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It’s been a busy two months for Muneer Nasser. The trumpeter has played all around town—from D.C. Jazz Festival to Westminster Presbyterian Church—to promote his latest album, Blue House Session. Recorded last summer in Silver Spring, the album “contains some of the purest, most tunefully accessible stuff this side of 1965,” Michael J. West writes in this month’s Swing Beat.
Indeed, Nasser’s gift and skill as a trumpeter is on full display in the album, which includes a vastly talented band made up of tenor saxophonist Elijah Easton, pianist Allyn Johnson, bassist James King, and drummer John Lamkin III. But perhaps, most importantly, writes West, is that “Blue House Session is one thing that a great deal of contemporary jazz forgets to be: fun.”
As Nasser’s own star rises, he’s making sure the legacy of another isn’t left behind. The trumpeter is the author of Upright Bass: The Musical Life and Legacy of Jamil Nasser, his father. The book is based on interviews with his dad, a bass player from Memphis who moved to New York in 1956 and had a prolific career, especially as an accompanist for modern jazz pianists.
Nassar’s book “offers a very different perspective on jazz life,” writes West. “Jamil released only one album as a bandleader … otherwise he was known as a sideman. Sidemen don’t usually get a say in the realm of the jazz memoir—which is unfortunate, as Upright Bass demonstrates.”
For a deeper look at Nasser’s dedication to his father’s legacy and insight into his own work as a talented local musician, read this month’s Swing Beat on our website.
—Sarah Marloff (tips? smarloff@washingtoncitypaper.com)
Credit: Courtesy of the United States Attorney's Office
D.C. Rapper Sentenced to More Than 13 Years For His Role in International Drug Conspiracy
Columbian Thomas, aka Cruddy Murda, was sentenced as part of a major drug trafficking conspiracy stretching from L.A. to D.C.
Credit: Darrow Montgomery/file
Cops on Trial: D.C. Police Disciplinary Hearing for October
D.C. police Officer H. Thomas is accused of repeatedly leaving his duty assignment and engaging in “inappropriate conduct.”
D.C. police Officer Joseph Lopez chased, dragged, and ultimately handcuffed 9-year-old Niko Estep in the spring of 2019. The incident caused the boy physical and mental injuries, according to a lawsuit filed by his mother, Autumn Drayton. Three months after the incident, Estep was admitted to an inpatient psychiatric ward after he attempted to take his own life. With the lawsuit, Drayton is seeking to change the way police treat young children. Estep was shot and killed in an unrelated incident last November. [Post]
Ten of developer Sam Razjooyan‘s properties are up for sale after his ownership entities filed for bankruptcy in May.
The Marine Corps Marathon is this weekend, which is expected to draw more than 30,000 runners. The race begins at 7:55 a.m. Sunday, but road closures in D.C. and Arlington will begin at 3 a.m. and will end around 6 p.m. Closures include sections of I-395. [Axios]
By City Paper Staff (tips? editor@washingtoncitypaper.com)
Credit: Darrow Montgomery
AG Brian Schwalb Claims the Well-Connected Menkiti Group Participated in Title Insurance Kickback Scheme
The influential D.C. developer the Menkiti Group participated in a title insurance kickback scheme, according to the D.C. attorney general.
Ward 8 Councilmember Trayon White will now rely on federal public defenders to manage his bribery case instead of high-powered attorney Fred Cooke Jr. White was apparently having trouble affording Cooke’s fees. [X, Post]
D.C.’s 911 call center remains understaffed, with workers regularly asked to pull 16-hour shifts to cover the gaps, according to testimony at a D.C. Council hearing Tuesday. Heather McGaffin, the head of the Office of Unified Communications, says her goal is to have the troubled agency fully staffed by January. [WUSA9, WJLA]
There are 54 Advisory Neighborhood Commission races without a single candidate on the ballot this year, equivalent to about 16 percent of all ANC seats citywide. As ever, that means write-in candidates will likely win with just a handful of votes, or the seats will simply remain vacant. [WTOP]
By Alex Koma (tips? akoma@washingtoncitypaper.com)
&Pizza CEO Mike Burns finally apologized for his restaurant chain’s offensive marketing campaign that mocked Mayor-for-Life Marion Barry’s history of addiction and drug arrest. The statement came after community activists staged a boycott and news conference outside one of the chain’s locations. Ron Moten, one of the organizers, says they still plan to protest outside &Pizza locations this weekend. “We can’t let people just do what he did, and then it’s like, ‘I apologize,’ and that’s it,” Moten says. [Post, WUSA9 Instagram]
Get a scoop of ice cream, a cupcake, an arepa, a pizza, and more free stuff on your birthday at these eateries in the D.C. area. [City Cast]
By City Paper staff (tips? editor@washingtoncitypaper.com)
Sweet Treats and Diwali Rock Show: City Lights for Oct. 24–30
Where to go, who to see, and what to do this week.
Montgomery County Public Schools have stopped teaching Pride Puppy and My Rainbow—two books featuring LGBTQIA characters—following an ongoing legal battle over when families can claim religious freedom to restrict their kids from learning about sexuality and gender identity. The two books were taught to elementary school kids as part of a larger effort to include queer and trans families in MCPS’s English Language Arts curriculum. [Post]
Dave Harris writes hard, shocking plays, including Studio’s current production of his Exception to the Rule and Woolly Mammoth’s world premiere of Incendiary in 2023. Here he explains where his ideas and inspiration come from. [DC Theater Arts]
Blame it on BookTok: Jamie Fortin is opening a romance bookstore in Alexandria. Friends to Lovers will be the 16th such shop in the U.S. and will feature subgenres including historical romance, small-town love stories, and “romantasy.” Fortin promises “a community space for all women and queer people who love romance books. … You’re not gonna see just white and straight romance.” No shade here, read what you love. [Washingtonian]
Want to ice-skate but fear the crowds at the Sculpture Garden’s rink? You’re in luck because a new ice-skating rink is opening inside the National Building Museum on Dec. 16. [DC News Now]
By Sarah Marloff (tips? smarloff@washingtoncitypaper.com)
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