Larry McDonough - Conversations with Bill Evans

Award-winning pianist, composer, and singer Larry McDonough brings legendary pianist and composer Bill Evans back to life in a solo show covering his music and personal life that has filled rooms across the country. The show includes piano and voice, spoken word, and commentary on the life of Bill Evans.

Evans performed on the Miles Davis album Kind of Blue in 1959, the best-selling jazz album ever. His trio with bassist Scott LaFaro and drummer Paul Motian introduced simultaneous improvisation and is regarded as a seminal modern jazz trio. He received 31 Grammy nominations and seven awards, and was inducted into the DownBeat Jazz Hall of Fame.

McDonough will record the show for a future CD. Come for the show and be on the recording!

Larry McDonough is a St. Paul jazz composer, pianist, singer, and teacher, performing around the world and recording with his group the Larry McDonough Quartet, as well as solo, and in duos and trios. He has performed with legendary saxophonist and composer Benny Golson, trombonist Fred Wesley, and trumpeter Duane Eubanks, as well as a who’s who of local jazz artists, and was inducted into the Minnesota Rock Country Hall of Fame for his work in the group Danny’s Reasons.

His awards include the American Composers Forum Showcase Award for the composition “Strait of Gibraltar.” He has released twelve CDs and DVDs as a leader. His current CDs are Best of the Aster Classic Jazz Series and Intermodulating Undercurrents Live at the Kos: The Music of Bill Evans and Jim Hall. “Kind of Bill on the Palace Grounds, Marking 40 Years since the Death of Bill Evans,” was played on jazz radio stations and streaming services around the country. The two-CD set Alice in Stonehenge and other AcoustElectric Adventures has played on radio stations and streaming services around the world and charted #18 on the Roots Music Report’s Top 50 Jazz Album Chart.

Simple Gifts reached number 29 on the CMJ Jazz Chart and also has been played on hundreds of stations around the country and throughout the world. His other jazz projects include Fusebox (original jazz fusion trio) and Trios Trio (classic jazz). When not playing jazz, he performs jam fusion in Quantum Mechanics, funk in Funkin’ Right, classic rock in Whiskey Burn, indie-rock in HiFi, Steely Dan covers in Steely Ann, and punk in Saint Small.

Tickets are $20 in advance and $25 at the door. Children under 12 are free. Advance tickets are available here, or if the show is not sold out, you may purchase your tickets at the door before the show.

Doors open one half hour before show time. We accept cash or Venmo only at the door.

The Back Room is an all-ages, BYOB (for those 21+) space, dedicated to (mostly) acoustic music of all kinds. You are welcome to bring your own food and beverages. The venue is ADA accessible. If you need more information or have any questions, please call us: #510-381-1997.

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Thank you for your support!

Please note: Although masks are no longer required, we strongly encourage their use to keep everyone safe in our intimate space.