Chandler to celebrate bocce, bourbon in Troy

Members of the Chandler Travis Philharmonic, Bob Pilkington, Cliff Spencer, Matt Joseph, Chandler Travis, Fred Boak, Berke McKelvey and John Clark, will play The Hangar in Troy on Friday.

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Two Friday shows will celebrate bourbon and lots more.

The Chandler Travis Philharmonic, nine strong (counting the singing butler) and silly, play The Hangar (675 River St., Troy), featuring songs from “Bocce & Bourbon: Comfortable Songs of Chandler Travis and David Greenberger.” Travis said by email that the album, a tasty stew of Dixieland, rock, blues and bebop, is “a retrospective of songs I’ve written with Mr. Greenberger’s wonderful lyrics over the last few decades that includes work from most of my bands, past and present (including the Chandler Travis Philharmonic, the Incredible Casuals, the Catbirds and the Chandler Travis Three-O.”

Brilliant, prolific, Travis and Greenberger have made about 40 albums each. Greenberger’s latest, “Take Me Where I Don’t Know I Am,” frames his monologues from conversations with old folks in cozy settings by composer Keith Spring (formerly of NRBQ’s Whole Wheat Horns) with brass master Keiichi Hashimoto and stringed-things player Dinty Child; both are pajama-wearing members of the Chandler Travis Philharmonic, Spring once was.

Greenberger said, also by email, “It’s such a sympathetically matched collaboration, and I’m amazed Keith suggested it in the first place. He then wrote a lot of music (I didn’t even use half of what he wrote for me to choose from) — I’d respond to the music with the text I’d then develop, all of that before the four of us went into the studio.”

The Chandler Travis Philharmonic plays The Hangar on Friday at 8 p.m. $10 advance, $12 door. 272-9740 www.alehousetroy.com.

Also Friday, Proctors “Beer, Bourbon, BBQ & Bands” serves fare to drink, eat and hear at Stratton Plaza (behind Proctors, entry from Broadway, Schenectady). Too-seldom-seen soul/jazz/blues singer Jill Hughes and her band and MPThree featuring singer Mark Pierre (ex-Big Sky) will perform. And fans can also sample the goods of many craft brewers and distillers and barbecue chefs. Age 21 and up. 6 p.m. $30, $15 for designated drivers. 346-6204 www.proctors.org

Funk prescription

Albany’s Alive at Five free concert series moves tonight to Tricentennial Plaza: Broadway at Columbia Street, its location before moving to Jennings Landing in Corning Preserve – now under repairs. The late Richie Havens launched the series 27 years ago nearby, on North Pearl Street. Another old master, Dr. John, 75, seems perfect to fire up tonight’s first offering with his fun prescription of New Orleans funk.

Along with his river-deep voice and pulsating piano, Doc always brings a great band: Sarah Morrow, trombone; Derwin “Big D” Perkins, guitar; Roland Guerin, bass, Herlin Riley, drums; plus three more horns. His cover of “The Bare Necessities” gleams on the soundtrack of Disney’s new “The Jungle Book” film, and his new “The Spirit of Satch” album honors Louis Armstrong. Jocamo opens. Rain site: Palace Theater. 5 p.m. www.albanyevents.org.

Thompson non-solo

Richard Thompson most often plays solo these days, as in February when I caught him at Northampton’s Academy of Music. But on Friday, the brilliant British guitarist-singer-songwriter brings the Next Festival of Emerging Artists string orchestra (18 pieces!) led by Peter Askim. Few artists are so deeply candid as Thompson, so how will he sound with an orchestra? 8 p.m. $39.50. 473-1845, www.theegg.org.

Bromberg scales down

While Thompson scales up on Friday, guitarist David Bromberg scales down: He led a big band at The Egg recently but brings his quartet on Friday to Skidmore’s Zankel Music Center (815 Broadway, Saratoga Springs): Nate Grower, fiddle; Mark Cosgrove, guitar and mandolin; Josh Kanusky, drums. What to expect, besides a cozier sound? His new album is “The Blues, the Whole Blues and Nothing But the Blues.” 8 p.m. $30, students $15. 580-5321. www.skidmore.edu/zankel.

Celebrating Lee Shaw

WAMC’s The Linda (339 Central Ave., Albany) honors our own late, great jazz giant Lee Shaw on Friday, showing Susan Robbins’ film “Lee’s 88 Keys” and presenting a live show of her music by her rhythm section of Rich Syracuse, bass; and Jeff Siegel, drums – with Shaw student pianist Nick Hetko. $30 VIP mixer 6 p.m., $20 for film (7 p.m.) and live concert (8:30 p.m.) 465-5233 ext. 4, www.wamcarts.org.

Reach Gazette columnist Michael Hochanadel at [email protected]