Shows - Christo's

Christopher Woitach Steel Quartet

Thu, Jul 02

Christopher Woitach started playing pedal steel guitar in 2010, when he began studying with steel guitar legend and innovator Maurice “Reece” Anderson in Keller, Texas. He is known in the steel guitar community as a proponent of jazz on pedal steel, which he regularly performs with his group, the Christopher Woitach Steel Quartet, which includes John Moak on trombone, Tim Gilson on fretless electric bass, and Charlie Doggett on drums. He also plays country style pedal steel with local Portland bands Folsom and the Suitcase Ranchers. He is a regularly featured performer at the SWSGA Steel Guitar Convention in Phoenix, Arizona.

Galen Clark Trio ft. Sarah Clarke

Thu, Jul 16

Keyboardist Galen Clark (Trio Subtonic, Anna Tivel, Outer Orbit) and fantastic vocalist Sarah Clarke (The Motet, Portugal The Man, Outer Orbit) join forces with an incredible rhythm section feat. Damian Erskine (Peter Erskine, Skerik, Outer Orbit) on bass and Charlie Doggett on drums. The music ranges from stripped down funk and soul originals to beautiful ballads that pay homage to artists such as Emily King and Betty Harris. Don't miss it!

Sarah Clarke - vocals

Galen Clark - keys

Damian Erkine - bass

Charlie Doggett - drums

Jack Radsliff Trio

Sun, Jul 19

Jack Radsliff is on the short list of jazz guitarists in the Pacific Northwest. As a bandleader, his trio has become a fixture at clubs throughout the region. As a collaborator, Radsliff is a first-call for many; frequently playing in the bands of Ron Steen, Michael Raynor, Cyrus Nabipoor, Galen Clark, Christopher Brown, Chuck Israels, Alan Jones, Kerry Politzer, George Colligan, Dan Balmer, Idit Shner, Kathleen Hollingsworth, Torrey Newhart and many more: a veritable who’s who of Oregon’s jazz musicians. In addition to his steady work around the PNW, last year afforded Jack opportunities to work as sideman to Jonathan Pinson, Greg Ward, Domo Branch and Charlie Brown; release his sophomore record “Barefoot” (PJCE Records) featuring Randy Porter, Todd Sickafoose and Alan Jones; and tour the west coast extensively with Ian George, Cyrus Nabipoor and the Jack Radsliff Trio.

Jack’s playing can be heard on more than a dozen records to date. His own records, “Migration Patterns” (2017) and “Barefoot” (2024), have been well received; both making it onto critics “best of” lists. In his relatively short recording career, Jack has contributed to releases from Cyrus Nabipoor, Tony Glausi, Martina DaSilva, Dan Rossi, Machado Majiga and Pablo Rivarola. With more and more music coming out, follow Jack on instagram (@JackRadsliff) to stay up to date.

Jack Radsliff, guitar + compositions

Christian Ramirez, bass

Micah Hummel, drums

Charlie Porter Quintet

Thu, Jul 23

Charlie Porter is back on tour from NYC with an incredible band featuring Nick Biello on tenor sax/flute, George Colligan on piano, Garrett Baxter on bass and Christopher Brown on drums! This one you truly cannot miss!

Charlie Porter is a GRAMMY Award–winning jazz trumpeter and composer who has been active on the international jazz scene for over two decades. He has released six albums as a leader, including Immigration Nation, which was named one of the Best Albums of the Year by DownBeat. As a performer and bandleader, Porter has appeared at major jazz festivals worldwide and at leading New York venues including The Blue Note, Smalls, Dizzy’s Club, Birdland, and The Jazz Gallery, among many others.

Of Lebanese, Greek, Italian, and British ancestry, Porter brings a naturally cross-cultural perspective to his work, shaping projects that merge musical traditions, interdisciplinary collaboration, and narrative design in ways that continually push the boundaries of jazz. He has collaborated and performed with a wide range of artists across generations of the music, including Joe Zawinul, Orrin Evans, Chuck Israels, Kenny Washington, Paquito D’Rivera, Winard Harper, and the Dizzy Gillespie All-Stars, among many others. His work emphasizes long-form composition, ensemble interplay, and concept-driven projects that often expand the possibilities of traditional jazz presentation — from live collaborations with visual artists to immersive, narrative-driven releases. DownBeat has described his playing as “fluid, expressive, and magnificent.” In addition to his work as a recording artist, he continues to develop new projects that explore the evolving language of modern jazz.

