Gordon Polatnick's Big Apple Jazz Tours

   Private Tour  Private Jazz Tour
  customized, 4-hour minimum  info

   Harlem Juke Joint Tour  Harlem Juke Joint Tour
  walking, 4/5-hours, up to 8 guests   info

   Great Day in Harlem Tour Great Day in Harlem Tour
  van, 5-hours, up to 12 guests   info

   Greenwich Village Jazz Crawl Greenwich Village Jazz Crawl
  walking, 4-hours, up to 10 guests

   Student Group Jazz Tour 
  all-ages  --  customized   info

GROUP OPTIONS

Big Apple Jazz Tour Gift Certificate

HOMEPAGE

 "This tour, hosted by New York jazz expert Gordon Polatnick, is the real deal for jazz buffs."   ~  Brian Silverman, Frommer's New York City 2013 & New York City For Dummies
-------------------------------------------------------------------
"Insider Gordon Polatnick offers a fabulous introduction to the Harlem jazz scene with walking and bus tours that typically take in some of the lesser-known clubs and plenty of jazz history."  ~  Stephen Keeling
The Rough Guide to New York City, 2012

Contact Big Apple Jazz Tours: tel. (718) 606-8442
Email: Gordon@BigAppleJazz.com

Fantastic evening with a brilliant host Harlem Juke Joint Tour

Gordon's reviews speak for themselves. He's everything the other reviewers say - friendly, knowledgeable, passionate about jazz . . but not in an annoying or pretentious way. He is clearly dedicated to making sure his clients have a brilliant time and is full of interesting insights, anecdotes and opinions. What's also great though is that once you're in a club he'll let you have the experience you want; be that sitting at a bar, dancing, mingling, sitting in a corner - it's not like being on some dreadful tour where you are herded around like sheep. Furthermore he's obviously very popular with the locals in Harlem's jazz clubs and wherever we went he was warmly welcomed. We went on a Friday night and stopped at three venues, eating brilliant tasty soul food at the second. We saw a great range of bands and each club was very different. All were fantastic. New York's an expensive city so $99 might seem like a lot of money but I think Gordon's tour is worth every single penny. Highly recommended. You'll never see these places, let alone understand what's going on, without his expert guidance and humorous commentary.  Harlem Juke Joint Tour

PHOTO SLIDESHOW

PRIVATE JAZZ TOUR INFO BELOW
Tours available EVERY night of the week
from Greenwich Village to Harlem - Brooklyn too!
TEL: (718) 606-8442

Check availability and Buy Tickets online:
New York City Public Jazz Tours

To Buy Tickets by phone, call Zerve at (212) 209-3370.

HOME / REFERENCES / CONTACT / CONSULTATION / PRIVATE JAZZ TOURS / TERMS AND CONDITIONS / STUDENT JAZZ TOURS

Click here for All New York City Sightseeing and Guide Services

Back Home: BigAppleJazz.com

We had a blast in NYC...and this was a highlight!
We wanted to hear good jazz music and didn't want to end up someplace too touristy. Our carefully planned outing was a great way to find where to go, how to get there, and hear awesome music. I would highly recommend this outing to all jazz fans. We will never forget it!
~Anita King

Awesome...!
Thanks so much for the wonderful Juke Joint tour. We visited some great clubs. In particular, we visited a little hole in the wall kind of place that had an amazing energy and the people were welcoming. The performers were so fine! As I was leaving, one of the regulars said to me he saw me in the front row with a smile from ear to ear glued on my face! Our guide was friendly and so knowledgeable. He was also very willing to customize the tour to the interests of those that went out with us that night. My wife and I can recommend this wonderful tour and any and all who love jazz. You won't be disappointed. First class operation! ~Captain Hall

Check availability and Buy Tickets online: Harlem Juke Joint Tour

 

 

   

 :: Scheduled Public Tours ::

Advance purchase required — tours often sell out in advance!

