Rhythms of the Bay

from Bay Area Houston Magazine January 2022

Clear Lake Chatter 2

By Patty Andrew

December nights provided great opportunities for live music and entertainment of all kinds in the Galveston Bay area. Lively locales dot the landscape and regularly feature the brightest talents in Texas to put everyone into a holiday mood. Let’s take a look inside a few favorite places to see which artists are bringing a festive sparkle to our seaside shores.

Kelly Williams

MEDITERRANEO MARKET & CAFÉ,

the Nassau Bay venue with exquisite dishes from around the Mediterranean Basin, hosted two favorite performers to kick off the weekend fun: Kelly Williams and Jameela, belly dancer from Bella Donna Dance Company.

KELLY WILLIAMS, a well-known singer in this area, sailed her honey voice over the dining room with popular tunes and Christmas carols while diners sang along between bites of feta and gyros. Kelly has a smile as wide as Texas as well as a heart of gold. Locals may also recognize her from her online talk show, T-Bone Tom’s Gospel Brunch, or her previous stint on the Kemah City Council. This woman never slows down, and we are very lucky that she shares all her talents with us here especially her dynamic voice and personality.

JAMEELA swapped sets with Kelly to provide the colorful and enthralling belly dancing that included daring sword balancing and colorful scarf flying. Jameela is originally from Guam and is trained as a hula dancer. Noting the similarities between hula and belly dancing, she has incorporated the best of both into her unique, exotic style. While belly dancing can have a sensual and mesmerizing effect on an audience, Jameela points out that it is a great exercise especially for strengthening the core, providing good cardio, and improving balance and stability. Jameela is very fun to watch, and we applaud Mediterraneo’s for having both belly dancers and musicians every Friday and Saturday night. Follow Kelly Williams on Facebook at https://www.facebook. com/SingerKellyWilliams. Learn more about Jameela and the other dancers of their company at BellaDonnaDance.com. Mediterraneo Market & Café is located at 1400 NASA Rd 1, Unit D in Nassau Bay.

Almost every night of the week,

Mambo Jazz Kings

JACKIE’S BRICKHOUSE has live music on their outside patio or main stage inside. While they do

Mambo Jazz Kings

book acts from the area, they are also fond of pulling in those from further away to give their audiences a chance to experience something different. With Mambo Jazz Kings, Jackie’s has done all of the above. MAMBO JAZZ KINGS (OR MJK) is a 14-piece band that mixes vocals, strings, keyboards, percussion, and horns to provide a sound that touches all genres: Soul, Funk, R&B, Rock, Latin, Jazz, and more. Starting in the Galveston County area almost 39 years ago, their members now come from all over the Greater Houston-Galveston area to bring a vibrant show to their followers everywhere. Art Lopez, creative director, has built MJK to seamlessly glide through their diversified repertoire that is sure to pull people to their feet or sing along with the band’s contagious energy. MJK’s performing strength comes from the high quality of their musicians. Lead singers Stormy and Starr have commanding voices that powerfully support great anthems such as The Doobie Brother’s “Long Train Runnin’” (aka, Without Love) or Aretha Franklin’s “Respect.” Listen for Ron “Grip” Davis and Danny “Disco” Hernandez’ keyboards on Stevie Wonder’s “I Wish.” MJK generously allows its performers to shine in solos such as Ernest Gonzalez on the drums and Fritz

Shiring on the lead guitar. Art Lopez himself on rhythm guitar and Tom Tonkin on bass neatly round out the strings and Mike Ramirez shimmers on percussion. Blowing MJK to the next level of greatness is their magnificent horn section with Brad Neimi on trumpet, Tony Richardson on saxophone, and Craig Zlatnik on trombone and any other horn you can think of. They shine with the big horns especially on Earth, Wind, & Fire and KC & The Sunshine Band numbers.

Overall, Mambo Jazz Kings are great fun to listen to, sing with, and dance the night away. They are staples at Mardi Gras! Galveston and many other area events. Find out about their upcoming shows at http://mambojazzkingslive. com/ and on https://www.facebook.com/ mjkings.

Visit Jackie’s Brickhouse at 1053 Marina Bay Drive in Kemah just across from Clear Lake Shores, or go to their website, https:// jackiesbrickhouse.com/ or Facebook page to get up-to-date music scoop.

T-BONE TOM’S is as legendary a live music mecca as it is famous for its tasty Texas specialties from the kitchen. Frequently recognized for its long-time commitment to musicians and live performances of all styles, T-Bone Tom’s features live music six nights a week. T-Bone’s outdid themselves with the righteously talented rock bank, O.g.r.e., “Old Guys Rocking Excessively.” O.G.R.E. is a pure rock and roll band with some of the best musicians around. They can melt guitar strings while pounding out strong percussions and booming vocals. Aerosmith, ZZ Top, and AC/DC are just a few of the familiar rock songs that were expertly performed at T-Bone’s the other night while we sat in awe of music greatness.

It didn’t seem to matter to O.g.r.e. if there was an audience or not; they were performing for the fun of it, for themselves, as if they were jamming at home in the garage.

The real treat of their show is a 20-minute medley of Led Zepplin tunes that will have baby boomers scrambling to find their old LP’s for some earsplitting fun. During their set, O.g.r.e. made you feel like you were at a concert while they performed their perfect rendition of Led Zepplin; they show they have mastered the craft. O.g.r.e. plays the way every kid with a guitar imagines that he or she sounds. O.g.r.e.’s performance is spot on with tight vocals, electrifying guitars, and riveting drums. Charlie Salazar is a guitar wizard whose showstopping strings take rock and rock lovers to new levels of nirvana. Steve Stanley has amazing vocals with rock solid control and great power that stretches across multiple octaves with seeming ease. Dewel Higginbotham’s drums pound through the night in vibrant precision. Cliff Jackson has some fine pipes himself along with high energy playing ax. Providing the auditory heft is Bob Gylling’s bass, leading us through the night’s nostalgic journey of greatness.

O.g.r.e. may call themselves the Old Guys but they are o.g.r.e. band Houston on YouTube and at https://www.facebook.com/ o.g.r.e.classicrockband.

T-Bone Tom’s is conveniently located at 707 Highway 146, Kemah and on Facebook.

Make a New Year’s Resolution to visit these and other local live music locations in 2022 and discover more musical legends. Adopt the Mambo Jazz King’s: “Have Soul. Will Travel.”