NORTHPORT -- The Dave Bennett Quartet is returning to Northport and bringing with it the sounds and style of Benny Goodman, a little rockabilly and comedy thrown in for good measure.
The band, led by the 24-year-old swing jazz artist known for playing clarinet and dressing like Goodman, will perform at 8 p.m. Saturday at the Northport Community Arts Center at Northport High School.
Bennett has performed with his band and with Saginaw's New Reformation Dixieland Band in Northport several times, most recently last year, said program chair Ken Bloomquist. Bloomquist, former director of bands at Michigan State University, says Bennett's a "phenomenal" classical and jazz clarinetist.
"I know lots of clarinet players, and he's one of the best," Bloomquist said. "If we had to pay him by the note, we could never afford him."
He noted Bennett's admiration of Goodman, patterning not only his clarinet playing but his appearance, right down to the Big Band-era star's double-breasted suits, spats and wire-rimmed glasses, after him.
Other kids his age may have been getting into grunge rock and hip hop, but a 10-year-old Bennett was discovering Goodman. When he entered fifth grade and was eligible to join the school band, his grandfather gave Bennett a clarinet. Bennett said he enjoyed the music of his grandfather's generation, as well as old movies such as the Abbott and Costello comedies.
When his grandpa gave him a Benny Goodman tape, "that's what did it. That's what I wanted to do. I wanted to play like that."
By 12, Bennett had sat in with the late jazz trumpeter and bandleader Doc Cheatham at a jazz club in New York City. When he was 14 he began traveling throughout the United States, playing with the New Reformation Dixieland Band, Wally's Warehouse Waifs and other Dixie-style bands.
Today, he performs at venues throughout Michigan and the U.S., as well as swing dances. He also has been a guest soloist with the band of Canadian vibraphonist Peter Appleyard, who was a member of the Goodman Band in the 1970s. When he comes to Northport he'll not only perform swing jazz favorites but slip in a little rockabilly.
"Each tune isn't the same as the last," he said.
Bennett plays electric guitar and piano, so he doesn't pass up a chance to perform early Elvis Presley hits and Jerry Lee Lewis favorites.
For Bennett, performing isn't just about the band playing.
"I like to make the audience laugh," he said. "I like to interact with the crowd."
Bennett has recorded two CDs of Goodman material on PKO Records and is working on a third that may be released in September. He recently was in New York City recording tracks for his CD with Bucky Pizzarelli, an 82-year-old jazz guitarist who also at one time was a member of Goodman's band.
The new CD will feature both studio and live tracks and likely will be Bennett's last album featuring Goodman material.
Between the ages of 10 and 13, Bennett listened exclusively to Goodman's music and other sounds of the swing era.
He began listening to and performing rockabilly in high school and later developed an interest in bluegrass and blues.
Currently, he's "very influenced" by Phil Collins and Peter Gabriel. But he's ready to do his own thing.
"I want to do something different," Bennett said. "I want to get my own sound."
The Dave Bennett Quartet's performance at Northport High School is scheduled for 8 p.m. Saturday. Tickets are $15 for adults and $5 for children (preschool through 12th grade) and can be purchased by visiting www.northportcac.org or by calling (231) 386-5001. For more information about Bennett, visit www.davebennett.com.
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