Charlie’s current work includes the upcoming release of his seventh album as a leader, Sci-Fi Standards, Vol. 1: The Future We Knew, due this summer. The project reimagines music from classic science-fiction cinema through an original jazz lens, blending composition, improvisation, and ensemble interplay. Following boundary-expanding releases such as Cipher and his Sketches project — which featured live collaboration with visual artists — the album continues Porter’s ongoing exploration of new creative frameworks. Its release will coincide with tours throughout the East Coast, West Coast, and Asia.

As a composer, Porter has been commissioned by the Doris Duke Foundation and Chamber Music America. He is currently Professor of Trumpet at New York University.

The SoulJazz Collective ft. Nick Milo & LaRhonda Steele

Sun, Jul 26

Welcoming back to Christo's, the SoulJazz Collective! Featuring the amazing vocal stylings of LaRhonda Steele, and featuring keyboardist Nick Milo, guitarist Richard Smith, bassist Kevin Deitz and drummer John Bishop. They'll be doing classics and originals from the Great American Soul Songbook.

Nick Milo's career has brought him into the role of long-time music director for legendary musicians from Joe Cocker and Maria Muldaur to Tower of Power. As a composer Nick has worked in film and television and has composed for many top artists on the global R&B and soul scene, including Greg Adams and East Bay Soul.

LaRhonda Steele is a Blues and gospel singer and songwriter, is recognized as one the region's best rhythm and blues vocalists. She has been dubbed "The First Lady of Portland Blues”—a title of leadership that she lives up to as she shares songs that carry forth directly from her soul and spiritual life-force. She currently fronts the LaRhonda Steele band, is music director of the non profit Portland Interfaith Gospel Choir, and is music director of Portland Center for Spiritual Living. LaRhonda regularly lights up the stage at the Waterfront Blues Festival, Alberta Rose Theatre, and clubs around town. LaRhonda’s voice can be enjoyed on recordings of national and international artists including Gino Vannelli, Curtis Salgado, Lloyd Jones, Mary Flower, and Norman Sylvester, to name a few.

Kevin Deitz is an educator, a composer/arranger, and multi-instrumentalist who has performed with the Portland Opera Company, Portland Chamber Orchestra, Third Angle New Music Ensemble, Mose Allison, Frankie Avalon, Dave Brubeck, Terrence Blanchard, Andrea Bocelli, Paquito D’Rivera, The Eagles, Kurt Elling, Benny Golson, Ill Divo, The Moody Blues, Kenny Rankin and Brian Wilson amongst many others. He is an artist/endorser for Conklin Basses and Sidewinder strings and his album of original compositions, Skylines, is on the Origin Arts label.

As a drummer, educator, record label owner, graphic designer, and festival presenter, John Bishop has been one of the primary voices in Northwest Jazz for 40 years. He has performed in concerts and clubs with Lee Konitz, Slide Hampton, Benny Golson, Bobby Hutcherson, Ernestine Anderson, Dr. Lonnie Smith, Sonny Fortune, Herb Ellis, Gary Peacock, Buddy DeFranco, Carla Bley, Steve Swallow, and countless others. He’s appeared on more than 100 albums, including sessions with Hal Galper, Larry Coryell, Ernie Watts, Mark Murphy, Joe Locke, Bud Shank, George Cables, Ralph Towner, Teo Macero, and Jerry Bergonzi. He was inducted into the Seattle Jazz Hall of Fame in 2008 and was named a “Jazz Hero” by the Jazz Journalists Association in 2019.

