The Jazz Kitchen presents The Blue Side featuring some of the finest treasures of the Indianapolis music scene.

Gordon Bonham has been an integral part of the Indiana blues scene for the last couple of decades. With experiences ranging from backing Chicago blues legends in Chicago as a guitarist, to establishing himself on the Austin, TX music scene, to touring Europe, to being the backbone and the heart and soul of the Indy blues scene by establishing his presence, either through his many recordings, his performances as a solo artists, or by backing blues legends Pinetop Perkins, Robert Lockwood, Jr., Matt “Guitar” Murphy, Jimmy Walker, Bo Diddley, and the transplant Indy blues giant Yank Rachell (a man whose legend runs back to the 1920’s, a man whose influence on blues and rock music simply cannot be understated), Gordon is the essence of 21st century Indianapolis blues. His records are a continuation of the deep Indianapolis music scene, which includes blues legends like Yank, Scrapper Blackwell, Leroy Carr, and Guitar Pete Franklin.

Rebekah Meldrum delivers the blues with deliberate precision. Every track on her self-titled debut, is steeped in the love and the passion she has for the genre. But her precision is by no means cut and dried or predictable; she is methodical, if not hypnotic, weaving a spell across seven songs that reflect the multi- decade journey it’s taken for her to get here as much as the destination itself. From the way the very first notes drop you right into the delta, through excursions that go from back country to steamy, inner-city grooves and all the way through to New Orleans-inspired horns that wind the album down, she is in firm command of every aspect of the songwriting process. It is magic, but it’s no illusion. Rebekah Meldrum is a master magician who’s just beginning to reveal her bag of tricks.

Kevin Anker is among some pretty distinguished names in blues, rock and soul music. He has crafted a keyboard style that has seen him in demand both locally and internationally, touring with the likes of Delbert McClinton and The Fabulous Thunderbirds. Around Indy you’re likely to see him playing jazz one night, blues the next night, and soul the next.

The band backing this stellar collection of Indy legends is comprised of some of the most in demand Indianapolis sidemen, the great Kenny Phelps on drums (Dee Dee Bridgewater, Melvin Rhyne, Roy Meriwether, Cynthia Layne), Rob Dixon on saxophone (The Headhunters, Mike Clark, Illinois Jaquet, Melvin Rhyne, Cynthia Layne), Kevin Anker on organ, (Delbert McClinton, The Fabulous Thunderbirds, Tad Robinson, Gordon Bonham, Cynthia Layne) Reggie Bishop on keyboards (Pharez Whitted, Cynthia Layne, Zakk Knight).

This is truly a night not to be missed.