I've never held much affinity for the clarinet. Then again, I'd never seen Dave Bennett before. Friday night, along with the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra, Bennett and his group, the Dave Bennett Sextet, brought some of the best jazz improv I've seen this side of last year's Xerox Rochester International Jazz Festival, and quite possibly the best clarinet playing I've seen ever.

Bennett was a joy: charismatic, humorous, and one hell of a player. I don't think it's fair to say that he plays the clarinet. He wields it, crafting and controlling even the most extreme ranges of the instrument, making a believer out of even the most biased brass players (myself included). The RPO as a whole was slightly underutilized in this setting, and had a hard time competing with the louder dynamics of the sextet. But it was really Bennett in the spotlight. "Yesterday" was hauntingly beautiful, and you can't go wrong with a rousing edition of "Sing, Sing, Sing."

Saturday was all about the jam. Night two of Max Creek's annual back-to-back stint at Water Street was a potpourri of talent, all of which knew how to get up and get down with the best of them.

Rochester natives T.A.O. opened up, and aside from Creek, was probably the closest band on the bill to the roots of groove-laden jam. I was impressed with what the group brought to the stage, and it had people dancing - and hula hooping - in no time.

But, the next two acts really stole the show. Boston-based Adam Ezra Group blended rock, funk, and Latin undercurrents with front man Ezra's acoustic guitar-based singer-songwriter tendencies. What resulted was an energetic show that was part sweat, part groove, and all parts awesome.

And The Prickers, well... This band is a rare gem that I can't believe I haven't had the pleasure of seeing before. Pedal steel, violin, banjo, trumpet, keyboard, bass, and drums blended into a folksy bluegrass stomp that was as much fun as any hoedown. The Naples-based band will be back in town next month, so keep an eye out, and bring your dancing shoes.

Max Creek knows how to put on a show; the band's tried-and-true approach has kept it jamming for 40 years, which is quite the accomplishment by any standard. Saturday night the group played what seemed like one long stream of musical consciousness that made me wonder how all the musicians manage to stay together for such lengths of time. Save for the short break in between sets, there was barely a moment of respite in the band's nearly four-hour set, but things were a little too laid back for my tastes. The party didn't finish until 2:30 a.m., giving the house quite the jam-packed evening. A treat for true fans, but a little exhausting for the uninitiated.