Jimmy Heath, at Elario’s, Brings 40 Years of Growth

Jimmy Heath made his reputation as an alto sax man in the be-bop tradition of Charlie Parker. But he’s evolved into much, much more during his more than 40 years in jazz.

During two weeks at Elario’s, which began Wednesday night, Heath is concentrating on tenor sax, but he also has a flute and soprano sax in tow.

Besides keeping up his talents on several instruments, Heath is a serious composer. He is working on commissioned original works for the Montreal Jazz Society and the Jazzmobile project in New York. He has also been writing new material for himself, much of which he plans to unveil at Elario’s.

Heath hasn’t released a solo album for about two years, but last month he collaborated with several other jazzmen on a session under the leadership of Bill Cosby. Yes, that Bill Cosby.

Seems the Cos has a real thing about jazz. He chose a few tunes and brought together some of his favorite people to play them under his direction, musicians like Heath and hot young pianist Mulgrew Miller.

With his roots in be-bop, Heath is a living treasure of jazz who survived a ‘50s battle with drugs and went on to a long, productive career. At Elario’s, he will be joined by former San Diegan Rob Schneiderman on piano, Bob Magnusson on bass, John Guerin on drums the first week and Sherman Ferguson the second.

Denver pianist-singer Ellyn Rucker is in town for her annual summer stay, which combines nights playing the tiny bar in the Beach House restaurant in Mission Beach and days of working out.

This year’s visit is especially welcomed by Rucker, who toured Europe three times the past year. In June, she returned from two months in France, Germany, Scotland and the U.K. She stopped in several small towns, such as Plymouth on the English Channel, where jazz fans seldom have a chance to hear live music.

In such places, they clamored to buy copies of her albums, including last year’s “This Heart of Mine.” Sometimes, Rucker traveled by train, a shopping bag full of CDs in tow.

As is generally true of European audiences, they treated her with a reverence rare stateside. She did a live interview and performance on BBC radio and made an appearance on “Music Friends,” a live radio music hour.

Rucker has two albums in the works: a duo with bassist Red Mitchell, already recorded; and a collaboration with saxophonist Spike Robinson, a close friend who also lives in Denver. She is a first-rate pianist whose swinging improvisations are full of surprises, and she uses her sultry voice as a jazz instrument.

Rucker will play Tuesday through Saturday nights through Aug. 18, except for this Friday and Saturday nights, when she joins flutist Holly Hofmann in the Horton Grand Hotel’s Palace Bar downtown.

One thing jazz purists find dislikable about commercial jazz is the emphasis on simple, choreographed melodies instead of fiery improvisations. Guitarist-keyboardist Russ Freeman and his band the Rippingtons, who play Humphrey’s Concerts by the Bay Friday night at 7 and 9, claim to leave more improvisational space in their songs than most pop jazz groups.

Freeman is a high-tech guitarist for the 1990s, feeding his instrument through all manner of synthesizers and electronic equipment. Sometimes the results are the same kind of nondescript lush music produced by many of his light jazz peers. But Freeman is a first-rate musician, and the group’s newest album, “Tourist in Paradise,” has won some good reviews, especially for its Brazilian-flavored songs.

At press time, there were still plenty of tickets left.

Local jazz benefactors Bob and Gretchen Geib are taking a two-month hiatus from the shows they present at Diego’s Loft and other venues.

With their Society for Straight Ahead Jazz, the Geibs have produced 38 shows the last year, dipping into their own pockets when ticket sales weren’t sufficient to pay musicians. Bob Geib will spend some time scouring Los Angeles for new talent and sorting through more than 200 hours’ worth of tapes he has made during the shows.

Eventually, he hopes to combine the best of these on a CD. The Geibs’ shows will start again in October, with tentative bookings including former John Coltrane bassist Art Davis, saxophonists Gary LeFebvre and Rod Cradit and guitarist and alto sax man Al Kaye. The Geibs’ last definite show before their break will be an Aug. 4 appearance by guitarist Peter Sprague at Diego’s Loft, but Geib is also thinking about a Salmon House date for Ellyn Rucker with a small ensemble.

RIFFS: The last three Sundays of brunch cruises aboard the MV Entertainer on San Diego Bay have been canceled, including this Sunday’s scheduled appearance by Windows. The series opened May 13 with Doug Cameron, but scheduling problems with some acts, combined with poor attendance, brought things to a halt this week.

Trumpeter Red Rodney is the focus of KPBS-TV’s “Club Date” jazz series Friday night at 11, showing again Monday night at 11:30 . . .

Virtuoso bassist Brian Bromberg appears Saturday night from 5:30 to 7:30 at the park next to the Old Ferry Landing at the foot of B Street in Coronado. . . .

Brazilian fusion band Azymuth plays next Tuesday night, July 31, at Elario’s, kicking off the club’s series of Monday and Tuesday night shows by prominent artists. . . .

Tami Thomas and Jazz/Ma/Tazz play Carlsbad’s TGIF Jazz in the Parks series Friday evening from 6 to 8 at Stagecoach Park, 3420 Mission Estancia. . . .

At Croce’s downtown: Thursday night, saxophonist Gary LeFebvre; Friday and Saturday nights, Algo Caliente. . . .

Peter Sprague goes solo on guitar Friday night at 8 at Words & Music bookstore in Hillcrest. . . .

British saxophonist Peter King can be heard on KSDS-FM’s (88.3) “Le Jazz Club” program this Sunday night at 8. . . .

Barnett’s Bistro & Cafe in the Embassy Suites Hotel downtown has electric jazz with Cutting Edge on Friday night and guitarist Jim Storey’s Open Channel Saturday night. . . .

Singer-trombonist Aubrey Fay puts his band through its paces tonight through Saturday at the B Street Cafe & Bar downtown.