NEW-Public Tours
Wed.-Thurs.-Fri.-Sun. Night Tour:  
Harlem Juke Joint Crawl: 4-5 hours
$99.00   (up to 8 guests only - more intimate)
Take the "A" Train from Columbus Circle to Harlem
to hear the best musicians bring the house down in
at least 2, but more often 3 different clubs.  Mix and mingle with Harlem's jazz greats and the best jazz fans in the world.  Plenty of Harlem jazz history along the way.  Harlem Juke Joint Tour
 

 Legends of Jazz Tour.  With too many great players and clubs to choose from, this tour takes you right to the hand-picked show of the night, and follows that with a second set in a hidden jazz haunt to hear our choice for the show that shouldn't be missed featuring one of New York's legends of tomorrow. $129.00  4-Hours
This tour also runs privately for an intimate evening out. 
Call Gordon at US Tel: (718) 606-8442.  or email gordon@bigapplejazz.com.
 

Great Day in Harlem Jazz BusTour:  5-hours Great Day in Harlem Tour
Sunday Public Tour by mini-bus:
Best for large groups.
Only $149.00 
Call (718) 606-8442 to request a discount for large party booking. (Discounted tickets for kids - $100).
Includes: 3 live music clubs, soulful soul food dinner, comprehensive tour of Harlem jazz scene and historic jazz sites.  Chance to join the jam session as singer or soloist.  Mix and mingle with Harlem's jazz greats and the best jazz fans in the world.
 

Or you may prefer a...
PRIVATE JAZZ TOUR Private Jazz Tour
Customized exclusively for you
*US Telephone: 718 606-8442. gordon@bigapplejazz.com
*Ask about Wednesday's
Hammond B3 Organ Summit.

Let us know if you like tap dancers, blues bands, vocalists, piano trios, romantic lounges, glitzy night clubs, down and dirty jam sessions, pool halls with jazz, Harlem brownstones with jazz, joining the jam session to sing or play, cutting edge New York jazz, Latin jazz, big bands, historic sites, lessons, to meet the musicians, gospel choirs, soul food dinners, etc.

One Private Tour Option:
MONDAYS:  TRAD and SWING (read more)

Jazz tours are customized specifically for you or your group.  A group can be any size.  We have couples and families and small circles of friends calling us from around the world; and we have corporate groups and school outings looking for something more interactive than the typical dinner and a Broadway show.  So keep it intimate or invite all your friends out for an exciting and memorable evening.  

Large groups click here for more options.

Guide service is $100/hour for the whole group and we need at least 4 hours. So the minimum payment is $400.    We have a popular $99/per person Wed./ Thurs. / Fri./ Sun. Night Tour of Harlem Juke Joints as an alternative for singles and couples.

Transportation costs are not included but I will help you with your choices - including: Walking, subways, taxis, limos, vans, or buses.  Prices will range from $0 on up.  We will arrange hiring the transportation of your choice after consulting with you and giving you the best options to suit your style and budget.

We will visit clubs that have the atmosphere and music that suits your tastes -- choices include seeing legendary players at legendary clubs like Birdland and the Village Vanguard; and/or neighborhood dives and small clubs where you are likely to find surprise guests with extraordinary talent and passion; intimate clubs featuring vocalists and trios; Hammond B-3 organ lounges; jam sessions that start late and end early from Harlem down to the Village; and great hidden restaurants in all 5 boroughs.  New York is spoiled with choices, and I can help you find the clubs that will make your jazz dreams come true.  And if you want to sit in, I will find you a jam session that will treat you like a long lost friend.  Jazz history and commentary available throughout the tour if you swing that way, or an unobtrusive escort if you don't.  Cover charges will range from $0 - $50 per person per club.  We will choose clubs to fit your budget without sacrificing anything musically.  

TOURS ARE AVAILABLE 7 NIGHTS A WEEK.

