Another year, another Berks Jazz Festival; the 21st Berks Jazz Festival to be exact, and I could hardly wait to take it all in.   Not just because of the great line-up, but because it’s always an opportunity for me to network with my peers, to see old friends, and to make new ones.  It’s been a long winter and I’m ready to get the jazz festival season under way.

The Berks Jazz Festival runs for a full 10 days from start to finish in the early days of spring.  Unfortunately, due to other obligations during the week (work) I can only attend on the weekend; that’s when they run most of the big, headliner shows.

This festival is unique because it not only focuses on entertainment, but on education and community involvement as well.  The first weekend of Berks is always the start of Gerald Veasley’s Bass Boot Camp, now in its 9th successful year.  The Boot Camp is an intense three days of instruction, practice, and performance, led by Veasley and a host of his talented bass playing peers.   They start early in the day and go on late into the night for the full three days. 

In addition to Veasley’s Bass Boot Camp, guitarist Chuck Loeb, another long time Berks regular and favorite, offered a master class, and drummer Steve Smith also offered classes.   Where else can you get such hands on expertise from some of the most talented musicians in the industry?

Then the concerts began.  My first show of the night was Norman Brown & Richard Elliott.  Brown noted that he and Elliott have known each other for 25 years, but this is the first opportunity they’ve had to play together.  They opened the set together, playing EWF’s “Getaway,” then alternated playing their own separate songs.   “Rock Steady,” “Move on Up,” and “Inner City Blues,” by Richard Elliott.  “Inner City Blues” is a classic, but it’s one of those songs that has been covered to excess, without the covering artists bringing a new, fresh perspective to the song.  Richard Elliott’s interpretation breathes new life into this classic tune.  He chooses to start the song on the EWI with a long, slow introduction, then switches to his zebra striped sax and gives it his signature growl.  And, of course, he played “When a Man Loves a Woman,” to a standing ovation.  Norman Brown joined in on “Keep on Truckin’.”  It was sweet seeing Elliott on vocoder matching Brown’s scatting.  They used this song to transition to Brown’s set.  He performed songs from his latest release, Sending My Love, including the title tune, and “Playtime,” with its catchy samba groove.  Brown also performed some of his many hits, crowd favorites like “After the Storm,” and “That’s the Way Love Goes.”  He gave us a musical look into his influences: Hendrix, Wes Montgomery, and George Benson.  Richard Elliott joined him onstage for an exciting version of Michael Jackson’s “Heartbreak Hotel,” and the encore, “What’s Going On.”  I liked these musicians playing together.  They had great chemistry.  I only wish they would have played more songs together, but, that would mean a three hour show instead of two.  I’m alright with that, but I think it may have posed a problem with them.

There was a lot more music yet to come.   The next show for me was jazz royalty: George Duke & Al Jarreau, sharing the same stage.  These two artists go back many years together, and I could hardly wait to see this sold out show.  They had a killer rhythm section of Rayford Griffin on drums, and Michael Manson on bass.  Duke performed “Brazilian Love Affair,” “Cobra,” “Backyard Ritual,” a tribute to Miles Davis, and his classic hit, “Sweet Baby.”  “No Rhyme, No Reason,” a deep and emotional George Duke tune, found Duke tickling the ivories of the piano, to the keyboard, back to the piano again, and back and forth.  Jarreau performed “Cold Duck,” “Beginning to See the Light,” “Teach Me Tonight,” and a very different version of “We’re in This Love Together.”  You never know what’s coming, or where it’s coming from with Jarreau.  He’s very clever at taking songs he’s sung for years, mixing them up, and making them sound new and fresh.

The next show was Gerald Veasley’s Sounds of Philly with Carol Riddick, Nick Colionne, Walter Beasley, and Will Downing.  How could anyone go wrong with that line-up?

As expected, they lived up to all musical expectations.  Veasley is a master of collaboration.  He shows that every year at Berks.  This was old school R&B played with a smooth jazz flair.  Veasley’s bass lines and Carol Riddick’s vocals on “Nights Over Egypt,” were right on point.  This being a Philly show, of course they paid tribute to the late, great Grover Washington, Jr.  with “Winelight,” played by Beasley, Veasley, Colionne, and Downing.  This was a showstopper, absolutely amazing.  When Downing sang “Stop, Look and Listen,” he took command of that song.  He owned it.  They ended the set with “I’ll Be There,” which included a fabulous Nick Colionne solo.

