ROCKING JAZZ WITH JAMIE CULLUM, BRIAN BLADE COMMANDING THE STAGE, CLINT EASTWOOD MAKING AN APPEARANCE & MORE
So, dear reader - just back in the saddle again to give you the latest update.
We last left off with me quickly finishing up some fish and chips at the Fisherman's Wharf and finishing off my Chardonnay to make it to the Festival grounds.
First of all, you gotta love these shuttles.
When they say every 10 minutes, they mean it. And the fellow jazz lovers couldn't be nicer. Everyone wants to know who you are looking forward to seeing, what they did and didn't catch and wishing you well. Very nice vibe!
And it got even nicer as we made our way past the crowds to check out the new sensation Jamie Cullum, who was playing on at the main arena. Buzz was high on this kid and now we know why: young, irreverent and talented. A rock vibe playing jazz like nobody's business but with all the rock stage antics to accompany a good Aerosmith concert. Amazing command and execution for this young, cutie who also doesn't mind having a beer on stage while he is playing. If you are looking for a breath of fresh air in jazz, this kid could well be it. We've decided to make a note to make certain we download his track(s) from the free iTunes download card we got on the way into today's events. Apparently the festival has the hook-up with iTunes to offer cuts from performers featured at during the festival. Nice cross-promo.
As we made our way, still amazed, from the Arena to the Garden stage; we were in for a treat. Brian Blade, another festival darling and the drummer with Joshua Redman, was well in command of a quintet that was kicking butt! Everyone was into this performance. As the strong sun light the stage perfectly, you could almost say the Festival was made for this moment.
But time flies during the last day at Monterey. Next thing we knew it was time to check out Clint Eastwood actually interviewing Jamie Cullum as a nice little treat. So nice that everyone else thought the same and it was way too packed for us to even get in.
Finding a bit of solace in a Cajun turkey sausage and sauerkraut, we parked ourselves for a few moments at the Food Courtyard. But here's something funny. This particular stand boasted radioactive hot sauce, and they were not lying. Just one "test" drop on your finger from the seller sent us scrambling for as much liquid as possible!
Quickly recovering and deciding if we couldn't get to see one Eastwood, we would take another; we hit Kyle Eastwood's (son of Clint) performance which turned out to be a nice funky, jazzy offering. A talented musician who also threw in some jazz/rock fusion, Kyle was doing his thing (and we ain't just saying that because of the celeb connection).
Not quite knowing what to expect from something billed as a Hammond B3 Blowout, we headed over to one of the enclosed venues to ease into what we thought would be a trip back to a '60s vibe with organs. We checked out an artist named Barbara Dennerlein, who to be honest, brought the international vibe we were wondering about just the day before but did not bring the flavor we had hoped for. Though talented, this artist was a bit too classical in style for our tastes and then ended up making the next act, the famous Brian Auger (with his Oblivion Express) looking even hotter. Everyone said that it was undeniably groovy--the Auger of the '70s. He was giving you funky, acid psychedelic without any disappointment at all. The twist? His daughter Savannah who joined him on vocals made it all reminiscent of his work back in the day with Judy Driscoll (for those organ fans from back in the day).
The finale?
Herbie Hancock closed the festival and we have to say, although there was a bit of magic in the air, there was really nothing new here--Which is a shame. Ending the festival with the purchase of a couple of egg rolls (and complimentary ones given, it being the end of the festival), we happily ate and surveyed the crowd begin to move toward the shuttles to travel home to soon start the work week.
Finding it to be just a bit after midnight, we decided to do the same.
All in all, quite an interesting experience. --Lauren Coleman
SPOTTED
Images from the festival by photographer Philippe Certa.
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