For Example

A private Monday night Greenwich Village Jazz Tour
can include something for everyone,
 You can pick and choose between:

*An intimate candle-lit bistro in the basement of Vice President Aaron Burr's old townhouse, featuring a superior vocalist who will seem like she's singing just for you. $12.00 cover charge.
*Traditional Jazz played in New York's version of Preservation Hall - by a band that has been playing in this funky spot for over 45 years! No cover charge.
*A roomy and fun restaurant with a Swinging Modern Big Band. No cover charge.
*A Big Band Orchestra playing modern jazz in the underground Greenwich Village jazz club that set a high standard of excellence for the past 70 years.  $30, includes a drink from the bar.
*A set at the world famous Blue Note! Only $15 cover charge.
*A thrilling Village experience at one of the several hip clubs featuring today's hottest young jazz masters.  $5--$20 cover charge or drink minimum.
*A pool hall so you can play billiards, ping pong, or cards while the band jams on.

Blues Clubs are also an option on a Big Apple Jazz Tour

More:

EVERY MONDAY: TRAD and SWING OPTION (read more)

 OR Greenwich Village Jazz Crawl
  walking, 4-hours, up to 10 guests

---

A private Friday night Harlem Jazz Tour
will have choices such as:

*A speakeasy in an old brownstone with a BYOB drinking policy. $20 cover.
*A wild dive bar with a phenomenal hard bop band with vocalist. tip jar and 1 drink minimum.
*A neighborhood Hammond B3 jazz lounge. 2 drink minimum per set.
*A nice neighborhood supper club with live jazz/blues. $25.00 cover + $16 drink minimum
*A roadhouse Blues Bar with a bar band that will knock you out.  1 drink min.
*A wild bohemian world music spot with the best hamburger anywhere.  No cover, 1 drink per set

Blues Clubs are also an option on a Big Apple Jazz Tour

Email: Gordon@BigAppleJazz.com

---

OR Join Our WEEKLY PUBLIC TOUR:
Wednesday, Thursday, Friday & Sunday Night  Harlem Juke Joint Tour
We start out at 6:30 taking the A Train to Sugar Hill to catch an old-school Harlem female vocalist in a legendary neighborhood juke joint.  Then we walk/or subway down to Central Harlem and point out several great current music venues, and restaurants, as well as the locations of historic ones such as the original Cotton Club, Savoy Ballroom, Smalls Paradise, Count Basie's Club, the Big Apple - - and the site of the legendary Tree of Hope.  Our next set of music is at a side street members only club with a Hammond B-3 organ trio and a great inexpensive soul food menu.  (Other great Harlem clubs may be substituted based on scheduling needs).

Price per person: $99 Includes cover charges, guide service, roundtrip transportation.  Timing: 4-5 hours from @6:30PM - 12:00PM Expenses: Drinks and food and musician tips.  Harlem Juke Joint Tour

---

A private Sunday Evening Uptown Jazz Tour offers
Great Vocalists and Authentic Soul and Latin Jazz

*The most upscale choice would include an intimate restaurant/club uptown with a great vocalist and band. They require a $20 minimum but no cover charge.

*Or we could go to a great little side-street club in Harlem and have wonderful and inexpensive soul food and meal and watch a great jam session get rolling featuring Hammond B-3 organ, guitar and drums with horns and vocalists sitting in. The meals would be only around $10 per person and very tasty. We would want to get there at 6PM before the music starts at 7PM to get a good table (no reservations taken and they only have 5 tables). No cover charge.

*The next club could be a classic art deco Harlem club from the 1930's, or a Sugar Hill neighborhood lounge -- both with a vocal jam session that will bring up a lot of surprise singers throughout the set. The first has a $10 cover charge and 2 drink minimum, the second has a $3 table charge and a 2 drink minimum.

*You may also choose between a hot Latin and Afro-Cuban Jazz band later in the evening with a $20 food or beverage minimum and no cover charge. 

*If you wish to start as early as 3:00PM and finish by 8PM please check out the Sunday  Great Day In Harlem Public Jazz Tour.  Comprehensive, Exciting and Good for all ages.

Email: Gordon@BigAppleJazz.com

---

See It All

The Whole Enchilada!

We can hire a limo and start at your leisure (any night of the week), finishing as late as  4AM.  Dive Bars, Nightclubs and Restaurants can be sampled from one end of town to the other and bring you back to your front door.  Groups can be intimate or large.  If a limo is not the way you roll, we can take cabs or the subway, or hire a town car instead.

