Gina Saputo performs with Chance Hayden's Desert Room All Stars, a mid-century jazz, blues and original works series at Al's Den.
Gina Saputo joins Chance Hayden's Desert Room All Stars at Al's Den on Sunday, November 29. It's part of Hayden's monthly series, which runs every last Sunday of the month in the intimate music venue beneath the Crystal Hotel.
The series takes its name from the room's history: in the 1950s and '60s, this space was the Desert Room, a high-class hang for Portland's underworld that staged burlesque and jazz nightly. Back then, the house band was led by New Orleans saxophonist Charlie Gabriel, who drew crowds like Duke Ellington, Cab Calloway and Sammy Davis Jr. Hayden's trio, plus guests, plays two sets of mid-century jazz, blues and original works inspired by that era. The Jazz Society of Oregon describes his playing as having an "adventurous, no-holds-barred sensibility with both bluesy grit and modern-jazz finesse."
Saputo takes the guest spot for this one, so she'll be front and center with Hayden's trio for the night. The music stays in that mid-century pocket—jazz and blues from the era the room was first known for, mixed in with original pieces that lean into the same sound. It's a two-set show, so there's a break in the middle.
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The venue itself is worth a mention if you've never been. Al's Den is tucked inside the Crystal Hotel, a 1911 flatiron building by architect Hans Hanselmann. It sits on "rock 'n' roll row" across from the legendary Crystal Ballroom and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, including for LGBTQ+ significance. Doors open at 6:30 PM and the show starts at 7 PM.
