Join us for an utterly swingin' evening with trombonist Bob Mielke and his New Bearcats, featuring special guest vocalist Barbara Dane. New Orleans and traditional jazz, swing, blues, an historic stomp or two, a touch of ragtime, and vintage pop songs are all on the menu for this extraordinary evening of music from some of the Bay Area's very finest! Backing Bob and Barbara are trumpeter Marc Caperone, Richard Hadlock on clarinet and sax, pianist Ray Skjelbred, guitarist Clint Baker, Jeff Hamilton on drums, and Laurie Lewis and Bill Reinhardt on string bass.

A vital part of the Bay Area jazz scene for more than 60 years, bandleader and trombonist Bob Mielke has played and recorded with folks like Lu Watters, Dick Oxtot, George Lewis, Muggsy Spanier, Joe Sullivan, and Sidney Bechet, in addition to his own band, the Bearcats, who were one of the best traditional jazz bands in the area during the 1950s. Known for their excellent musicianship and enthusiasm for the obscure gems they performed, like "Tiger Rag," "Milenburg Joys," "Egyptian Fantasy," and "Moose March."

Barbara Dane is a true institution in the universe of jazz, blues, and folk music. Having first come to wide public attention performing with the likes of Jack Teagarden, Louis Armstrong, Memphis Slim, and Muddy Waters in the late 1950s and early '60s, Barbara continues to perform blues and jazz tunes with rare authority and what Time magazine referred to as "a voice as pure, rich, and rare as a 20 karat diamond." She sat in regularly with the Bearcats in their heyday.

Trumpeter Marc Caparone, a member of the upcoming generation of dedicated mainstream players, operates a winery as well as leading his own band. Richard Hadlock has played saxophone and clarinet in many a Bay Area band, including Kid Ory, Joe Sullivan, Maxine Sullivan, Larry Vuckovich, and John Schott. Ray Skjelbred is known far and wide as a most valuable bandsman and a uniquely creative soloist and composer on the piano. Rhythm guitarist Clint Baker, a multi-instrumentalist of amazing scope, is often on the road with such groups as the Hot Club of San Francisco. Drummer Jeff Hamilton is highly regarded as a drummer of taste and swing, the ideal bandsman. Long a rhythm anchor in Dick Oxtot's jazz band, Laurie Lewis has since built a vast international following in the world of folk/country/bluegrass music, but she still enjoys getting back to her earlier days as a jazz bassist.