ESSAYS
This section includes essays on various jazz subjects, written by a number of writers. Contributions are welcome. Writers interested in contributing are welcome to contact the editor by filling out the form in the CONTACT tab. Photographs to illustrate those essays are welcome. Readers can click on the INDEX button for a list of articles in this folder.
The Adrian Cox Trio
JAZZLAB: A GREAT MELBOURNE VENUE
by Ian Muldoon
April 23, 2026
Birdland or Smalls or Ronnie Scott's are not normal tourist destinations but in the mind of jazz fans they are. Jazzlab at 27 Leslie Street, Brunswick may well, in time, join that list. Jazzlab is the rehoming of the famous Bennetts Lane which closed in 2017. Jazzlab seems to me a better venue than Bennetts Lane which is the subject of a book by David James, World’s Best Jazz Club: The Story of Bennett’s Lane (Major Street, 2014). To me it’s better than inter alia El Rocco; Sweet Basil, New York; The Sky Lounge; Side On Cafe; Jazz Lounge, Sydney Uni; Foundry 616; The Count’s, Monash Uni; and Bird’s Basement, Melbourne. Sound, range of artists, comfort, focus, atmosphere, staff are some prime factors but also history…