The surprisingly sweet sounds of the Sunset.

I'm not going to lie. I wasn't exactly brimming with enthusiasm when I chose the Sunset District as my neighborhood (it was one of few remaining when I enrolled). Though I've spent only a few days exploring the area, I have a slight understanding of what it offers. Largely residential, the Sunset's entertainment qualities apparently fall short to that of Haight Ashbury, or the Tenderloin.   

However, imbedded within the obscure confines of Taraval street lies a melodic gem treasured by a limited audience. 

The Green Earth Cafe hosts "Open Jazz Jam Sessions" every Saturday afternoon. Arranged by the Uptime Jazz Quartet, this three-and-one-half-hour music block was designed to invite jazz admirers from across the bay to perform along side the group.

The band was still setting up when I arrived 10 minutes before the scheduled 3:30 start. Judging from the two others in attendance, I didn't think it was a huge deal. 

Gazing up at the cafe's wall clock, which read 3:32, the saxophonist turned to his band-mates and asked, "well, should we start?" The rest nodded their heads in agreement.

After giving eight snaps of his right hand to prompt the song's tempo, the band leaped into its opening track. Not 15 seconds into it, a frantic trio of latecomers suddenly stormed across Taraval, shoved open the door and quickly grabbed a seat.  Within moments their eager and worried expressions melted to relief and joy. Their feet tapped to the bassist's rhythm. Their heads bobbed to the drummer's downbeats. 

If you've been keeping count, that final group brought the crowd to six. I know it's not exactly AC/DC cramming Oakland's Oracle Arena to maximum capacity. But seeing the range of emotion on their faces and hearing the excitement in their voices during each song's well-deserved applause showed me this was something. "If it's within my power, I don't miss them," one latecomer told me. 

It's safe to say jazz is alive and well in the Sunset (well, it is on the 1700 block of Taraval, at least).