Please don't hesitate to call or email to design your own perfect night exploring the world's richest jazz scene. 
Ask for Gordon: (718) 606-8442.
Email: Gordon@BigAppleJazz.com

 

Guide service = $100 per hour + expenses: cover charges, drinks, meals, transportation.  All customized to your budget without sacrificing anything musically.

If you're new to jazz, or just want to spin the wheel of fate...just say so, and I'll take you along with me on my nightly jazz journey -- tracking down the insiders' tips on where the excitement is on the chosen night of your tour.  We could discover a hidden neighborhood scene or a fresh talent destined for greatness.  This is the tour where I set out to discover the next Miles Davis or Billie Holiday playing below the radar and get right up close in an off-the-beaten-path joint.

"This tour, hosted by New York jazz expert Gordon Polatnick, is the real deal for jazz buffs."
~ Brian Silverman
Frommer's New York City 2013 & New York City For Dummies

"If you want to try to hear the music in the city's bones the way a New Yorker like me does, take a tour like Gordon Polatnick's Big Apple Jazz Tour..." 
~ Gene Santoro from Welcome to New York

Gene Santoro is the author of Myself When I Am Real: The Life and Music of Charles Mingus and Highway 61 Revisited: The Tangled Roots of American Jazz, Blues, Rock, and Country Music. He covers music for the New York Daily News and is a columnist for Chamber Music. His writing has appeared in The New York Times, The New York Post, the Village Voice, New York, the New Yorker, Discover, the American Scholar, the Atlantic Monthly, People, Entertainment Weekly, DownBeat, and Billboard.

 “Gordon, Thanks a million for the fabulous Harlem jazz experience you mastered so wonderfully! I wish all my colleagues from the UN could hear your charming stories and insights, or the fantastic jam sessions you gave us the chance to enjoy in some cool clubs. My stay in New York would have been much poorer without this tour! Thanks for opening my eyes to the places where I can have the most authentic and thrilling jazz experiences!!! I’ll be back!”

 ~ Ambassador Simona Miculescu,
Permanent Representative of Romania to the UN

"Thanks so much for putting together an unforgettable jazz evening in Harlem .  The group loved being able to take the A Train into Harlem (made them feel adventuresome) as well as the outstanding dinner and music.  I’m really glad I stayed and had a chance to enjoy the speakeasy.  Both places, the dive and the speakeasy, sure had a great atmosphere and I loved being able to hear such great music in such a small close-up setting."
 ~ Catherine J. Heeg International Professional Speaker and Trainer - Calgary, Alberta, Canada

"...thank you for last Monday night and the invaluable tips which you gave us. I was a bit suspicious at the outset of our contact as I thought I could find out most or all things from the internet. But, there is in fact, nothing which surpasses local knowledge...There are venues around town that are tourist traps and there are other venues that involve the real thing presented by real people...I want to tell you about our experiences because I am so excited by them..."
~Mark Blumberg - President Jazz Action Society SOUTH AUSTRALIA Inc. "Promoting Australian Jazz and Jazz In Australia"

"Thank you so much for guiding me to that fantastic Monday Night Harlem Jam.  Without your help I could have never been exposed to such a wonderful true jazz experience like that in my life. I now know what is the real jazz , the music and the atmosphere."
~Osamu - Chiba, Japan.

"It was a dream come true for Matt as he ably played his sax with the outstanding musicians assembled. He will never forget  his many solos and especially the extremely warm reception." ~Jim Kane (Matt's Father) - Auburn, MA

"In addition to meeting and listening to some great characters the evening had a real bonus in that I enjoyed your company so much. Thanks again for a great night."
 ~Brain Mate Stoke on Trent - England

"Your tailor-made tour of jazz clubs was the indisputable highlight of our visit to New York."
~Kees Broekhof  Trombonist and jazz enthusiast,  Oegstgeest, The Netherlands

"When I tell people about the tour, I find that I am talking about you and your style as much as the music." ~Nat Carney, York, PA

"These places we went to...there is no way we would have seen these places without you. We want everybody to know that this tour is a must."
~Adrian Stoppelman  and Graciela Rodriguez,  Buenos Aires, Argentina

