Live at Smalls Spike Wilner

• 1 Lullaby of the Leaves 03:53
• 2 All Too Soon 04:04
• 3 Wrap Your Troubles in Dreams 03:40
• 4 Bess, You is My Woman Now 04:39
• 5 Gone with the Wind 04:01
• 6 I Can't Get Started 04:49
• 7 Elite Syncopations 03:53
• 8 Echoes of Spring 02:57
• 9 Snowy Morning Blues 02:45
• 10 Poor Butterfly 03:38
• 11 I Hadn't Anyone 'Till You 04:23
• 12 Tea for Two 04:58
• 13 Two Sleepy People 04:45
• 14 Bodhisattiva Blues 05:54
• Total Runtime 58:19

Info for Live at Smalls

Manhattan-born pianist Spike Wilner was inspired to play ragtime at a young age after watching a docudrama about the life of Scott Joplin. This led to a lifelong passion for piano playing, ragtime and jazz music in general. Spike made his performance debut at the age of fourteen playing Joplin at the St. Louis Ragtime Festival. Wilner has since performed and led with many bands in New York City at many famous jazz clubs including The Village Gate, The Angry Squire, Visiones, Augies, The West End Gate and The Village Corner. He has also toured with The Artie Shaw Big Band, The Glen Miller Orchestra and Maynard Ferguson. His new SmallsLIVE album shows the depth and enthusiastic intellect present in all his performances.

Spike Wilner, piano

Michael "Spike" Wilner
was born and raised in New York City where he was inspired to play ragtime piano at a young age after seeing a docudrama on the life of Scott Joplin. This led to a life-long passion for piano playing, ragtime and jazz music. Wilner made his performance debut at the age of 14 by playing Joplin's "Maple Leaf Rag" at the St. Louis Ragtime Festival. Wilner continued his music studies through high-school and participated in its award winning jazz band.

Wilner was a member of the legendary first class of the New School For Social Research's Jazz and Contemporary Music Program, led by the late Arnie Lawrence. In this original class, Wilner met and befriended many of today's prominent members of the current music scene, including Brad Mehldau, Larry Goldings, Peter Bernstein, Jesse Davis, Chris Potter, Jorge Rossi, Sam Yahel, Joe Strasser, Roy Hargrove, John Popper (of Blues Traveler), Eric Schenkman (of Spin Doctors), David Grausman and others.

In his career, Wilner has led many bands in New York City at many famous jazz clubs, and has toured with The Artie Shaw Big Band, The Glen Miller Orchestra and Maynard Furguson.

Wilner has several recordings as a leader, including Portraits (2000), A Blues of Many Colors (2002), Three To Go (2008, Posi-Tone), Live At Smalls (2011), La Tendresse (2012, Posi-Tone). Wilner's latest release, titled Koan (2016, Posi-Tone), is a trio record with Tyler Mitchell on bass and Anthony Pinciotti on drums. This is Wilner’s working band that plays internationally.

In 2006, Wilner published a folio of transcriptions of the work of an idol of his, Willie "The Lion" Smith, entitled The Lion Of The Piano. In 2007, Wilner completed his Masters Degree in Piano Performance at the State University of New York in Purchase, New York.

One of Wilner’s current endeavors started in 1994, when he began working a regular gig at Smalls Jazz Club in Greenwich Village. This became his permanent musical home and eventually led to his current position as owner and manager of the club, where he can also be found playing regularly. In 2015, Wilner opened a second club, Mezzrow, down the street from Smalls.

This album contains no booklet.