by LEN DOBBIN

This 24th edition of the Montreal International Jazz Festival augurs to be one of the best in years and as a result, I’ll keep my suggestions to lesser-known artists. Indoors, we have a number of veterans. Jay McShann, 87, once employed Charlie Parker as a sideman. At 76, Jimmy Heath’s career stretches back to the beginnings of the bebop evolution. He’s worked with Howard McGhee, Dizzy Gillespie, Miles Davis, Kenny Dorham and Milt Jackson and Jimmy’s big band in Philadelphia once employed John Coltrane.

Sheila Jordan, who appears with a great Steve Kuhn trio, is the greatest jazz singer since Billie Holiday. That’s an opinion I’ve held since I was introduced to her by Valdo Williams, who was at one time the house pianist at Rockhead’s. That was in Greenwich Village back in 1961. A student of Charlie Parker and Lennie Tristano, she’s worked with George Russell, Roswell Rudd, George Gruntz and a number of bassists ranging from Steve Swallow, Arild Anderson and Harvie Swartz through Cameron Brown. Kuhn, who’s worked with both Coltrane and Getz, will bring along David Finck and Billy Drummond.

Martial Solal has for years been a leading pianist on the European continent and made his local debut at an early Montreal Jazz Festival on August 15, 1963, at the Loew’s Theatre, joined by Teddy Kotick and Paul Motian. Lee Konitz’s fame began as a 19 year old in the Claude Thornhill band. He later studied and played with Lennie Tristano, forming a front line with Warne Marsh before joining the Stan Kenton band. In fact, he made his first Montreal appearance as a member of that band in 1952 at the Forum. Now a major influence, over the years he’s worked with Gil Evans, Gerry Mulligan, Red Mitchell, Paul Bley and Miles Davis and is the focus of a 1987 film by Robert Daudelin, which can be seen in the Ciné-Jazz series. These three headliners are now their mid-70s.

Reedmen Gabriele Mirabassi (with accordionist Luciano Biondini, who helped make last year’s appearance by Rabih Abou-Khalil that Festival’s highlight) and François Carrier (with Bley, Gary Peacock and Michel Lambert), composer Christine Jensen with sister Ingrid, a world-class trumpet player, Billy Bang’s violin joined by pianist John Hicks, and Carmen Lundy, a superb singer, are all worth checking out. Sheila and Carmen will make you forget you couldn’t get a Norah Jones ticket!

Up the stairs and out the door

In other news, the Thüryn Von Pranke Trio at the Hotel Wyndham and Jeff Johnson Trio at Upstairs host informal jam sessions throughout the festivities. There is a plethora of talent in the free outdoor lineup, too. From outside of Canada you have bluesman Bryan Lee, trumpeter Russell Gunn, pianists Anthony Wonsey (a young veteran of the Chicago jazz scene, with our own Wali Muhammad on drums) and Frank Avitabile (a musician praised by both Solal and Michel Petrucciani), the cartoonish 1930s music of the Raymond Scott Orchestrette and the Monterey Jazz Honor Band. There’s also the fabulous Joe Sullivan big band featuring most of this city’s best soloists, the hard bop No Name Jazz Sextet with multi-reedman Alexandre Côté, guitarist Mike King’s Swing Dynamique, bassist Daniel Lessard’s Barocco, pianist Philippe Noireault, organist Vanessa Rodrigues, the voice of Carole Therrien, the blues of Sue Foley and a Sean Craig combo that spotlights two bassists.

The judges in the General Motors Grand Prix de Jazz category will have their hands full this year with people like pianists Nancy Walker and John Roney, trombonist Richard Gagnon, guitarist Jake Langley, drummer Jon McCaslin and reedmen Donny Kennedy and Richard Underhill bringing groups into the arena - mucho talent here!

This one will take some topping, but then again, next year marks a quarter century - a milestone of which both the organizers and the people of this city can be justly proud!

For show info consult Listings, grab a festival program or go to www.montrealjazzfest.com

>> Music Listings