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 Afro-Cuban All Stars |
 Mavis Staples |
 Average White Band |
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Review and photos by Mary Andrews The Tucson Jazz Festival continues to have world class jazz artists at multiple venues in the city. Out of town visitors as well as local fans are here to enjoy the great Arizona weather and music. Here is a rundown of what we experienced during the ten days of the fest.Maceo Parker is a legendary saxophonist and innovator of soul and funk music. He has thrilled audiences performing in bands from the James Brown Band, George Clinton, and Prince to his solo band for well over 50 years. Parker and his big band have been touring with a show dedicated to one of his idols, Ray Charles. The ‘To Ray with Love’ tour is very special. Parker’s big band included many former members of the Ray Charles Orchestra conducted by Steve Sigmund. The show opened with the instrumental "One Mint Julip." Parker sauntered on to the stage doing his best ‘Ray Charles’ wearing dark sunglasses, a silk-patterned jacket, grinning, and slapping his hand against his thigh as the band played. Parker even mimicked Charles’ characteristic shoulder-sway to the beat of the songs. It was uncanny how Parker’s vocal renditions of "Let the Good Times Roll," "Busted" and "Georgia On My Mind" carried the listener back to Charles’ vocals. Half-way through the show, Parker called upon the Raelettes, Karen Evans, Katrina Harper, and Elaine Woodard, to harmonize on "Hit the Road Jack" and "Unchain my Heart." It shouldn’t be surprising that Charles was a major influence on Parker from an early age. Parker reminisced that he finally got to meet Charles when he was 18. He vowed that one day, Charles would know his name. Parker didn’t really play his saxophone till the later portion of the show when he leaned into his funk roots with "Soul Power." The show was much like traveling back to a time when Charles ruled radio airplay and one could wallow in the revere of Ray Charles’ music. David Sanborn has had a prolific musical career for well over 40 years. The list of his contributions to popular music is unending. Sanborn has earned six Grammy Awards, eight gold albums with one that is certified platinum. His 150 contributions as a sideman on other artists’ albums is top-notch. The concert at the Fox Theatre was highly anticipated and the entire quintet was brilliant. The musicians included Michael Dease on trombone and trumpet, Geoffrey Keezer on keyboards, Bob Deboo on acoustic bass, and Billy Kilson on drums in addition to Sanborn on saxophone. Each member had ample opportunity to shine. It was apparent many times during the show that Sanborn enjoyed his support band as much as the audience did. Several genre of music were covered during the set. The closest to smooth jazz was "It’s All in the Game." Sanborn remarked that he was surprised when he learned that the song was written by Calvin Coolidge’s vice-president, Charles Dawes. Several of the songs were taken from Sanborn’s most recent album, Time and the River. Funk, Afro-beat, and R & B music were celebrated. A re-working of "Maputo" was given stellar treatment using a West African beat. Sunday night was time for a younger generation of artists vying for their own iconic place in jazz. Grace Kelly and Aubrey Logan had separate sets at the Rialto Theatre. Neither was an opening act as each artist performed a complete set. Grace Kelly is a saxophonist, a singer/songwriter and an arranger. To say Kelly was born to entertain is an understatement. She was a child prodigy who wrote her first song at the age of seven. By the age of 12, she released her first of 13 CDs. It was obvious that from the first few moments Kelly took the stage, the show was going to be a high-octane jazz show. The show was a thrilling mixture of Kelly’s outstanding saxophone and her jazz vocals. It was also obvious that she is a veteran of showmanship at the ripe old age of 27. The set was a mixture of her self-penned songs and musical standards. The show started with "Unchain My Heart." Kelly’s body movements while she is playing saxophone is hypnotic. "You Are My Sunshine" was Kelly’s take on Bill Withers’ "Ain’t No Sunshine" punctuated by one of her many sax solos during the night. Michael Jackson’s "Billie Jean" and Van Morrison’s "Crazy Love" were highlights of the night. Kelly was able to switch from a paired down saxophone to an energetic, gritty sound. You can’t take your eyes off of the powerhouse performer. Tucson will welcome Kelly back anytime. Aubrey Logan had the task of following up Kelly’s dynamic performance. Logan was well aware that she had her work cut out for her and she seemed to be willing to do just about anything to capture the hearts of the crowd. Logan met the challenge with aplomb. She sings, writes songs and plays a mean trombone. Logan may be best known for her work with Postmodern Jukebox or the Dave Koz Band. She is an American Idol alumnus from 2009. As soon as she hit the stage, Logan displayed her innate ability to develop an immediate rapport with the crowd. She managed to keep this attention going throughout the entire set. The set started with a sweet rendition of a Doobie Brothers’ cover of "Listen to the Music." Logan’s very impressive vocal acrobatics were displayed with a jazzy operatic number "Habanera" (L’amour est un oiseau rebelle) from Bizet’s opera, Carmen. She told the story about how she wanted to be an opera singer, but got disillusioned. She chose jazz instead. There was an incredible cover of Carol King’s "(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman." The encore was very special with Grace Kelly joining Logan on stage with a rousing version of "I Don’t Need No Doctor." Both entertainers played their chosen instruments and sang as the crowd joined in, clapped and danced their way to the end of the show. With entertainers