I had the pleasure of playing with Darrius Willrich on piano and Evan Flory-Barnes on bass. Evan is the regular bassist in my Quartet and it’s always a treat to play with him. I’ve known Darrius for years and we’ve played together a bunch, but it had been a while. He’s an incredible piano player and the nicest guy you’ll ever meet. I was glad to have the chance to spend the evening with him. This is one smokin’ trio, if I do say so myself!

Anna and Alfredo came to our recent show at Tula’s and told me that they just wanted us to be ourselves and do what we do, which is always nice to hear. They did have a few requests, however, which turned out to be great ones! For their recessional, for instance, they had us play “Here Comes The Sun” by The Beatles. It’s always a challenge to take a well-know song from outside the jazz genre and do it justice. But it’s a challenge I love! And that song is so simple yet so beautiful that all we really had to do was play it straight and it worked out great. The bigger challenge was learning Jim Croce’s “Time In a Bottle”. Of course I’ve heard this song countless times, but I never paid too much attention to it until Anna asked if this could be their first dance. I take first dances very seriously, and wanted to create an arrangement that would be remembered by all in attendance. It took me a while, but the response was incredible, and I think we will add this song to our regular repertoire!

Top of the Market is a gorgeous place to have a wedding, with stunning views of Puget Sound. The staff took great care of us and was very complimentary about our music. The bartender told me she was thrilled to have such a great live band and not another cheesy DJ!

Thanks to Anna & Alfredo for including us in their big day.

Kathryn Krogstad was the photographer for the wedding and some of her beautiful shots:

In the meantime, we are ready to celebrate the completion of the recording phase, and we want YOU to celebate with us!

The Jason Parker Quartet is playing at Tula’s tonight and we would love to see you there! Tula’s has been the long-standing home for the top local jazz musicians and it’s very hard to break into their rotation. That’s why we’re thrilled to be on the bill, and we hope to show the folks there that we can draw a good crowd so they’ll invite us back.

Come see the band Earhsot calls “The next generation of Seattle jazz” at a club called “a cool place” by Wynton Marsalis!

We start at 7:30pm and will play 3 sets. Tula’s has an extensive dinner menu and full bar, so come for a meal, for drinks, or just for the music!

Tula’s is located at 2214 2nd Ave. between Blanchard and Bell St. in Belltown.

We love to see friends both old and new at our shows. Your energy and enthusiasm excite and inspire us. Come join the celebration toinght!

Thanks for your support. Hope to see you there.

The JPQ

Jason Parker – trumpet
Josh Rawlings – piano
Evan Flory-Barnes – bass
D’Vonne Lewis – drums