The first weekend of concerts ended with Guitars and Saxes featuring Gerald Albright, Jeff Golub, Kirk Whalum, and Peter White.  All four of these musicians are crowd favorites.  They all played hits from their current and back catalogs:  “Promenade,” (White) “Bright,” (White) “Valdez in the Country,” (Whalum) “Shuffleboard,” (Golub) “In the Blink of an Eye,” (Golub) and “My, My, My,” (Albright).  They also played some songs together: “Do You Feel Me?” (Albright and Whalum) and “Georgia on My Mind,” (Albright, Golub, and Whalum.)  Not only was this show full of great music, but we got to learn a little bit about the Guitars and Saxes musicians.  Who knew that Kirk Whalum and Peter White spoke Spanish and French?  We learned about their musical influences: Kirk Whalum grew up in a Pastors’ house and was heavily influenced by Gospel music, that Jeff Golub grew up in Ohio and was influenced by the blues, that Gerald Albright grew up in L.A. and was influenced by the great saxophone players Maceo Parker and Cannonball Adderly, and that Peter White grew up in England (we knew that) and he was influenced by the Beatles.  There was a lot of good music being played at this show.  During the finale of “Ain’t Nobody,” Guitars and Saxes were joined by Jeff Lorber and Eric Marienthal, making a guest appearance.

I returned the following weekend to see Chieli Minucci and Special EFX, with special guests Lao Tizer and Karen Briggs.  It’s been awhile since I’ve seen Chieli and the band in concert, and a first time seeing both Lao and Karen, so I was pretty excited about this show.  This is Special EFX: Chieli on guitar, Jay Rowe on keys, Phillip Hamilton on percussion and vocals, Lionel Cordew on drums, and Jerry Brooks on bass.   This band has been playing together for a long time and is very tight.  “Kickin’ It Hard,” sounded great.  This band was hot that night.  “Body Beats,” was signature Special EFX, a guitar intro with Phillip Hamilton providing his trademark vocalizing against the world music beat of this song, and Chieli’s acoustic guitar piece, the beautiful, pure sound of “Nature Boy.”  One of the things that give this band their unique sound is the emphasis on percussion, the wordless vocals, and the different world music rhythms, like the samba sound of “Jazz Lambada,” that Special EFX played for their encore.

Several songs into the set, Chieli introduced violinist Karen Briggs.  She played “Celebration” and received the first standing ovation of the night; the first of many for this show.  Karen played more of her own music, and joined Chieli and the band for others, adding the sound of the violin to the music and taking it to another level.  Lao Tizer played “Uptown,” and “Fire and Ice,” a Latin flavored song.  You could see the chemistry between Lao and Chieli, and you knew they were having a good time.  It showed.  This was an awesome show and a good way to start the second weekend.

The next show I saw was the Midnight Jam Session, orchestrated by Gerald Veasley.  The midnight jam has become one of the more popular shows at Berks.  It starts after the late show and goes on until 2am.  It sells out quickly, so you have to line up early or you’ll be shut out.  It began with Veasley, native son Rick Braun, sax player Andrew Neu, and Vinnie Valentino on guitar.  For two hours, musicians rotated in and out as Veasley introduced them.   There were many highlights during this two hour show, including Rick Braun stretching his chops and playing some straight ahead jazz, and sax man Andrew Neu on the classic “Take Five.”  Andrew wows me every time I’ve seen him perform, and I hope he comes to the DC are soon.  Steve Smith rotated in on drums and Drew Davidson on guitar, Larry Braggs on vocals and Mark Adams on keys.   The group played more classics like “Mercy, Mercy, Mercy” and “Route 66,” when Brian Simpson (keys), Tony Moore (drums), and Darrell Williams (bass) rotated in.  One of the reasons the jam session is so popular are experiencing musical collaborations you probably would not hear or see anywhere else.  These are one of kind performances, definitely not to be missed.

