To make sure the lights stay on, professional musicians must take (most of) the work that\u2019s offered to them. Playing weddings, bar mitzvahs and the odd restaurant gig, while they might not be as much fun as a freewheeling nightclub or theater show or jam session, can be fulfilling.<\/p>\n
Anyway, it beats working the old nine-to-five. Just ask St. Petersburg saxophonist Jeremy Carter.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou love a challenge from time to time, and it\u2019s rewarding to have your eyes opened up to some new material,\u201d he says. \u201cWhich is often the case whenever I get called as a sideman, and I get a folder with somebody else\u2019s vision \u2013 their music.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Jeremy Carter Group \u2013 two different lineups of musicians, with just Carter as the common denominator \u2013 has two performances this weekend. Friday (Nov. 7) they\u2019ll play the Palladium Theater Side Door Cabaret, and Saturday finds them inside the Museum of the American Arts & Crafts Movement.<\/p>\n
Carter, a Nebraska native who moved to the bay area in 2001, is a core component of the poly-talented St. Pete\/Tampa\/Clearwater jazz community. He\u2019s particularly fond of \u201ctheming\u201d his concerts, rather than concentrating on a specific style or single artist.<\/p>\n
CHECK IT OUT: Arts Alive! podcast: Musician Jeremy Carter<\/a><\/p>\n Case in point is Friday\u2019s Side Door show, which he\u2019s titled My Favorite Things.<\/p>\n What comes to mind, for many, will be sax icon John Coltrane\u2019s cool, sinewy (and very famous) rendition of that classic show tune.<\/p>\n \u201cThat song is part of the program, but the title\u2019s more of an over-arching thing,\u201d Carter explains. \u201cWith all of the music included being some of my favorite things.\u201d The not-all-jazz program includes tunes by Steely Dan, Donny Hathaway and Ray Charles, along with more than a few surprises. \u201cWe\u2019re all over the place. It\u2019s going to be a borderline rock concert. It\u2019s pretty hard-driving.\u201d<\/p>\n The group members, for this night, \u201care also some of my favorite people,\u201d Carter adds. They are Rod Alnord, drums; Elias Tona, bass; Patrick Bettison, keys; and Billy Norris, guitar.<\/p>\n Norris, from Tampa, met Carter back in the early days, and then spent 20 years as guitarist and musical director for singer\/songwriter Gavin DeGraw.<\/p>\n \u201cHe was really young when I first met him, but even then he was really talented. A lot of people know about him, because he\u2019s from here, but not a lot know that he\u2019s back. He doesn\u2019t really do a lot, musically. So I\u2019m really excited to keep in touch with him, and be able to incorporate him in this program.\u201d<\/p>\n