There’s nothing like “the hang” at a local jazz club, and with things beginning to open up in the land of soon to be recalled Gavin Newsome, people are starting to grab on to the gentle mercies of musical life once again.
One of the pleasant regularities of The Baked P otato is the monthly visitation of Groove Legacy, always a guarantee of bluesy and soulful R&B infested jazz. The team of Travis Carlton/b, Paulie Cerra/ts, Sam Meek/g, Francisco Torres/tb Bill seinway/keys and Gary Novak/dr was sweetened up by the addition of guest 6 stringer Toshi Yanagi, creating a “guitar section” as Cerra joked between tunes.
As advertised by the band’s name, the 90 minute set was a true groove fest, with the irresistible backbeat provided by Carlton and Novak providing a rivulet for the two horns to sound like a mix of Steely Dan and The Brecker Brothers. Hip lines and wacka wooking guitar riffs set the stage for Cerra, who sounded like he took his Arnett Cobb pills that morning with bluesy blowing on “Sweetness” a while blowing grew smoke rings over the upbeat shuffle pulse on the catchy “Late Night Resurrection”. The horns volleyed tighter than the girl’s Olympic team over Novak’s nifty intro on the fingersnapping “3rd Line” while Meek made the strings bend and snap like Reese Witherspoon on the dreamy “Soul Power”. Yanagi showed some snazzy fingerwork over Carlton’s funky groove on “47 Degree Angle” while Steinway stretched out over the MIngusy propulsion on the wild ride of “The Know It All.
Cerra even added some gritty singing, adding extra flavor to the dry rub BBQ swamp of the STAXY “Cape Town To Memphis” before the team closed the set out on a richly swaying gospel’d “Quiet Time”.
With everyone having been dormant for over a year, it seems like these gents didn’t waste the lockdown, adding new material that sounds fresh and optimistic. Hopefully the next gig will include some new albums to sell. WHEW!
Upcoming shows at The Baked Potato include 08/13 Jeff Lorber Fusion, Charles Ruggiero Quartet 08/16, Chris Standring 08/19, Lao Tizer 07/26, and Oz Noy 08/27-28