Spirit - Southwest Airlines In-Flight Magazine - March 6, 2006
Motown's Sound
By Elvis Mitchell
Excerpted from "Motown's Sound" by Elvis Mitchell, Flight magazine, February 2006 issue.
Mitchell writes about going to Baker's Keyboard Lounge with a friend...
With its low ceiling and mostly unobstructed sight lines, Baker's is like a fossilized lounge, destined to combat the boredom of the present with weapons from the past: sweet unadulterated jazz. That night its performed by a Lansing-based trio called organissimo, which swings through its jammed sets with its keyboardist blasting through a meticulously chosen set of originals and new songs. The group's toned, muscular playing keeps the crowd rapt, a condition noticeable by the fact that almost no one is talking. This is the biggest test at Baker's. Because if the act playing isn't hush-worthy, Baker's brick-house acoustic will ensure a crushing din of food and drink orders - or, just as often, loud complaints about the Tigers' or Lions' pitiable season.
.:.