I suppose if I have ever commited any crimes, the fact that it took me until this past Saturday to catch Russ and the guys would be one of my worst. If I need an excuse I could say they were usually appearing some place a long ways away from me. And it is true. However, now That I caught the act, I need to expand my travel comfort radius to, say, China.
What a show. All pro from top to bottom.
The band:
Abdul Beatty...Guitar [[this dude tore it up)
Lonnie Henson.Bass [[total pure thumping bottom. Just the way I like it. [[I mentioned to Abe during the show that I could feel the bass in my feet)
Keith Williams..Drums If anyone ever reminded me of Uriel Jones, this dude took the prize. [[most that know how I operate, know how I love watching good drummers work. I was one happy dude)
Adrienne Garner keyboards. A very tasty player weaving in sweet string pads and such, adding to the total power of the band.
Gary McKean
Rod Berry
Henri McMillan Horns: These three guys played sax, trumpet and trombone and you would swear you were listening to a full brass section. Great job, guys.
Kenny Thompson: Keyboards and musical director. More about him in a moment.
The Stylistics:
Russell Thompkins
Jonathon Buckson Beyond description. You will just have to see these three guys sing to experience it for yourself.
Raymond Johnson
Pianoman, PianoDr, or just plain Kenny Thompson. The absolute best at what he does. A musical director is no gig that could be confused with a walk in the park. I watched him work during the sound check. Not only going over parts with the band, but attending to every detail in the sound. This is one busy dude.Come show time he is at his keyboard and directing the band. And the show was TIGHT.
I'll probably be adding some thoughts to this initial post along with a few pics, but I know Smooth has a few things he would like to add, so I'll post this much for now. More to come.
I just want to add that it was a pleasure to meet Russ and the guys. They are all that I expected to be. Real pros, through and through. I'm sorry time was limited and we didn't get time to just hang out and talk. Next time, guys. And there will be a next time.
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