"We are back in British Columbia, and just want to write to thank you, and tell you how much we enjoyed our evening in Harlem.  What a great experience and one we will remember. We stayed later at the last club and it was indeed a rich evening of superb talent and atmosphere.  All four venues were excellent choices and gave us a nice taste of the deep and diverse - an enviable - music culture of  Harlem.  We know that we hardly scratched the surface but we felt 'more in tune' with the scene than if we had attempted it ourselves. We were also really happy to meet you personally -- thank you for sharing your knowledge of the area and jazz history... not to mention your limousine service.  We had a great night! You live in an amazing city, and the people are exceptional, you included.   Thanks again for the great night in Harlem!"
~ Jen and Rick Grover, Vancouver, BC, Canada

"...Gordon proved to be so thoroughly knowledgeable of jazz locales and players that he could attune the tour to our personal tastes and experience with jazz...The others in our group of Philadelphia doctors, lawyers and professors thoroughly subscribe to the above." ~Dr. Jack Dobbyn - Philadelphia, PA

• Consultation fee is only $75.00/hr. with a one hour minimum.
• There is no charge for any  preliminary information provided via e-mail.
• Complete Satisfaction Guaranteed or no charge.

Reservations:
Email: Gordon@BigAppleJazz.com     Phone: (718) 606-8442   Fax: (212) 656-1057

General New York City Sightseeing

Whatever your sightseeing needs, we can take you there with personalized care.

We provide just the right touch for

• Corporate Incentive Groups
• Bachelor Parties
• Birthday Outings
• School Groups
  Educational Tours
  Historic Sites
• Family Reunions
• Adventurous Individuals
• New York City Optionals
• Private Parties

Step-on Guides -- all languages
Half day / full day or multi day
All Budgets

EMAIL or call to make your reservations today

Phone: (718) 606-8442

Here's a sample 4-Hour Itinerary
For your group
 

Starting at any Midtown Hotel
A- Uptown on 8th Ave through Hell's Kitchen passed the Soup Nazi from Seinfeld fame up to Columbus Circle and Central Park

B- Get off the coach at Strawberry Fields, the John Lennon memorial at 72nd and Central Park West, for a short walk through Central Park.

C- Head up to see the new cool Planetarium (where at night they have a show in the Sphere with psychedelic animation and music by Moby).

D- Back down town on Broadway to see a residential area accessible by subways where there are many bars, restaurants and some hip jazz clubs.

E- Left at Columbus Circle to 5th Ave shopping district starting at the Plaza Hotel (a great place to spot celebrities). Drive downtown to Rockefeller Center where NBC studios (skating rink, Christmas tree during winter) are located. Photos here if you wish.

F- Right onto 49th Street over to Times Square passed the TKTS booth for cheap Broadway tickets, and the Visitors Center for maps, stamps, discount coupons and bathrooms. See MTV studios, Planet Hollywood, Virgin Megastore, "Naked Cowboy," ESPN, and 42nd Street attractions, including Madame Tussaud's Wax Museum, Mega internet cafe, BB King's etc.

G- Continue down thru the garment center passed the amazing shopping opportunities in and around Macy's and 34th Street to the Empire State Building..

H- Head downtown to Greenwich Village and get off the bus for Italian pastries and espresso on Bleecker Street -- and if there's time, check out the Bohemian scene in Washington Square Park by New York University and see the guerilla chess players.

I- Head down on West Broadway through SoHo's trendy shopping and art gallery district on the way to see Little Italy and Chinatown.

J- Continue through Chinatown on Bowery to Worth Street heading toward Ground Zero and Wall Street Area. The bus will stop at Battery Park for views of the 911 memorial and the Statue of Liberty before heading back uptown to get off the bus at Ground Zero.

K- We'll drive along the Hudson River to get back uptown to the hotel, which is an excellent time to answer individual questions from each of the passengers.

EMAIL

Tour Guide Home Page
Ethnic Neighborhoods Tour
NYC Jazz Tours
References
Sample Itinerary
Home: BigAppleJazz.com

Terms and Conditions

TOP