Remember Gummo Marx? The stage-shy businessman was rarely recognized as a sibling of the anarchic Marx Brothers, and in some ways, that paradigm holds equally true for Delfeayo Marsalis. Eclipsed by his more famous brothers — staunchly traditional trumpeter Wynton and garrulous saxophonist Branford — the gifted trombonist has released only a quartet of albums under his own name during the past 20 years.   

People about to change the world rarely look like people about to change the world. Take Gold Shoes — central casting didn’t assemble a new millennium Monkees to storm the music world with calculated precision. Gold Shoes is comprised of oddly yet perfectly meshed parts.   

University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music graduate and trumpeter Brian Newman and girlfriend Angie Pontani, one of biggest players in the world of modern burlesque, are doing a trio of Ohio shows this week as “Burlesque-a-Pades,” featuring Jazz from Newman and his quintet and dancing from Pontani and friends.   

The Blue Wisp Jazz Club is both a local and national legend — a Jazz club that’s been operating for more than 30 years. Steve Schmidt, longtime Wisp musician, says that the recipe for such long-standing success is “the dedication of all the people involved..."  

 A list of brilliantly influential saxophone players would fill a small city phone book, but one of the most overlooked beyond true Jazz aficionados is Ernie Krivda. Krivda’s latest album, last year’s Blues for Pekar, has been ecstatically received. The album pays tribute to the late underground cartoon icon/respected Jazz critic/contentious David Letterman guest Harvey Pekar, who hailed Krivda as “one of the best Jazz tenor sax men in the world.”   

Covington native and legendary bassist on numerous crucial sessions done for Cincinnati’s King Records, Ed Conley, passed away on Jan. 5 at the age of 84. Following the private memorial for family a couple of weeks ago, friends and admirers this Thursday will gather at the Gwen Mooney Funeral Home (inside Spring Grove Cemetery at 4521 Spring Grove Ave.) at 1 p.m. for a public ceremony.  

George Michael recently announced his plans to return to music with a new album and worldwide tour. Michael, now known more as a tabloid joke, is making his comeback to help improve his tarnished legacy, but not for solely selfish reasons. The singer said his return is for young gay people, who he felt he let down in his career by not being “out” publicly from the start.  

Matt Baumann does not look like a wild-eyed, avant garde Jazz experimentalist. The 28-year-old St. Louis native who moved here two and a half years ago has the intense, contemplatively quiet demeanor of a bassist, a tall anchoring presence grounding a loud Indie Rock band's chaos.  

There are no longer many contemporaries of Miles Davis and John Coltrane around today, and even fewer are still actively composing and performing. David Liebman is one of those few. What truly sets him apart, though, is not only his illustrious background but the fact that he continues to explore new musical territory and is also committed to sharing his knowledge as an educator. The David Liebman Group plays the Blue Wisp at 8 p.m. Tuesday.