Everyone knows the capital of the United States is Washington, DC. Most everyone knows it's also the capital of go-go music. There's still a lot of people who call the District the murder capital of the world. But let's not forget the vibrant life of jazz that permeates all over DC.

Throughtout DC you'll find clubs and bars playing jazz. Live jazz. All forms of jazz. Nothing but jazz.

My favorite spot is Ellington's on Eighth on Barrack's Row near Eastern Market. This cozy setting has a wide variety of jazz musicians, an ambience that makes you feel like you're at home and a staff that's simply the coolest anywhere of any establishment I've been to yet. I make it a point to swing through and holla at Annette and Gadril every chance I can when I'm in the area. Anytime I have company visiting from out of town, I'll take them there. If we don't catch a live Brazillian band or a solo trumpet player, we'll indulge in the Sunday Brunch, sitting on the patio out back.

A well-known combination of locations for serious jazz fans is Twins Lounge on Colorado Ave NW and Twins Jazz on U Street. Twins Kelly and Maze Tesfaye opened the two locations first in 1987 with Twins Lounge then Twins Jazz in 2001, which also serves up Ethiopian, Caribbean and American dishes. You will be able to find live jazz between these two locations six nights a week.

One of DC's, well, let me say, the country's most well-known locations i found in Georgetown. Founded in 1965, Blues Alley is the nation's oldest jazz supper club, according to their website. They were there for Dizzie Gillespie, Sarah Vaughan, Nancy Wilson, Grover Washington, Jr., Ramsey Lewis, Charlie Byrd, Maynard Ferguson and Eva Cassidy. And to this day you can listen to today's jazz artists while enjoying Creole cuisine seven days a week. You know this is a serious jazz club when the menu has items such as:

• Stanley Turrentine's Crab Cakes
• Dizzy Gillespie's Shrimp Creole
• Ramsey Lewis' Grilled Chicken
• Les McCann's Stuffed Pork Chops
• Phyllis Hyman's Stuffed Shrimp
• Tony Bennett's Shrimp and Artichoke Hearts
• Sarah Vaughan's Filet Mignon

Dating back to 1926 in the basement of a drug store on 11th and U Street was a little jazz club class Club Caverns. Their legacy includes: Washington's Son Duke Ellington, Cab Calloway, Billy Holiday, Sarah Vaughn, Louis Armstrong, Ramsey Lewis, Less McCann, Miles Davis, Shirley Horn, John Coltrane, Eric Dolphy, Wynton Marsalis, Thelonious Monk, Charles Mingus and even Bill Cosby. The name had changed to Crystal Caverns before settling on Bohemian Caverns. And you can still enjoy live music and have a good time from Tuesday through Saturday.

Another U Street spot is Dukes City. This location has live jazz Thursday through Sunday. It is a spacious location that also has reggae and hip hop on special nights upstairs. Its elegance is in its white table cloths amd linen napkins, the exposed bricks and wooden floors, the oversized plants in the balcony to provide a metropolitan feeling with a tropical twist.

Want to try a something a little different, but it has to be jazz? Then there's always the Alero Restaurant where you'll wind down to Latin jazz. There are three locations (U Street, Dupont Circle and Cleveland Park) which also serves up dishes such as Enchiladas de Cangrejo, Huachiandngo a la Veracruzana and Robalo a la Pariila. And of course, plenty of Margaritas and Tequila. I know U Street does live jazz, but when I went to the one in Dupont Circle, there was no live jazz.

Five more locations to go!