Richard Smith is a Los Angeles based recording artist and music professor at USC. His last 3 singles (2021 and 2022) have landed him in the most-played category on Sirius XM. His recordings feature Jeff Lorber, Kenny G, Vinnie Coaliuta, Alex Acuna and members of Tower of Power. He is a member of Greg Adams and East Bay Soul and helped pen the title cut of their last CD ‘The Real’

The 4 Kings

Thu, Jul 30

The 4 Kings are marching into town on a hot Saturday night! The kings in question are the one and only Sean Holmes on vocals, the sultan of saxophone Renato Caranto, boss of the B3 Louis Pain on the Hammond organ and master of backbeat Edwin Coleman III on drums. Organist “King Louie” Pain and vocalist Sean Holmes both moved to Portland from the San Francisco Bay Area in 1986, but they didn’t cross paths in either music scene until one afternoon in 2010 at Portland’s Waterfront Blues Festival. The two got in a casual conversation that day and discovered that they shared a home town. But it also turned out that Sean’s mother—vocalist/violinist Carol Stallings—had gone to high school with Louis’ singer/songwriter brother Duncan, and that Duncan and Carol had later played with some of the same legendary Bay Area musical artists, including drummer Joe Provost (Maze) and Carol's saxophonist brother Ron "Rev" Stallings! Following that conversation at the blues festival, Louis began inviting Sean to be a part of his popular “Portland Soul All-Stars” soul tribute shows at Jimmy Mak’s. Several years later, Sean returned the favor, including Louis in a Ray Charles tribute set at the Cathedral Park Jazz Festival. Since then, Louis & Sean have been working together semi-regularly. This dynamic duo has great fun making music together, and audiences can’t get enough of them—whether they’re playing funky dance music or mellow background sounds! When the dynamic saxophonist Renato Caranto is added to the mix, the group is dubbed, "The Three Kings." And when exciting drummer Edwin Coleman III joins the group, they're "The Four Kings!" Sean grew up in San Francisco and the Los Angeles area in a family of working musicians – Mom, Dad, uncle, grandfather, cousins. Sean had some of his first recording sessions with his mom, Carol Stallings, at Hollywood Sound Studio in LA and at the Jackson Family's home studio in Encino, CA. (Carol recorded and toured with numerous famous artists, including Joe Cocker and Englebert Humperdink.) Sean arrived in Portland Fall of 1986 on a basketball scholarship at Concordia College. He soon traded in his hoop shoes for a choir robe, studied voice, and began working with local musicians. Sean has worked with many top local and national artists, including Linda Hornbuckle, the Portland Jazz Orchestra, David Byrne & The Oregon Symphony, Bobby Torres, Esperanza Spalding, Obo Addy, Brian Blade, Mel Brown, Thara & Tahira Memory, Liv Warfield, Curtis Salgado, Taj Mahal, Soul Vaccination, 5 Guys Named Moe, Steve Miller, and Jarrod Lawson. An Oregon Music Hall of Fame inductee dubbed "Portland's boss of the B-3" by The Oregonian, Louis actually hails from San Francisco, CA. Beginning in the 1970’s, Louis played and recorded with a wide variety of top Bay Area musicians, including members of Tower of Power, the Ray Charles Orchestra, Santana, Steely Dan, the Doobie Bros., the Edwin Hawkins Singers, and B.B. King. Since moving north in '86, Louis has continued the trend, working with visiting legends including Martha Reeves, Solomon Burke, Phil Upchurch, and Bernard “Pretty” Purdie, as well as with a “who’s who” of local blues & jazz artists, including Mel Brown, Curtis Salgado, Lloyd Jones, and the late great “Sweet Baby” James Benton, Paul deLay, and Linda Hornbuckle. He’s performed dozens of times at the Safeway Waterfront Blues festival and innumerable times at other NW venues, including approximately 1,500 performances at Portland’s Jimmy Mak’s. In the 1990’s, Louis played on and co-produced four Paul deLay Band CDs released on the Evidence Records label. In recent years, he’s produced and performed on a series of critically acclaimed CDs on his own Shoug Records label, including “Rock Me Baby” with vocalist LaRhonda Steele, “Live at Riverhouse Jazz” with a trio of vocalists, and the all-instrumental, all-original release “It’s About Time,” featuring the King Louie Organ Trio. All three CDs received 4-star reviews in Downbeat and were featured in the magazine’s annual “Best Albums of the Year” issues.

Christo's's Upcoming Shows