Photo by Jimmy Katz
After spending two years entertaining jazz fans through livestreams and sidewalk concerts, the owners of Smoke Jazz Club have announced the music venue’s return to the Upper West Side — in an expanded space — on July 21.
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“Smoke Jazz Club has so much history,” say husband and wife co-owners Paul Stache and Molly Sparrow Johnson. “Despite the struggles of the last few years, we just knew that the music couldn’t stop here. The past couple of years have not been easy for anyone, but having live music back in the club with everyone together, musicians and listeners, seems like a turning point. We are very excited to take this next step.”
Stache and Johnson had agreed to take on the two adjacent storefronts before the pandemic began, but once it did, that expansion became a “necessity to operate safely,” says Johnson.
The addition of these smaller combined spaces will serve as an attached lounge featuring the relocated full-length bar, providing more space for audiences and a larger stage for performers in the main listening room.
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NEA Jazz Master George Coleman will return to christen the new and improved Smoke with a four-night grand reopening concert celebration from July 21-24. Other artists slated to perform in the near future include Charles McPherson, Vijay Iyer, Mary Stallings, Bill Charlap, Bobby Watson, Nicholas Payton, Renee Rosnes, Rudresh Mahanthappa, Cyrus Chestnut, Buster Williams, and more. Tickets for the grand opening celebration range from $40-60 and will be available starting June 6.
Founded in 1999, SMOKE also boasts a GRAMMY-nominated label, Smoke Sessions Records, and a celebrated streaming concert series, Smoke Screens.
Smoke Jazz Club is located at 2751 Broadway, between 105th and 106th streets. Learn more at smokejazz.com.
