November starts early! On the 2nd we look back at this season’s Verve Mondays from 6:30, starting with Sonny Rollins’ Brass / Trio and Elvin Jones’ Dear John C., and then Coltrane’s own Vanguard run takes over the room at about 8.
Bill Evans’ 1967 Vanguard trio arrives on a new all-analog Verve Vault pressing, and so does Billy Mitchell’s first album as a leader. And the last two Mondays come with giveaways from Verve.
Every record plays on our audiophile hi-fi system at Kissa Kissa, and the Verve 70 cocktail is on all evening.
Every Verve Mondays record this month is a 2026 pressing
The room opens at 5:30 and the needle drops around 7:45, except on November 2nd.
We look back at this season’s Verve Monday records, starting with Sonny Rollins’ Brass / Trio and Elvin Jones’ Dear John C. Then, at about 8, Coltrane’s own Vanguard run picks up with night two.
We had planned Bill Evans’ California Here I Come for tonight, on the new Verve Vault double LP. Our copy didn’t reach us in time, so it moved to November 9th. Tonight’s details.
In August 1967, Bill Evans brought his trio into the Village Vanguard, with Eddie Gomez on bass and Philly Joe Jones on drums.
Verve didn’t put the tapes out until 1982, after Evans had died. The double album opens with the title track and runs through “Turn Out the Stars,” “Alfie” and “’Round Midnight” to “Wrap Your Troubles in Dreams.” The new Verve Vault Series edition is an all-analog double LP on 180-gram vinyl, cut by Ryan K. Smith at Sterling Sound.
Louis Armstrong brought the All Stars to a high school fundraiser in Highland Park in March 1957, and the student running the stage taped the show. Verve’s new LP is out November 13th; we play it two days early, a Wednesday early listen before guest selector Cole Johnson takes over.
Billy Mitchell played tenor saxophone in Dizzy Gillespie’s big band and Count Basie’s orchestra in the 1950s before he made a record under his own name.
This Is Billy Mitchell was that first record, cut in Chicago over two days in October 1962 for Smash. Bobby Hutcherson is on vibes, Dave Burns on trumpet, and two of Mitchell’s fellow Detroiters, Herman Wright and Otis Finch, play bass and drums. It opens with “J & B” and slows down for “Sophisticated Lady.” The new Verve Vault Series edition is out November 13th: all-analog, 180-gram vinyl, cut by Ryan K. Smith at Sterling Sound.
We had planned Grant Green’s His Majesty King Funk for tonight. Verve has pushed that reissue back, and we’ll bring it in when it arrives.
Verve is closing its 70th-anniversary year with a new record. Steve Jordan produced it at Van Gelder Studio and plays on it. The cast includes Ron Carter, Buster Williams, Billy Hart, Monty Alexander, Rufus Reid and Lenny White.
They play tunes originally heard on Verve. Mark Whitfield and Mike LeDonne take Wes Montgomery’s “Bumpin’ on Sunset.” Willie Bobo’s “Spanish Grease” and Bill Evans’ “Very Early” are on it too, and Jordan plays Irving Berlin’s “Always” with Jeremy Pelt, Monty Alexander and Ron Carter. The album is out November 20th. There’s a giveaway that night, courtesy of Verve.
Norman Granz put Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong in a Hollywood studio on August 16th, 1956, with Oscar Peterson, Herb Ellis, Ray Brown and Buddy Rich behind them. Ella and Louis came out of that day, “Cheek to Cheek” included. They followed it with Ella and Louis Again in 1957 and Porgy and Bess in 1959.
Verve’s new seven-LP box, out November 20th, collects all of it: the three Verve albums, their Decca singles, live recordings and alternate takes. The box holds 75 tracks and an essay by Ricky Riccardi. There’s a giveaway that night, courtesy of Verve.
Coltrane’s quartet played Birdland on October 8th, 1963, with McCoy Tyner, Jimmy Garrison and Elvin Jones. Three tracks from that night made this 1964 Impulse! album. The other two, “Alabama” and “Your Lady,” were cut at Van Gelder’s studio on November 18th, 1963 — sixty-three years to the day before we play it. Coltrane wrote “Alabama” in response to the Birmingham church bombing that September.
The new Verve Acoustic Sounds pressing is out November 20th. Part of our Coltrane 100 series, from 5:30.
What Is Verve Mondays?
Verve Mondays is a year-long weekly listening event series at Kissa Kissa in partnership with Verve Records, celebrating the legendary label’s 70th anniversary. Every Monday from April through December, a different Verve reissue becomes the evening’s centerpiece — played on vinyl, through our audiophile hi-fi system, in Brooklyn’s only traditional jazz kissa. 39 Mondays. 39 reissues. One historic series.
The Verve 70 — an exclusive Monday-night-only signature cocktail (Song Cai floral gin, Prosecco, housemade sage lavender syrup, lemon) — is available all evening. Pair it with our full menu for the complete experience.
Each month’s lineup will be announced here and on our Instagram in advance. Read the full series announcement for the complete story behind the partnership.
Verve Mondays, every Monday in November
667 Franklin Avenue · Crown Heights, Brooklyn
No cover. No reservations required but always encouraged.