Saturday afternoon was the Rippingtons with Jeff Kashiwa.  I was looking forward to hearing live versions of songs from their latest release, Cote d’Azur, plus, it’s the bands 25th anniversary tour, and that is special.   There were a few technical problems in the beginning that tested the bands skills for ad lib, as well as standup comedy.  Kashiwa was funny, referring to the coin operated sound system and requesting the audience to throw quarters to get it started.  When the show did start, the band opened with the title track, “Cote d’Azur.”  How do you put 25 years worth of music into a two hour show?  How do you choose?  The Rippingtons tried to cover all bases; “Welcome to the St. James Club,” “Modern Art,” “Le Calypso,”  “High Roller,” and “Bingo Jingo” all made it to the set list.  The Rippingtons and Jeff Kashiwa are so good together, yes, there is a history, and there is also a comfort level.  Again, the tightness of the band can’t be overlooked: Russ Freeman, Jeff Kashiwa, Bill Heller, Dave Karasony, and Rico Bello are so cohesive and so talented.  And yes, “Tourist in Paradise” closed the show, as it always does.  There’s something to be said for familiarity.

Fourplay was the next show I saw.  I was anxious to see them with their newest member, guitarist Chuck Loeb, who joked that as the new guy, he had to carry the equipment and set up the stage.  Chuck is a Berks Jazz Fest regular, and the crowd gave him a warm welcome when he approached the microphone to speak. Here is another band that has a long history of making good music.  These are songs that, as fans, we’re all familiar with, so it was good to hear some of the interesting changes made to some old favorites.   They take songs that we know, and have enjoyed over the years, and give them fresh new sounds.  They added a reggae riff in the middle of “Max o Man.”  “Chant” got a new intro and a jazzed up solo by Bob James and an excellent Harvey Mason drum solo.  Nathan East vocalized the first part of “101 Eastbound,” and Chuck Loeb gave “Bali Run” his own spin.  The stage was set up in a way that Harvey Mason was on the side, not in the back of the stage as is usual for most drum set ups.  This made it easy for the audience to see the genius at work.  Fourplay is celebrating their 20th anniversary and going strong.  The new era of Fourplay is promising.

A very special Berks concert brought together the Original Jazz Crusaders; Joe Sample on piano, Wayne Henderson on trombone, and Wilton Felder on sax.  This was a show that could not be missed.  The night was filled with music and stories.  Each song had a story.  Sometimes they’d get so caught up telling the story about the song, that they digressed off in another direction altogether and have to reel themselves back in.  (Like the time Joe Sample was being questioned by the CIA with regards to ties to the Symbionese Liberation Army.  Apparently they took a liking to one of the Crusaders’ songs.  Who knew?)  “Young Rabbits,” “On Broadway,” “The Thing,” “The Nearness of You,” “Scratch,” “Snowflake,” “Eleanor Rigby,” and the encore, “Street Life,” musical stories told by legendary storytellers.

Another Midnight Jam Session followed that show, but alas, I got shut out.  I did manage to get in at about 1am.  Mark Adams, Bill Heller, Third Richardson, Brian Simpson, Tim Gant, John Dillard, and Nick Colionne were among the many musicians who rotated in and out during the jam.  For me, the jam session is a Berks must see.

Sunday Jazz Brunch had Nick Colionne, Brian Simpson, and Jeff Kashiwa performing two shows, at 10am and 1pm, and was once again witness to some incredible music.   These are true professionals.  I don’t know how any of those musicians managed since most of them were at the jam session just hours before.  “When It Feels Good,” (Kashiwa) “South Beach,” (Simpson) “Rainy Night,” (Colionne) “Blue Jeans,” (Kashiwa) “Brazilia,” (Simpson) and “Hurry Up This Way Again,” (Colionne.)  Each of these musicians played their weary selves out for a very appreciative audience.

There were many more shows, but, unfortunately, I could not see them all, or stay for them all.  This is just a sample of what the Berks Jazz Festival has to offer.
We play our CDs and our downloaded music, and, we like them.  They sound good, that’s why we bought them.  But, a live performance is an experience.  It’s so much more than listening; it’s about feeling the music.  You’re hearing music created right on the spot and in the moment.  This is why we attend concerts and festivals, and why we should always continue to support live music whenever and wherever we can.  We get so much more out of it than you get from just playing the recorded song.  When it’s done right, as it was by the stellar musicians who came together and played at Berks, it’s special.

Mark your calendars folks.  Berks #22 will take place in Reading, PA from March 23 – April 1, 2012, and the planning has already begun.