On Thursday night, saxophonist David Sanborn with his trio, along with Joey DeFrancesco on the Hammond B-3 organ, will be taking over Dimitriou's Jazz Alley for three nights of jazzy fun. Although Sanborn has found commercial success with his saxophone making smooth jazz music, his work has spanned the genres to include rock 'n' roll, R&B, and pop. Since his first album Taking Off debuted in 1975, Sanborn's discography contains over 20 records, several of which are Grammy Award-winners. His prominence on the music scene since the 1980s has contributed to keeping the sound of the saxophone modern throughout the last couple decades. Most recently, Sanborn was featured in a 2007 song by Ween, "Your Party," and that same year, he sat in with the Allman Brothers Band at the Beacon Theater in New York City. more ›

HOW-TO BOOK: You may have run into Reza Aslan, author of No god but God: The Origins, Evolution, and Future of Islam, while watching the Daily Show. Now you can see the professor of creative writing (at the University of California, Riverside) in person, talking about his newest book, How to Win a Cosmic War: God, Globalization, and the End of the War on Terror. Sounding a bit like John Gottman, Aslan says the best cosmic war is one that isn't fought; he says need to strip conflicts of their religious connotations and address the more earth-bound grievances that generate the cosmic mindset. more ›