REVIEW

the excellent band had a ball to support his playing, creating monster grooves without end. They were asked back for an encore, and did “The Genie”, one of his very first hits, which truly made my day. Witnessing this concert was a privilege, I was really thrilled after the show.

In the evening, guitarist and well known producer Paul Brown appeared, backed by band a (without Tony Remy but with Carl). He opened with “Winelight” and brought things nicely up to speed, followed by “The Funky Joint”, delivering some nice bluesy guitar playing. In the middle part, he invited his wife Jacqui Brown to the stage, giving her an opportunity to showcase her own c&w material with a couple of songs, before the smooth jazz groove continued. He invited special guest Blake Aaron to do the Larry Carlton classic “Sleepwalker” with him, before the groove picked up again with the slamming “24/7” and others. To conclude the festival, we got a “Farewell Jam Session” supported by the solid house band that played earlier plus guests like Kim Waters, Bobby Lyle, Gabriel Mark Hasselbach and Blake Aaron, plus upcoming players like Matthias Beckmann (trumpet) and Naomi Adriaansz (sax). They went through tracks like “Put It Where You Want It”, “Cantaloupe Island”, “Lovely Day” and others, ending a great festival.

Summing up this year’s Algarve Smooth Jazz Festival, I had another great time among my music friends from all over the world, met several artists in person and was able to spend some time with them, the weather was nice all week (although the evenings were a bit chilly), the outdoor setting is just perfect, and the hotel is a very suitable host for our needs. The two house bands ft. London based players provided an outstanding level of musicianship, and DJ Rich did beautiful Q&A sessions during the afternoons on the patio accompanied by a handpicked selection of tracks, plus spinned nice old school dance tracks during the after show parties. I expect the festival to continue successfully at this place, and I am looking forward to being back next year.

Mallorca Smooth Jazz Festival 2019: