Cornelia Street Cafe Welcomes Back Paul Shapiro's Ribs & Brisket Revue for New Year's Eve

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As a member of the Microscopic Septet in the 1980's and early 1990's, Shapiro was part of a small but vibrant community of jazz musicians who refused to submit to the narrow, neoconservative ethos of the day, and chose instead, to celebrate the entire tradition, from early swing to the avant-garde. You can hear that joyous open-mindedness in all of Shapiro's subsequent work, including his two previous albums for John Zorn's Tzadik label, Midnight Minyan and It's in the Twilight, which subjects traditional synagogue melodies to a variety of treatments, from rhythm and blues to model jazz. Shapiro's growing interest in Jewish music eventually led him to a pocket of repertoire from the 1930's and 1940's, that occupies a fascinating middle ground between big band swing, Yiddish pop and early R&B. For the past several years, he has been presenting these finds, many of which take food as their theme, at Cornelia Street, as part of his "Ribs and Brisket Revue."