Another cloudy, windy day made it pretty easy to deal with the elements unless you were wearing a floppy hat. Crowds still manageable – lots of people for Alabama Shakes and they looked like they were having a hell of a time. Acura will be a tough hang from here on out. But I’ve got to say there’s just no good reason to force yourself into a crammed space to hear good music at Jazz Fest. There’s too much damn great music going on to make yourself uncomfortable trying to listen to it. And if you want to dance I recommend the Jazz and Heritage or Fais Do-Do stage pretty much any time.
Photo by Willow Haley.
Stanton Moore
Saw Stanton Moore at the Jazz tent and he was at his best. Started out with a trio featuring Astral Project bassist James Singleton and pianist David Torkanowsky. The trio played two out of three James Black songs – “Whistle Stop” and “Magnolia Triangle” — to start things off. The rest of the set, all taken from Moore’s upcoming album, was made up of Allen Toussaint songs.
Moore brought out Eric Bloom on trumpet, Skerik on tenor sax and Mike Dillon on percussion for a version of “Java,” Toussaint’s million-seller for Al Hirt. Bloom laid back for the first pass but soon rode into his virtuoso comfort zone. Don’t make things too easy for this guy.
Next, the terrific rendition of “Magnolia Triangle” highlighted by Moore’s thunderous drum intro and a game-changing arco-loop solo from Singleton. Moore then stood up from his drum kit and addressed the crowd:
“Every musician in New Orleans considers him one of the greatest soul singers of all time.”
Enter Cyril Neville, resplendent in a tan outfit topped with a white fedora. Stanton hip checked the band into a tricky 5/4 slicing of “Everything I Do Going to be Funky” with Cyril navigating the beat deftly. Great horn arrangement. Then Cyril just took over on a finale of “Night People” that had him pushing the band to successive heights with his vocals. “Shake it…” Cyril shouted. “Jazz Fest 17.”
Pat McLaughlin and His New Orleans Outfit
Pat McLaughlin is such a good singer/songwriter/guitarist. Give him a two guitar quartet and you’ve got a gourmet meal. At the Lagniappe stage he teamed up with the inimitable lumberjack Alex McMurray, bassist Rene Coman of the Iguanas and potential monument Carlo Nuccio on drums. McLaughlin is a singer who puts so much into every vocal you link to Van Morrison (tone, phrasing) and Joe Cocker (sheer soul bearing emotion). But only Pat McLaughlin sounds like this. Blues and R&B, could be from underwater, Bobby Charles and beyond, send out a search party.
McLaughlin told the crowd that his day job was playing guitar with John Prine, then sang a song he wrote with Prine about going downtown to rattle somebody’s cage. And something about a monkey, I think. Lots and lots of songs. “Still In the Morning Light.” McLaughlin with his gritty Red Telecaster with the PM inscribed on the neck and McMurray with his fat hollow body Gibson, the perfect dialogue of twang and shaking reverb, rolling it up on “Repo Man,” “I’m In the Mood to Break My Baby’s Heart,” then the astonishingly dramatic “Cry On Me.”
“I don’t know if there’s a better gig than this,” said McLaughlin. “It just means so much to be able to get up here and play your shit.”
Delfeayo Marsalis: King Big Band
The smartest man in the room celebrated Donald Trump’s first 100 days in office by closing out the Jazz Tent lineup on Day 2. Delfeayo Marsalis released one of the best New Orleans albums of 2016, ironically titled “Make America Great Again,” before the election. Let’s hope his reign as the leader of the city’s best working big band lasts longer than Agent Orange. Delf brought his 15 piece band in top form, with a four trombone chorus pumping the front line. Roger Lewis carried the weight with his powerful baritone saxophone, soloing against giant slabs of sound in classic Ellingtonian/Mingus style. A great way to end the day and don’t let anybody tell you there’s no jazz at Jazz Fest.
