Personal note: When I worked at the Globe, Blumenthal was freelancing there, and writing award-winning liner notes, and would often plop down at a nearby empty desk. We'd talk some music. Somebody would come along and didn't know Bob and I'd do the introduction and proudly say, "You know, between us we have two Grammy Awards." Yes, it was a self-deprecating joke. Bob had both, for writing those liners. He should have 'em he's a marvelous writer about the music. He's now a consultant to Marsalis Music, the label founded by Branford Marsalis. As to the music, well, the Regattabar is a marvelously intimate and acoustically transparent room. We recently saw Irma Thomas sing "Time is On My Side" and she had us in her swoon. Check the website below for performance listings and prices. But one we'll defintiely recommend is Bill Frisell and the 858 Quartet, there May 27-29. Frisell is a master of virtually every genre, from country to ambient jazz to skronk. We saw him hold a clinic at Berklee College of Music last year and we were transfixed, by both his playing and his honestly humble (not faux humble) attitude.

1 Bennet St., Cambridge, 617-395-7757 www.regattabarjazz.com