Sheffield — A who’s-who of Berkshire jazz and pop players would include all four musicians appearing December 31 at Race Brook Lodge, from 12 p.m. to 3 p.m. The quartet consists of Andy Wrba on bass, Ed Moran on vocals, Luke Franco on guitar, and Conor Meehan on drums. All these guys appear regularly at venues throughout Berkshire County, taking turns as bandleaders and sidemen.
The term “movers and shakers” was created to describe people exactly like Andy Wrba, a Berkshire County native and driving force of much musical activity in the area. The weekly jazz nights he curated at Mission in Pittsfield ran for more than a decade and featured over 200 established and up-and-coming musicians, many of whom were local players Andy had coached. He has curated or produced such events as Tanglewood in the City, Lenox Jazz Stroll, and Wandering Dance Society, while regularly playing bass in a number of groups, most notably Barefoot Truth and The Whiskey Treaty Roadshow. He gives private music lessons, having served for nearly a decade as music director for the Darrow School in New Lebanon, N.Y. He is now program manager for Mill Town Foundation, overseeing community programming and partnerships.
Vocalist Ed Moran is best known as a member of the Riverside Brothers, an acoustic group that has appeared at such Berkshire County venues as Dalton’s Stationery Factory and The Foundry in West Stockbridge. The group released their debut album “Nevaeh” in 2017. But Ed also appears with groups like Rev Tor, Misty Blues, and others.
Guitarist Luke Franco is probably the best smelling member of Andy’s quartet, because he lives on a flower farm in Copake, N.Y., which he runs with his wife Jenny. At sunset, Luke mixes it up with all kinds of musicians in the area and sometimes appears at Race Brook Lodge or the Egremont Barn as leader of the Luke Franco Trio. He has received favorable reviews of his work with bassist Tarik Shah and has worked with the Bob Meyer Trio and innumerable others. He was featured soloist with GRAMMY-winner Jon Daversa’s Concert Jazz Band, alongside Gonzalo Rubalcaba and Alan Ferber. Luke’s main influence was guitarist John Abercrombie.
Andy Wrba calls Conor Meehan “one of the best—if not the best—drummers in the Berkshires playing now.” A long list of other musicians would agree, including local band Catfish Blue, Jojo & The Pinecones, The Whiskey Treaty Roadshow, Joelle & the Pinehurst Trio R&B singer Brian McKnight, Honeyhoney, Henry Sugar, Andy Suzuki & The Method, Dr. John, Charles Neville, Ted Rosenthal, the Boston Pops Orchestra, and many, many more. “He holds up to all the cats that I know,” says Wrba. “He can do it all—he can play with so many different feels with authenticity.”
Hear Andy Wrba, Ed Moran, Luke Franco, and Conor Meehan at Race Brook Lodge, 864 South Undermountain Rd., Sheffield, on December 31, from 12 p.m. to 3 p.m. Brunch will be served from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. The cover charge is $10. For more information, visit the Race Brook Lodge website or call (413) 229-2916.
