A List of Jazz Jam Sessions at Clubs in the Philadelphia Area

Keeping track of open jam sessions that feature jazz is about as easy as nailing Jello to a tree. In other words, it’s a challenge. A session will start up at a place and then, before you know it, the club owner cancels it.

I have all the respect in the world for restaurant and club owners willing to give live entertainment and jam sessions a try. They have the overhead of the building and staffing expenses to bear whether five people come out or fifty. Plus, the owner usually must pay the two to four musicians who constitute the “base” band (also known as the house band or the rhythm section.) Since these cats are talented enough to improvise and transpose to any key, they demand a respectable fee. Therefore, the owner undertakes this to get a good reputation and at least break even – and always hopes to make a profit – through sales of food and drink, and sometimes through a cover charge.

A jam session needs a solid paying audience. Usually that is why they happen at bars, clubs, and restaurants. As a result of the risks in the restaurant business, if the restaurant starts losing money due to fickle fashion, or competition, the cost of paying a jazz jam house band will be one of the first frills to go. Another unfortunate possibility is that the house band misbehaves (examples are members coming to perform under the influence, showing up late, taking too long breaks, and other offensive behavior.) If the jam session brings out a big crowd, that looks good on the face of it. However, if the people who come to the session to play or listen do not buy enough food and drink to make it worthwhile, a club owner will re-think hosting a jam. Furthermore, if a non-profitable jam session interferes with successful dining operations in other rooms (such as by being too loud), the jam session will soon be history. Sometimes this occurs without notice. I have been at a session that seemed swinging, and when I returned two weeks later, it was as if it had never existed.

Below is a partial, and possibly ephemeral, list of some of the jazz jam sessions in Philadelphia and the greater Philly area (in Pennsylvania only.)

Sunday - every Sunday evening at 6:00 to10 PM at LaRose Supper Club, 5531 Germantown Avenue, Phila, PA 19144 in the Germantown section of Philly. 267-231-6779 or 215-844-5818. Rob Henderson, drums, leads the house band. $5 cover

Sunday – usually the first Sunday of the month only from 2:30 to 6:00 PM at The Reading Ukrainian-American Social Club (known as “the Yooks”), 542 South Seventh Street, Reading, PA 19602. 610-373-2560. Skip Moyer, bass, leads the house band. $5 cover

Sunday – every Sunday from 8:00 to 11 PM at Dowling's Palace, 1310 N. Broad Street, Phila, PA 19121 in the Avenue of the Arts North neighborhood. 215-236-9888. House band features the Budesa Brothers, guitar/keyboard, with Lucky Thompson, drums.

Monday – every Monday evening 6:00 to 9 PM at LaRose Supper Club, 5531 Germantown Avenue, Phila, PA 19144 in the Germantown section of Philly. 267-231-6779 or 215-844-5818. Tony Williams, alto sax, leads the house band. $8 cover

Monday - almost every Monday from 5:30 to 7 PM in the Upstairs Live area at World Café Live, 3025 Walnut Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104 near 30^th Street Station and University City section of Philly. 215-222-1400. Orrin Evans, piano, leads the session. NO cover. [Sometimes Jazz Jams are replaced by a private event or other show, so check before you go.]

Tuesday – every Tuesday from 7:30 PM until 2 AM at Chris’ Jazz Café, 1421 Sansom Street, Philadelphia, PA 19102 in Center City. 215-568-3131. The jam session is led by James Santangelo, piano. $2 cover. Thank you, Mark D, for hipping me to this correct cover amount.

Tuesday – every Tuesday 7:30 to 11:30 PM at 23^rd Street Café , 233 N. 23rd Street, Phila, PA 19130 near the Art Museum section of Philly. 215-561-2488. House band features Father John D’Amico, Jim Dofton, and Kenny Davis. $7 cover

Tuesday - first Tuesday of the month from 8:30 to 11:30 PM at Elena’s Showcase Lounge, 4912 Baltimore Avenue, Philadelphia, PA 19143in the University City section of Philly. 215-724-3043. Jam session features the Budesa Brothers with Lucky Thompson. NO cover

Wednesday - every Wednesday from 8:00 to 11 PM at the Rusty Nail Tavern, 2580 Haverford Road, Ardmore, PA 19003. 610-649-6245. Dick Harner, keyboards and sax, leads the house band. NO cover.

Wednesday - every Wednesday from 9:00 to 11:30 PM at Relish, 7152 Ogontz Avenue, Phila, PA 19128 in the northwest, near Elkins Park. 215-276-0170. Open jam session featuring Arpeggio Jazz Ensemble and Warren Oree on bass. NO cover.

Thursday - first Thursday of the month only from 7:00 to 10 PM at Hard Bean Café, Ste 2, 128 East Philadelphia Avenue, Boyertown, PA 19512. 610-367-1788 $3 cover.

Thursday – every Thursday night, 9:30PM to 1 AM at Bookspace, 1113 Frankford Ave, Phila, PA 19125 in the Fishtown section of Philly. 215- 291-5880 BYOB.

Thursday – often the third Thursday of the month only from 7:00 to 11 PM at PUCK, Printer's Alley, 14 East Court Street, Doylestown, PA 18901. 215-348-9000. Larry Tamanini, guitar, leads the session. NO cover.

Friday – every Friday late-night from 11:30 PM until 2 AM at Chris’ Jazz Café, 1421 Sansom Street, Philadelphia, PA 19102 in Center City. (215) 568-3131. The jam is led by Luke O’Reilly, piano. Cover is either $10 in the dining room or $5 at the bar.

On Fridays and Saturdays because we hope all you musicians are gigging for pay. That’s why the session at Chris’ starts after you’re done performing.

Caveat: This is a partial list (I am already looking at it and thinking, “HOW could I have left out “xxx?”) and could have errors even as I go to press. If you are employed by one of these jazz joints, and I have incorrect information, please let me know. Otherwise, I plan to do a second list to supplement this one and you can feel free to suggest clubs.

Photos and text copyright 2011 Maren E. Morgan