Our wonderful li'l bro' Michael Grimm has taken it up a major notch (recall, I last covered Michael on January 25th). You gotta go check this out, at the Ovation room in Green Valley Ranch (Green Valley Pkwy and the 215). Free show, 6 - 9 pm. Totally fine. Cheryl and I went tonight. The horn section and the charts were screamin'. The band in the aggregate was all over it. Wow! (And Michael had worked up Little Feat's "Dixie Chicken" just for me!) It was so fine. Off the hook. I gotta go through the 128 pics I shot, so I will blog this in the morning.
OK, Saturday morning, more pics, incrementally (I'm still weedin' through 'em). The new lineup:- Alfredo Alvarenga (Percussion)
- Dave Garland (piano)
- David Philippus (Trombone)
- Eddie DiMarino (bass)
- John Wedemeyer (guitar)
- Michael Ray Tyler (trumpet)
- Rob Stone (sax)
- Nikki Logan (vocals)
- B Soul (vocals)
- Bruce Wallace (Hammond B3)
- Mike Mechem (Drums)
- Michael Grimm (guitar, vocals)
Pretty much a photo essay hereafter; what more is there to say? Other than get out and see this ASAP!
Above, "The Green Valley Horns," LOL (That's Fat City sub Dave Phillipus on 'bone). Michael just made that up on the spot while introducing the band at the end of the first set. I could not get any clean looks at the horns collectively or individually, 'cuz the stage is 5 feet high, and they are pretty much obscured by music stands (and not very well lit up for the most part).BTW, I've known about Michael Ray Tyler for years, and have one of his old CDs, which I really like. Cat is major league. Check out his sample cuts here.
I'd met Michael one night some years ago at Napoleon's in The Paris. He was giggin' with some excellent jazz cats, playin' flugelhorn and percussion. That's where I got his CD. LOL, they were takin' requests, and I oh-so-hiply shouted out what I thought would be a stump-the-band "OK, how about 'Gravy Waltz'?" (the venerable 1963 Steve Allen tune) They played it! Hah! I first learned that tune in 1965 when I hooked up The Hollywood Argyles; it was one of their chase tunes. I used it as a chase tune (along with "Midnight at The Oasis" done instrumentally with a warp-speed swing groove, and, of course, "Birdland") again in the late 70's with my little Quixotic Knoxville, Tennessee funk band "Birdland" (the final road band that persuaded me it was time to hang it up and go to college, LOL!) If I ever get another band, I'll dust it off again.Michael Ray's main website is www.michaelraytyler.com. Fine, fine artist, he is. Bad Boy, for sure. I had lost track of him, glad to see him onstage with Michael Grimm last night.
Above: Yknow, theatrical smoke machines are fun, but this puppy had to be violating EPA air regs at times.
Above, pretty nice Front of House in this venue. The lighting (he sighs wistfully) is awesome, though the follow spot work could have been better (never could get a clean solo shot of B.Soul). Below, our friends Kevin and Shannon, music peeps from Calgary, Alberta.
CODA Funny cartoon my Cuz JoJo (5 o'clock in our 1964 band pic) of The Peoples' Republic sent me...
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