Being faithful to the Advent Season, tidings of comfort and joy were delivered by the Open Hands All Star Quartet of Patrice Rushen/p, Justo Almario/sax-fl, Abraham Laboriel/b and Bill Maxwell, bringing the Moss Theater 100 minutes of swinging celestial seasonings.
Festivities were in the air throughout the evening, exemplified by the upbeat and soulful tunes such as Laboriel’s “Arroyo” and Rushen’s cheerful “Osi Mama that had Almario’s feathery flute fly over optimistic and soulfully funky bass lines, hard hitting drum backbeats and flowing full fisted piano solos.
Almario used his tenor sax like a rose between his teeth for a festive table dance on the celebrative “Partita” while Laboriel delivered rich and heartfelt intro to “Fiesta” before bearing down into a gospel pulse and Rushen delivering a hip bop solo.
Things got as spiritual as a night in Bethlehem as Rushen’s meditative piano intro to “Safely In His Presence” created a Sunday morning light through stained glass windows. Almario preached from his tenor sax and Laboriel testified on bass, asking the audience to close their eyes and say a prayer before leading the faithful into a spiritual sing-along of “Hallelujahs” that rivaled any heavenly host.
Spirit filled, the quartet got muscular and bold as Almario pulled out his soprano sax, Laboriel cheerfully added voice to his lyrical bass as the two did a wonderful sparkling duet that included the pop hit “Sunny” before Rushen jumped into the meeting with ivories flying and Laboriel breaking into a dance before the Lord. Her own post modern harmonies on “L’Espri De Voie” was a truth in advertising, expressing a spiritual happiness along side inspiring musical repartee between Maxwell and Laboriel.
Before the band encored with an urgent “ Lus De Mi Camino,” Laboriel stated that “we’re glad to be musicians for you, as music is nothing if there is no one to play for”. The appreciation was reciprocated, as the audience was given comfort and joy to be able to hear music that pointed to The Reason for The Season.
Upcoming shows sponsored by The Jazz Bakery include Tess Souter with Eric Reed 12/15 and Gretchen Parlato 12/21