The show was fantastic.
I hate to admit it on this forum, but while I've always admired Stanley, I've never totally connected to his music on a visceral level. I bought tickets on the this guy's a legend, I probably ought to see him before he stops touring rationale.
I knew I'd see a good show, but I did not go in thinking I'd see a great show. I was wrong.
He played :
Goodbye Pork Pie Hat
Black Narcissus
3 wrong notes
Light as a Feather
(one other song I didn't know)
With Stanley was John Beasley on keys, Kamasi on saxes, and the incredible (18-year old) Mike Mitchell on drums. The drummer was quite the energy source for everything. Great dynamics and playful approach too.
What made the show great was the live jamming and communication of the musicians (and the audience). Obviously that's something you can't really capture on a recording.
This show was full of those time-transcending moments where you think where have I been? How long has he (we) been playing. Where are we? and so on.
I actually thought I'd be seeing the Stanley Clarke Band which appeared on his last recording (that's what the blurb on the venue site seemed to indicate). But Stanley has also said that he's moving back to jazz after this CD. Apparently that process is well underway. He only played electric on the first tune - everything else was upright. But it was great. I am totally re-educated on what makes Stanley Clarke great.