like these two, you really DON’T need no doctor. Christian McBride is one of modern jazz’s most innovative music today. McBride utilizes bop, fusion, electronic, hip-hop and World Music to express his creative force. His band, Inside Straight, proved that they are just as creative as McBride. Inside Straight is Warren Wolf, vibraphonist, saxophonist Steve Wilson, keyboardist Peter Martin and drummer Carl Allen. They gave a thrilling set while showing a mutual respect for each other’s performance. Each soloist drew on an enormous inventory of musical choices and each rocked the house. The set started with "Listen to the Heroes Cry" from their People Music album. They followed with "Starbeam" and Duke Ellington’s "Sophisticated Lady." The Tucson Jazz Institute’s Duke Ellington Band opened the show and the national award-winning band gave a sterling set with what may have been the highlight of the night when McBride joined the band. He shared his standup bass with two of the high school bassists. Each took over the bass mid-song without missing a beat. McBride acknowledged that his New Jersey youth orchestra were defeated by Tucson’s band for three years. America is credited as the birthplace of jazz music, but the roots of jazz emanated from Africa, Europe, and Cuba. It’s only natural that TJF would have representation via the Afro-Cuban All Stars. The band is led by Juan de Marcos Gonzalez formerly tres player for Sierra Maestra and the Buena Vista Social Club. The result of their infusion of bolero, salsa, chachacha, timba, danzon, son montuno, rumba, and abakua music is a blast of energy and sensuality. Their music transported the sold-out crowd to dancing queens and kings for the night. This is a large orchestra of hot brass, tireless percussionists paying tribute to Cuban songwriters. At one point in the show Gonzalez abandoned the stage to join the crowd and dance. It was a full-blown party that won’t be soon forgotten. Every member of the band played and sang to perfection. The funk and R&B vibe of the festival was carried on by the Scottish Average White Band (AWB). They date back to 1974. Alan Gorrie and "Onnie" McIntyre have been playing in the band for 48 years and counting. The band is fueled by their ‘hot‘ horn players. The musicians are intoxicating to watch. It’s impossible not to dance to their funky beats. Their biggest hits "Cut the Cake" and "Pick Up the Pieces" were given the royal treatment. They also played new tunes from their latest album, Inside Out. Lead singer Brent Carter kept the crowd mesmerized as he belted out the hits. Jazz-drummer, Allison Miller, has made quite a splash in jazz as a composer and performer. Her band is called the Boom Tick Boom and features Myra Melford on piano, Jenny Scheinman on violin, Todd Sickafoose on bass, Kirk Knuffke on coronet, and Ben Goldberg on clarinet. Each performer proved that they are consummate musicians. The 90-minute set included the selections "Fuster," "Slow Jam," "The Ride," and "Melaga." Jazz has been attributed to the advent of breaking the boundaries of racism in America with the collaboration between white and black musicians. Mavis Staples has been in the forefront in breaking those boundaries. Staples’ career started in a world of extreme racism in 1950 as the youngest member of The Staple Singers led by her father, Roebuck "Pops" Staples, and included all of her siblings. The family had their first hit record in 1956 with "Uncloudy Day." When Mavis Staples graduated from high school in 1957, she started touring throughout this country including the deep South. Staples has a lot of stories to tell about traveling in the unfriendly states of America as an African American without clean hotel accommodations and limited eating establishments. The family had a message to deliver and there were many people who needed inspiration to make better times for themselves and their children. "Pops" wrote the songs and played guitar. The family delivered the message of their music. By the sixties, "Pops" had developed a relationship with Martin Luther King, Jr. During the last 70 years, Mavis Staples has not skipped a beat. It was a night that truly demonstrated Staples’ absolute power to move and motivate the people. Staples was supported by Rick Holmstrom on guitar and vocals, Stephen Hodges on drums, Donny Gerrard on vocals, and C.c. White on vocals. Mavis Staples was scheduled on the eve of Martin Luther King Day. It was smart planning. She was a witness to the civil rights era and lived it all throughout the years. Staples made it very clear during her show that her job is not done. We still have social challenges to overcome. Singer/songwriter, Suzanne Santo, opened for Staples. Santo is also a member of the band, HoneyHoney. Santo gave an impassioned 40-minute set of songs from her solo album, Ruby Red. She was invited to join Staples later in the show to add background vocals. It has been a very diverse Jazz festival. This was the best Tucson Jazz festival ever. We do say that every year. It will be interesting to see how the producers will top this year’s jazz festival. |
 Afro-Cuban All Stars |
 Afro-Cuban All Stars |
 Afro-Cuban All Stars |
 Afro-Cuban All Stars |
 Mavis Staples |
 Average White Band |
 Average White Band |
 Mavis Staples |
 Average White Band |
 Average White Band |
 Average White Band |
 Maceo Parker |
 Maceo Parker |
 Maceo Parker |
 Aubrey Logan |
 Aubrey Logan |
 Aubrey Logan |
 Grace Kelly |
 Grace Kelly |
 Grace Kelly |
 Grace Kelly |
 Grace Kelly |
 David Sanborn |
 David Sanborn |
 David Sanborn |
 David Sanborn |
 David Sanborn |
 David Sanborn |
 Christian McBride |
 Christian McBride |
 Christian McBride |
 Christian McBride |
 Christian McBride |
 Allison Miller |
 Allison Miller |
 Allison Miller |
 Allison Miller |
 Allison Miller |
 Allison Miller |
 Suzanne Santo |
 Suzanne Santo |
 Suzanne Santo |
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