Celebrate Joe Muranyi's 81st Birthday at Birdland!

Hey everyone, Joe Muranyi turns 81 today, a cause for celebration. The clarinetist, who spent four years with Armstrong's All Stars, will be celebrating the occasion at Birdland tonight where he'll be holding down the clarinet chair in David Ostwald's Louis Armstrong Centennial Band (formerly and occasionally still known as the Gully Low Jazz Band). The Birdland festivities begin at 5:30 and last til around 7:15, a measly $10 cover charge the only requirement to get through the front door. Alas, your friendly blogger will not be able to attend tonight but don't let that, of all things, stop you from making the party. Joe's a great musician and you're guaranteed that he's going to grab the microphone at some point and tell a Pops story...no one has more and no one tells 'em better.

Joe once told me that he was especially proud of his playing on the August 1967 studio version of "Cabaret" and I agree. One day "Cabaret" will get an entry of its own but for now, enjoy Papa Joe's playing on this classic cut and if you can, stop by to Birdland and wish him a happy 81st!



(I'm posting this at the exact same time as yet another revisit to an old blog...see below.)