Again, after a prolonged absence, we can offer new music to fans of Nature’s Table. This one is the earliest-known recording of music at the Table. The Table opened in September 1979; sometime shortly after that, Terry saw this band perform at another local venue (was it The Ground Round?) and decided that it would be a good idea to add live music to his new establishment.
It took a bit to get music going. The fist show didn’t happen until January 1980. This show was recorded in February, so this was recorded only six weeks after Terry started having music at the Table.
The Jack Webb Band is traditional jazz from the 1920s. It’s fun, lively, with tons of energy. The band also features several table regulars, including Marlene Rosenberg on bass, Scott Mordecai on drums (later of Bontuku-fame), and the one and only Ron Dewar — playing clarinet in this group, not sax.
Thanks to Joan Hickey for this wonderful, historic recording.
The Jack Webb Band – Live at Nature’s Table February 22, 1980
EDIT October 7, 2021: I wondered aloud if it was The Ground Round in Champaign where Terry first heard the Jack Webb Band. I received this email from Mike Miller, the banjo player of the Jack Webb Band:
“…
it wasn’t the Ground Round where Terry and Shelley first
heard the band.
The band did play at the Ground Round but it was the regular Thursday
night gigs at Zorba’s where Terry and Shelley started to show up in the
audience.
Those Zorba’s gigs were a blast! A giant party, not unlike what later
happened at the Table when the Webb band played there every Thursday night. “
Thanks for the clarification, Mike!