheatre.com\/events<\/a>) will host Ben Bailey on January 18.<\/div>\n
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Elkton Music Hall (107 North Street, Elkton, Maryland, www.elktonmusichall.com<\/a>) will host The One Hit Wonderers on January 17 and Countdown to Ecstasy on January 18.<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Denny Dyroff,\u00a0 Entertainment Editor, The Times The arrival of a new year frequently means the arrival of new things \u2013 the arrival of changes. Jamey\u2019s House of Music (32 South Lansdowne Avenue, Lansdowne, 215-477-9985,www.jameyshouseofmusic.com) has moved into 2025 by changing one of its weekly traditions. For years, Jamey\u2019s had a jazz-based show every Thursday […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":30551,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4357],"tags":[3162,9066,9496],"class_list":["post-30553","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-d-arts-entertainment","tag-featured","tag-jameys-house-of-music","tag-lisa-chavous"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/downingtowntimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30553","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/downingtowntimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/downingtowntimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/downingtowntimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/downingtowntimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=30553"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/downingtowntimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30553\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":30554,"href":"https:\/\/downingtowntimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30553\/revisions\/30554"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/downingtowntimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/30551"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/downingtowntimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=30553"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/downingtowntimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=30553"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/downingtowntimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=30553"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}