Jazz Beat: Phoenix Fest, at the Phoenix

This weekend, Eighth Street closes between Broadway and Central, and a stage goes up in the street. At the fourth annual Phoenix Fest, as the occasion is known, the performances will vacillate between jazz and blues. Music starts at 1 p.m. with singer, trumpeter and tap-dancer Lonnie McFadden, followed by swing-piano showman Tim Whitmer & KC Express. Singer Millie Edwards leads the Wild Women of KC at 5 p.m., before a pair of blues bands — MGDs and Cadillac Flambe — fill out the night. Inside at the Phoenix, the music begins with dynamic jazz vocalist Eboni Fondren at 6, then gives way to the self-described “groove-driven soul rock” of Brother Bagman. That closed section of Eighth Street is named Scamps Alley, after the classic jazz group that entertained at the Phoenix for years. Saturday, the tradition continues.