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The Jazz Cafe was our weekly Wednesday night dance after classes. 

One cold December Sunday afternoon in 1957 in New York City, CBS non-chalantly brought together a group of Superstar Jazz men and women to broadcast a live studio recording of Jazz music: musicians with names that now drip with nostalgia; names whose very sound suggests majesty.  Count Basie, Lester Young, Ben Webster, Coleman Hawkins, Roy Eldridge, Henry "Red" Allen, and even a man by the same name as the then-Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court, Earl Warren.  Billie Holiday and the legendary Little Jimmy Rushing sang.  The back-up band featured a blend of Count Basie's original 1930s rhythm section (Jo Jones (drums), Freddie Green (guitar)) and his then-current bassist, Eddie Jones.  (Walter Page, Basie's original bass player, could not make the session because he was confined to bed due to pneumonia, from which he unfortunately would die less than two weeks later).

The producer insisted on maintaining a calculatedly-casual atmosphere in the studio.  Contrary to the paradigm for such superstar shows in the 50s, he insisted upon no fancy fanfares, no glittering gowns, no champagne bubbles.  They had to persuade Billie Holiday to appear in slacks and a pony-tail instead of the gown she had planned to wear for the occasion.  The musicians instead wore what Jazz musicians usually wore on Sunday afternoons.  The mikes were not hidden from site as was the style in the day, but placed where they needed to be for sound.  This calculated air of casualness created an atmosphere of comfort that allowed the musicians to play comfortably, as if at home in the studio.  The result was phenomenal, and created some of the musicians' best recorded work ever.  Ken Burns' "Jazz" documentary even featured a nice, ten-minute schpiel on the session, emphasizing a song ("My Man") in which Billie Holliday and Lester Young spoke to each other adoringly in exclusively musical terms, manifesting the admiration and friendship they forever held for each other.

The Jazz Cafe was designed to do much the same thing: create a comfortable, unintimidating atmosphere that brings out the best dancing (and friendship) in everyone who attends.  It is not a venue at which people come to show off or "be seen," but instead just a place to hang loose and have fun dancing.  Come to dance, come to hang out with friends, or come to just sit and listen to the greatest music ever played or performed.  No attitude, no bull, just great music and dancing.

Austin Lindy Hop hosted the Jazz Cafe  at The American Legion Mansion, located at the junction of MoPac and Lake Austin Blvd.  

The Jazz Cafe was a dance venue run by Lindy Hoppers, for Lindy Hoppers of all skills and preferences.  The music was always new and fresh, and featured the full range of Swing music: including "Lindy Groove" jazz, Swing Era Big Band Swing, the best of Neo Swing, Swingin' Mainstream Jazz,  Big Band Swing from the 50s, 60s, and modern times, Traditional and Modern Jump Blues, and all points in between.  We will play many popular Lindy favorites, but not too much that we end up playing them into the ground like a Pop-40 radio station.  There is simply too much good music better than the old stand-bys.  The music we played also catered each week to whomever attends and the classes we taught.  

We also occasionally offered live music on Wednesdays.  Local musicians in and out of the Lindy Hop scene dropped by to join us to fill the music out and create a true "jam session" of what we are off-handedly calling "Ja-lues:" a combination of jazz and blues standards that are ideal for Lindy Hopping.   Just as with the DJ'ed music, it is live music by Lindy Hoppers, for Lindy Hoppers.

Simply to pay the rent, cover was only $ 3 (free for Austin Lindy Hop students).  We did not have a liquor license, but many felt free to bring their own alcohol.

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