The Benny Carter Tribute Jazz summer concert, hosted by the JCC of Sherman, returns on Saturday, August 8, 7 p.m., with the sound of Connecticut’s TJ Thompson Trio. Winner of the IMEA Jazz Artist of the Year for their recent album “Take Two: The Sound of Playing,” the popular jazz trio plays a combination of originals along with soul, blues, and jazz. 

TJ Thompson, has performed with Betty Carter’s Jazz Ahead at Washington’s Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, and was a featured artist on Branford Marsalis’ Jazz Set show on NPR. In 1998 he recorded and produced “Thompson Trio Take One,” an album consisting mostly of original works. Thompson has opened for and worked with such artists as Henry Butler, Mel Torme, Ed Thigpen, Dave Liebman, and Koko Taylor as well as being a featured soloist on the Morgan Powell Jazz Album. Since 2002, he has been the director of instrumental music at the Taft School, in Watertown.  

Tickets to the concert are limited to allow for social distancing, and must be purchased online in advance, at www.jccinsherman.org, where new safety rules concerning the JCC’s outdoor events are also posted. Admission is $20/JCC member and $25/non-member. at www.jccinsherman.org. Don’t forget to bring your mask and a chair! Rain date is August 9. The JCC in Sherman is located at 9 Rte. 39 South. 

Main Photo: TJ Thompson