Katrina drops ‘Chops’ in Scottsdale
Eddie ‘Boh’ Paris toots his horn with Fantasy Jive at Kerr

SCOTTSDALE – ASU Kerr Cultural Center’s Jazz in Concert Series lifts off next week with the New Orleans sound of the local favorite Fantasy Jive. The popular local band is getting an unexpected jolt of energy and versatility from recent transplant Eddie “Boh” Paris as he fills in for “Kid Merv,” who was originally scheduled to perform but has since returned home to New Orleans after leaving due to Hurricane Katrina.

Katrina was also responsible for planting Paris in the Valley. Known as “Chops,” Paris is an authentic young exponent of the New Orleans jazz scene who settled in Phoenix after the hurricane.

“Call me ‘Chops,’ baby,” said Paris. “My grandfather was a tap dancer (Isaac Mason) with ‘Pork Chop and Kidney Stew,’ so I shortened my name to ‘Chops.’ My main instrument is a marching baritone that sounds like a bass trumpet or trombone. I also play trombone, sousaphone, valve trumpet, and all the brass. And I sing.”

Playing with Fantasy Jive at the Kerr, Chops will be bringing that virtuosity to the fore, bopping with his characteristic flare and showmanship.

During Katrina, Chops became stranded first in Mississippi, then in Texas. Bart Salzman of Jazz in AZ and Bennie Jones of the Tremé Brass Band (a New Orleans group that escaped to Phoenix as well) needed a trombone replacement for Eddie King, who had to go back to check on his place.

“I said if it’s a guaranteed thing,” Chops said, “I’ll drive to Arizona. I lost my home. They knocked the walls down. Eight feet of water destroyed everything in it–clothes, instruments. I have since been blessed to receive donated replacements. My wife and I have made Arizona our home. We love it out here. We have a new life.”

Fantasy Jive bandleader and trumpeter Dave “Doc” Chaney bring the spirit of  Louis Armstrong to life, replicating Satchmo’s vocal style “better than maybe anybody in the whole world,” said Rich Klein, who plays sax and clarinet and sings with the band, which includes Larry Crinklaw on piano and Jimmy Golini on drums.

“This will be New Orleans, Chicago and Savoy jazz all rolled into one hot sound by this very popular Valley band, which called Leland’s club home for decades,” says Joel Robin Goldenthal, executive director of Jazz in AZ, which is presenting the concert at Kerr.

The first concert in the Jazz in Concert series featuring Fantasy Jive with Eddie “Boh” Paris will be at ASU Kerr Cultural Center, 6110 N. Scottsdale Rd.  Oct. 8, at 3 p.m. Tickets, $24 and $21, are available at (480) 596‑2660, the box office, Ticketmaster outlets, and online at www.asukerr.com. For further information on Jazz in AZ, call (480) 994‑0807 or visit www.jazzinaz.org.