Another chilly night on the streets of Rochester completely failed to deter thousands of people from packing the clubs and filling the streets at the 2006 Rochester International Jazz Festival.
Kilbourn Hall welcomed back pianist Cedar Walton, who played an engaging hour of solo piano for an enthusiastic audience. The set list included two Walton tunes: “Cedar’s Blues” and “Underground Memoirs.” The rest of the evening found Walton navigating the entire range of the grand piano on everything from “Skylark” (an emotional touchstone of the set) to “Willow Weep For Me,” which rolled steadily on a wave of flatted fifths. The list also included a handful of tunes about time: “Every Time We Say Goodbye,” “Time After Time,” “I Didn’t Know What Time It Was,” and “Just In Time.”
When he wasn’t seated at the piano, Cedar delivered lines with the timing of a comedian. He read song titles from a scrap of paper as he introduced the tunes, but at one point he got up from the piano without the list. “That was ‘Every Time We Say Goodbye,'” he said. “The next piece is … I’ll tell you when I’m finished because I’ve got to go look at my list.” He introduced his composition “Underground Memoirs” by saying, “If this one doesn’t put you to sleep, nothing will.”
One thing the Jazz Festival might consider is handing out cough drops. Someone who sounded like they were moments from an appointment with the Grim Reaper spent the entire show hacking in the middle of the theater.
As any jazzhead will tell you, nothing goes with an hour of introspective piano like the Godfather of Soul. Which is a happy coincidence, because that’s just the menu the festival was serving tonight.
It was hard not to be skeptical about a 73-year-old man trying to recreate the soul power of his youth, but it was even harder not to be won over by the mind-jellying funk of The James Brown Show. For more than an hour, the enormous band turned the 3,000 spectators — including Rochester’s mayor, Bob Duffy — into participants, forcing them out of their seats and onto their feet to shake what could be shook. The band had two drummers with full drum sets, a percussionist, three guitarists, a bassist, four backup singers, a guest vocalist, two dancers, three horn players, an M.C., and R.J., who stood on the side of the stage for all but the last ten minutes, when he came on to ask the immortal question, “Do you want James Brown to do his thang?” Everyone said they did, so Soul Brother Number One busted out “Sex Machine,” and it was all over but the leather pants and hot flashes. That said, seeing James Brown in 2006 rather than 1966 is a little like seeing a tiger in a zoo rather than going out into the jungle yourself — you can say you’ve seen it, but it’s not exactly like the real thing. Not that it mattered; a soulful time was had by all.
Djabe played two free sets on the outdoor Jazz Street Stage, and the street was full, despite the cold. Similarly, Roomful of Blues and Little Feat filled the East Avenue Stage.
Back in the clubs, it was time for the most star-studded ensemble of Day 2, as trumpeter Eddie Henderson played swinging hard bop with pianist George Cables, bassist Ed Howard and drummer Billy Drummond (whom Henderson referred to as the “chief of the fire department”). At least, I think those were the guys — the players were almost invisible on the stage, which was apparently lit by the novelty blacklight department at Spencer’s Gifts.
But who needs to see when you can hear? And there was plenty to hear. The late set was full of classic tracks, including “One Finger Snap,” “El Gaucho,” and “Green Dolphin Street.” Henderson used the flugelhorn to wonderful effect on several tunes, his tone sounding like a warm fleece blanket on a cold (June?) night. Cables and Drummond were captivating. Drummond’s solo on “One Finger Snap” was a master class in timing, texture and musicality as he alternated between a curtain of cymbals and driving snare/tom work. A rousing “Cantaloupe Island” finished off the evening, as the band played well past the allotted time. “As you can see, we want to keep playing,” Henderson said. “I hope that’s all right.”
The jam session was packed with minor league ball players, prom guests and jazz lovers. Festival promoter John Nugent held sway for an entire set, slightly belying the “jam” concept, but he was ably assisted by guitarist Bob Sneider, drummer Mike Melito, and Roomful of Blues sax player Mark Earley, with whom Nugent attended college. The bar was full of jazznocenti, including Eddie Henderson and his son, the members of Djabe, and James Brown’s drummer, Mousie.
And that was how it rolled on Day 2.
For complete information, including audio files, concert photos and more, visit rochesterjazz.com.
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