REVIEW

Brian ample opportunity to stretch out on the keys. The band played beautifully, and bassist Orefo did a great job on their rendition of “Take Five”, arguably the greatest jazz song of all time. Tony provided some hot guitar solos, while Carl complemented the music nicely with his smooth sax playing. Towards the end, he funked it up having people get up, coming back for an encore, ending a very satisfying concert.

Friday night, guitarist Blake Aaron was appearing. He played with band a (without Tony Remy) and delved right into it doing songs from his catalog ft. his funky guitar playing, alternating on the hollow and solid body guitars, in addition, saxophonist Carl joined in for a few songs. Among the tracks played was “Cantadora”, beautiful covers of Santana’s “Europa” where he soared on the guitar, and the Halls & Oates classic “Sara Smile”, which was simply beautiful, and “Story Of My Life”, all songs from his current release “Soul Stories”. He displayed great chops and provided a solid show.

Next was trumpeter Rick Braun – a veteran of the scene, who was backed by band b, plus Carl Stanley. They went through a varied program of music, among the songs played was “Crossroads”, the title track of his brand new release, and a host of classics from his catalog, like “Notorious”, “Crossroads”, the Bill Withers’ classic “Use Me”, and others. A nice surprise was his vocal rendition of “My Funny Valentine” with a nice muted trumpet solo, and his War medley was cool, with songs like “Cisco Kid” and “Why Can’t We Be Friends”. His playing on the trumpet and flugelhorn was simply awesome, and the band was grooving hard and provided many solos, at the end of the show, he had people dancing in front of the stage, finishing with “Grazing In the Grass”. Rick is a class act that knows how to deliver an entertaining set on the highest level of artistry.

Saturday morning, rising star Kayla Waters on keys appeared. She played with band a and also brought her flutist Kelly Gainer with her which added a nice flavour to the music. Kayla mostly played material from her current release “Coevolve”, especially “Zephyr” which was her biggest hit so far stood out. She is a real talent getting much deserved attention, which is no surprise given her pedigree, with father Kim Waters supporting her career. Her show was well received.

Next was another veteran of the scene: bassist Gerald Veasley. He was accompanied by band b, but with Orefo on bass, plus Carl. The band was grooving, and they went through tracks like “Cross Currents” and the heartfelt “Sarah’s Song” ft. Carl on soprano sax. Over the course of the show, things began to get funkier with “Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin)” and a couple of Grover songs like “Just The Two Of Us” and “Winelight” which featured special guest Kim Waters on saxophone, providing a great solo. Later they tackled Stevie Wonder’s “Do I Do” which incorporated the world’s most famous bass lines from tracks like “Rapper’s Delight”, “Hollywood Swinging”, “Skin Tight” and more. Gerald was in a great playing