Performance and Works used with permission from the artist and venue.

On this episode of the program, the New Nostalgia invite you to join them for music for your head and your heart. The Chicago based nonet blend jazz, pop and rock together to create a sound that is familiar and tight while also offering band members a bit of room to explore.

Their self-titled 2019 debut was hailed by Downbeat as power-polychord instrumental rock at its finest and we're hard pressed to disagree. From February 1st, 2025 it's a sold-out performance from New Nostalgia…Live at the Bop Stop.

Performance and Works used with permission from the artist and venue.

We are spoiled as a region with an immense amount of talent, as this episode of the program will illustrate. Jackie Warren is a legend behind the piano, from her work in the 3D Jazz Trio, to her work with Tito Puente and her place as one of the anchors of the Cleveland Jazz Orchestra.

She leads this performance, where she's joined by Saxophonist Steve Kortyka. Beyond the four releases as a band leader, Steve is a core member of the Brian Newman Quintet and his work anchors releases by Tony Bennett and live performances with Lady Gaga.

But wait, as they say, there's more. Jim Rupp joins this group on percussion and beyond some legendary performances with Woody Herman, Ray Charles and Natalie Cole and his extensive work as a drum educator Jim has forgotten more about drum performance than many of us will ever know.

George Delancy rounds out this quartet on bass. George was a core member of the Larry Fuller Trio and has performed with Ben Patterson, Wynton Marsallis and Houston Person, among others.

Enjoy this talented quartet as they perform a mix of standards and originals. From February 8th, 2025 it's the Jackie Warren Quartet…Live at the Bop Stop.

Performance and Works used with permission from the artist and venue.

Mixing jazz, blues and funk with a healthy dose of the Hammond B3, the Pittsburgh based Norside produces a sound best described as Rust Belt Funk. Whether they're playing alongside contemporaries such as The New Mastersounds and Bar Kays, or pushing boundaries with the Steeltown Horns, Norside embodies the commitment to giving the Hammond B3 room to breathe and pushing musical boundaries.

For this performance, they're joined by pre-eminent Northeast Ohio trumpeter Tommy Lehman. By this point in the program, Tommy needs no introduction but he travels extensively both as a member of Alla Boara and The Admirables and as the leader of multiple groups under his own name.

Featuring Tommy Lehman on Trumpet, Skip Sanders on the Hammond B3, Steve Ippolito on Drums and Glenn Strother on Guitar, and from a March 13th, 2025 performance, it's Norside featuring Tommy Lehman…Live at the Bop Stop.

Performance and Works used with permission from the artist and venue.

Abstract Sounds are a 6-piece alternative jazz fusion band, centered around saxophonist Jevaughn Bogard dedicated to living at the intersection of jazz soul, bass and funk.

Dancing shoes are required for this performance, which features Patrick Duke Graney on Percussion, Frank Alouishus on Keys and Trumpet, Ashton Thomas on Drums, Aaron Grayer on Bass, Robert Morrow on Keys and Jevaugh Bogard on sax, and from a March 21st, 2025 performance it's Abstract Sounds…Live at the Bop Stop.

Performance and Works used with permission from the artist and venue.

Pianist, guitarist and educator Ariel Kasler is a driving force behind the resurgence of jazz and classical music in Northwest Ohio in both his position as the pianist for the Toledo Jazz Orchestra and as the Artistic Director of the Orchard Guitar Festival.

As the leader of his own quartet, he performs original jazz compositions and arrangements influenced by Middle Eastern, Jewish, and Israeli music as evidenced on 2015's Above the Sound, the 2022 release Make it Bloom and on this March 23rd, 2025 performance.

Featuring Andrew Bishop on Saxophones, Jeff Halsey on Bass, Olman Piedra on Drums and Ariel Kasler on Guitar and Piano, it's the Ariel Kasler Quartet…Live at the Bop Stop.

Performance and Works used with permission from the artist and venue.

Saxophonist, composer, and educator David Bixler cut his teeth touring the world with the big bands of Lionel Hampton and Toshiko Akioshi. He later joined the Chico O'Farrill Afro-Cuban Big Band, with whom he played a decade-long residency at Birdland and won a LATIN GRAMMY for Final Night at Birdland.

Beatitude is his quartet project that you'll hear selections from no this show including the best of their 2019 release In the Face of Chaos. Featuring Jon Cowherd on Piano, Ike Sturm on Bass, Rogerio Boccato on Percussion and David Bixler on Alto Sax, and from an April 3rd, 2025 performance, it's David Bixler's Beatitude…Live at the Bop Stop.

Performance and Works used with permission from the artist and venue.

internationally acclaimed drummer and percussionist Bill Ransom, Aretha Franklin, Marion Meadows, Cecil Bridgewater, Diane Reeves, Mary Wilson, and James Newton. This performance features selections from his album Generations, along with some jazz standards. From January 25th, 2025 and featuring Ken LeeGrand on Winds, Kip Reed on Bass, Bill Ransom on Drums and the final Bop Stop appearance from the late, great Phillip Jones II on Piano it's Bill Ransom – Generations Revisited…Live at the Bop Stop.

Performance and Works used with permission from the artist and venue.

Embracing his love for a vast variety of stylistic genres, three-time GRAMMY nominee, Troy Roberts is one of today's most widely recorded touring artists. His name adorns several essential recordings ranging from the legendary Joey DeFrancesco, the iconic Van Morrison, and the critically acclaimed Kurt Elling.

He's also a prolific front man, with sixteen releases to his name, including 2024's Green Lights, selections of which are featured here. Backed by the Northeast Ohio based Theron Brown Trio and from a February 16th, 2025 performance it's the Troy Roberts Quartet…Live at the Bop Stop.