Monk Festival: James Francies Trio plus special guest Joel Ross

*PLEASE NOTE: All 6:30PM and 8:30PM shows at Smoke are Dinner Shows

$25.00 / $40.00 / $50.00 / $55.00 – Wed, Thu, Fri & Sun

$25.00 / $50.00 / $60.00 / $65.00 – Sat

Joel Ross – vibraphone

James Francies – piano

Luca Alemanno – bass

Jeremy Dutton – drums

“A pianist with liquid dynamism in his touch.” — The New York Times

Pianist James Francies makes his Smoke leader debut with his trio plus special guest Joel Ross, as the second half of Smoke’s annual two-week celebration of Thelonious Monk.

At 30, Francies has already built an extraordinary résumé, working across jazz, hip-hop, and R&B with artists including Pat Metheny, Chris Potter, Jeff “Tain” Watts, Eric Harland, Terrace Martin, Common, Ms. Lauryn Hill, and The Roots. A Houston native and Blue Note recording artist, he has developed a sound that draws freely from the jazz tradition while embracing the possibilities of contemporary music. Writing about his most recent album, Purest Form, the Houston Chronicle noted that Francies “finds modern ways to take the familiar and make it new.”

Ross is a distinctive new voice on the vibraphone and, like Francies, a Blue Note recording artist. Together, Francies and Ross are leaders of a new generation of jazz musicians, deeply engaged with the tradition while pushing the music forward.