There are only 2 jazz bars in Guangzhou. One is the Blue Note, where my friends band has been performing for several couple years (although they had to perform in the Garden Hotel – everyday I can listen to live jazz music between 6pm – 7 pm). The other one is the Backstreet Jazz Bar, situated in the lovely surroundings of Guangzhou’s Ersha Island. Around the corner is the Xinghai Concert Hall, and at the end of the street is the Pearl River. You can’t be any better situated. And also it’s one of the few areas where you can enjoy a walk in peace.
The bar is a two storey glass building set inside a bamboo forest. A lower ‘Jazz’ floor opens out into a small upstairs restaurant area, and the two are joined together, and with the outside world, by a complicated series of stairs, bridges, and sliding doors. The decor is dark, metallic, and subdued, with lots of glass and mirrors. Look very modern, fancy, and you feel naked, like you are walking in the air. Pretty cool.
The restaurant ostensibly serves Latin-American styled food, although it borders on the generic American Italian. The prices are high and portions are small. Drinks, although available in a wide array of forms, are equally served in small quantities. Ask for a glass of wine and you’ll think yourself the butt of a joke; drink it fast otherwise the meagre serving will evaporate.
The staff are nice and friendly, and some of them are from other countries of Asian who speak English only. The restaurant is focusing on attracting foreign people in Guangzhou so English speaking staff is necessary. The food itself is very tasty.
At around 8.30 a quartet of musicians arrive on the tiny downstairs stage, boasting musicians from Canada, Russia, Brazil, and China. Quite a mix. A smooth talking Geraldo Lucio sings, trying his best to draw the small crowd into the music. Herein lies the main problem with the Backstreet: it’s too big and the crowds are too small. The music is excellent, and Lucio prowls the audience trying to get some feedback, but they are too thin and from a very different cultural background to provide him what he wants.
To cut a long story short, we enjoyed the food and the new jazz band. The band only stay here for 2 months. So if anyone who like jazz and want to experience different music passion, I highly recommend it’s worth to be there and enjoy the music.
Show this month
Backstreet Jazz invited Sebastian Schunke on October 2007 to perform in GZ. Jazz fans, don’t miss this chance
9.10. Guangzhou, BackStreet, Jazz Club, 21.45 -23.45
10.10. Guangzhou, Back Street Jazz Club, 21.45- 23.35
在广州爵士吧只有两间，一间是“蓝调”在淘金路，一间在二沙岛的星海音乐学院的隔壁，叫“后街爵士餐厅& 酒吧”，在一个很隐蔽的地方，外面都是绿色的灯和竹子为起来的，只是看到“后街”用大红色的灯格外突出，楼进门的楼梯都用玻璃做成的，再由一道自动的铁门进入，里面的装修很有品位和时尚，里面基调都是红色和透明的玻璃的结合，连过道都是一道磨沙玻璃连接起来的，二楼是餐厅，7-8张桌子，后面是一个长长的调酒吧台，陈列和几百种酒；楼下是一个摆放Live的乐队的乐器，和10几张吧台和很 Cozy的沙发，装修来说，无懈可击，就想JAZZ 一样充满鲜红的热情，象玻璃一样能看穿人们的心理…
我们周末去那里吃饭听爵士，因为刚在花园认识了新来的一只乐队，所以去捧他们的场，东西很贵，从头盘50块不等，主食150—400不等，当然拉，这样的装修需要差不多的价格的，再说，听说老板希望以高档的餐厅为主；酒水都是55—100一杯不等，所以两个人下来就要差不多500了，说到服务人员，几个是说外籍服务人员，从其他亚洲城市来的，餐厅为了吸引多些外籍人事，所以花了比较多精力在管理里面，服务还不错；亲切和附带笑容；
说到重心点：一只好的爵士乐队才是餐厅的灵魂，9：30乐队才开始演出，钢琴手从加拿大请来的叫Doug Louie (douglouie.com) 后来和他们成为好朋友之后我才知道人家的来历都还不小呢，想过来这边看看中国，还有一个多重国际的巴西人事Geraldo Lucio，和一个刚从上海请来的鼓手Tom Lee, 大提琴低音是由我朋友现在在花园酒店表演中跳选过去的，算是一个很难得的结合；我之前因为朋友生日，去过“后街”一次，说是澳大利亚来的女歌手，真是一般再一般啊；因为我在上海希尔顿听过很专业的爵士再说这么多年对爵士的热爱，你就会知道什么是好，什么是不好；所以，这次他们的新组合真的很棒！真希望广州能多点爵士听众！长话短说，可惜这只乐队在这里逗留的时间仅限两个月；所以“后街”这只新的乐队是值得大家去听一下的，感受不同音乐带来的给你不同感受•
这个月的表演嘉宾：
2005年曾来中国香港/广州/上海/深圳演出；因自己错过德他们首次在广州的表演爵士乐队的表演而感到遗憾，昨天收到他的经理人对广大爵士歌迷的宣布： 10月份Sebastian Schunke终于再次到中国，广州，表演。这次到10月9-10号在广州的后街爵士餐厅表演，我一定不会错过的.
