 For his sixth visit to the world famous Montreux Jazz Festival, David Garfield was back with the Wave All Stars Band, a project put together by a German record company and basically based around star smooth jazz trumpet player Rick Braun.
Line-up:
David Garfield : keyboards
Rick Braun : trumpet and fluegelhorn
Kirk Whalum : saxophones
Gerald Veasley : bass
Rayford Griffin : drums
Randy Jacobs : electric and acoustic guitars
Patti Austin : vocals
With only very minimal rehearsal time and only a couple of shows under their belt (and not even with the full Montreux line-up), the band did a very good job and sounded pretty tight. This is where being a top class musician comes in handy.
Even though mainly built around Braun's and Whalum's repertoire, the show was not - as I first feared - a smooth jazz feast but instead a really good contemporary jazz concert. A lot of up tempo songs and very few ballads of which Braun's 'Emma's Song' featuring a wonderfully moving and tasteful piano solo from David Garfield. Unfortunately, none of David's song has been played, which is a shame, as 'Desert Hideaway' would have perfectly fitted into the set list.
David's playing was as usual flawless and inspired. Even though confined more in a 'sideman role', he perfectly supported the band and actually took the leading role in the sense of guiding the band through the whole set. Those not familiar with his work were seduced as proven by the compliments David received from the many fans visiting the CD booth after the gig.
Both Braun and Whalum let their jazz side shines and stayed away from most of their smooth jazz-radio friendly-safe music. They both delivered the goods with a passion I'd love to hear more often on CD (Note : Braun's new CD 'Sessions Volume I' is a very good step in the right direction and showcase a much more 'fiery' side of his playing).
The rhythm section was very solid and grooving mainly due to Veasley's deep in the pocket style. Guitarist Randy Jacobs (Khaled, Was Not Was, Bruce Hornsby, The Boneshakers) brought a very welcome and surprising 'rocking' touch to the ensemble.
Last but not least, Mrs. Patti Austin pleased the crowd with her amazing voice and great sense of humour. 'Razzamataz' being the highlight of the show for me thanks to her beautiful singing.
The best part of the evening though took place during the jam session at the Musician's Bar. David, Rick and Rayford sat in with Charles Torres (Michel Camilo) and Barry Finnerty (The Crusaders, Miles Davis) for some delightful moments.
|
