Mile High Jazz Band presents 'Jazz and Poetry' in Carson

I was on the Greek island of Santorini (possibly the source of the city of Atlantis legend) on Sept. 11, 2001. I had bought a pair of cheap flip-flops that morning and wore them while I watched the planes sink into the sides of the World Trade Center Towers that afternoon. The thrill of seeing a new culture had never turned so quickly to a feeling of being very alone and very far from home. I knew the staff of the Appeal was crowding around TVs and wished I were in Carson City -- or at least somewhere where they spoke English.

Today, the second anniversary of 9-11, I'm in another foreign land. But while I'm looking forward to "the thrill of seeing a new land," I know I'll be thinking of my homeland -- the United States Of America.

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On to the entertainment: Boy, Carson's cultural scene is really coming along. Almost like Greenwich Village or downtown Berkeley, there will be a jazz and poetry night here on Tuesday.

"The affinity between poetry and music has a long history, from the ancient Greeks, the troubadours, and the beat poets, to the rap musicians of today," said David Bugli, leader of the Mile High Jazz Band, which will play Tuesday. "We'll continue the tradition and show the connections with our program on Sept. 16."

The evening at June Joplin's Comma Coffee will feature poetry by Bill Cowee and Richard Smith.

"There's going to be a poem preceding each jazz music piece," said Elinor Bugli, the band's unofficial public affairs person and David's wife. "And there will be some kind of relationship between the poem and the piece either in the words, music or spirit."

For example, Smith, a cowboy poet, will recite the poem, "Hot August Night" then the band will perform the song "The Heat Is On." Rick Dawson, a trumpet player in the band, will do a reading of a Jack Kerouac piece titled "The Beginnings of Bop," then join the band to play "Scrapple from the Apple," a be-bop classic.

If the combination of jazz and poetry works out at the coffee shop, the band will do it again at their Oct. 3 performance at the Brewery Arts Center.

"I really think they'll do it both times -- unless it's a real flop. And I don't see how it could be," said Elinor Bugli.

The Comma Coffee performance on Tuesday will cost $5 general and is free for those 18 and under. For more information, call 883-2662. Visit band's Web site at www.MileHighJazz.com.

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Friday' 11th annual Beer Tasting and Auction is really the only fund-raiser the Brewery Arts Center has, says facilities and office director Ann Suter.

"The proceeds benefit our resident children's theater, The Backstage Kids; our year-around art classes; our artisans' store and our concerts," she said.

Capital Beverages, Crown Beverages, Southern Wine and Spirits and Sierra Wine and Spirits will bring about 100 types of beer.

"They bring an awful lot -- I mean really a lot," Suter said.

There'll be plenty of food, too, including German sausage with sauerkraut, hotdogs, potato salad, pizza, chili and cookies.

The event will spread to every corner of the BAC from outside, to the theater, to the artisans store. A new art exhibit, "Psychedelic Relics," will open the day of the beer tasting. It will feature rock posters from the 1960s and '70s.

A silent auction will offer gift certificates for dinners, golf, hotel stays and items from artisans' store. The bluegrass band Back Forty will provide the soundtrack.

An entry fee of $20 will cover all the tasting, food and music and include a souvenir tasting glass. Call the BAC, 449 W. King Street, at 883-1976 for more details.

Tonight Karl will checking out the disco scene on the Spanish island of Ibiza. Leave him a message at 881-1219.