July 1, 2024 – Hoke's Jukebox

Part 1

Major change hit the Freihofer’s Saratoga Jazz Festival, and not just the weather. On swampy Saturday and sweaty Sunday, huge crowds showed up for the two-stage, 22-act festival.

In backstage news, Freihofer’s ended its 27-year string as name sponsor, replaced next year (and the following four at least) by GE Vernova.

Cimafunk and fans Saturday on the Main Stage

Onstage and in the house(s): demographic change. The pop magnetism of Lake Street Dive, Laufey and Norah Jones drew many teens-to-40s fans. Lake Street Dive’s soul/R&B closing set Saturday drew recognition shouts even for new tunes. Joy-screaming, hair-ribboned teen-women fans saw Sunday afternoon as a Laufey show with some other stuff wrapped around it, notably Norah Jones who closed with crowd-pleasing pop/jazz/country. However, after Pedrito Martinez’s percussion driven, joy-filled, dance-with-me-onstage explosion on the Charles R. Wood “Jazz Discovery” Stage (hereafter, the Wood), her elegance felt a bit tame on the Amphitheater Stage (hereafter, the Main). See the 2024 Schedule, in the next edition, for playing order.

The other stuff – real jazz – was notably good stuff, from tributes to bygone giants by the Skidmore Jazz Institute Faculty All-Stars to funk blasts by Jussef Dayes and (especially!) Cimafunk and modernist musings by Terrence Blanchard and Helen Sung. Caribbean stars were in the house: conga wizard Pedrito Martinez who led or guested in four sets, pianist Harold Lopez-Nussa with the brilliant guest harmonica virtuoso Gregoire Maret, saxophonist Miguel Zenon, and the unstoppable Cimafunk. Tastes of the blues (Coco Montoya) Afro-pop (Olatuja) and New Orleans (the New Orleans Groove Masters, with three drummers) added spice.

Two acts featured string quartets, Laufey and Terrence Blanchard; the only big-ish bands were the Skidmore cats and Steven Bernstein’s Millennial Territory Orchestra, both strong; 73-year-old bassist Stanley Clarke wowed as a still-exciting veteran and both Samara Joy and Joey Alexander confirmed their promise as young artists firmly and intrepidly in the jazz tradition.

Here’s how it felt. Confession time: Saturday’s rain held me at the Main, so I missed Tia Fuller and Theo Croker altogether and got only a taste of Coco Montoya.

Saturday:

Violinist Sara Caswell’s quartet sounded ethereal, very New York, on the Wood; an hour later, the New Orleans Groove Masters went way earthy on the Main.

Sara Caswell

Caswell smoothly evoked Jean-Luc Ponty in atmospheric tunes ranging from the serene “Stillness” with eerie guitar harmonics that Carswell embellished to the folkloric “Warren’s Way” and the power-vamp romp of “Benin.” Her bowing always flowed in confident smoothness, so this lone pizzicato number hit hard.

New Orleans Groove Masters Herlin Riley, left; and Shannon Powell

The Groove Masters launched from a second line beat by drummer Jason Marsalis as Herlin Riley and Shannon Powell smacked tambourines up front, chanting “Little Liza Jane” before jumping on their own kits. As these big-name hitters led the groove, pianist David Torkakanowski bridged beats with melody; in Ellis Marsalis’s (Jason’s father) sizzling “Tell Me,” tenor sax man Roderick Paulin quoted ‘Trane’s “A Love Supreme;” otherwise, it was straight New Orleans, and street-parade strong, especially the bluesy “It AIn’t My Fault” and a fervent if schmaltzy “Wonderful World.”

All the New Orleans Groove Masters – yes, three drummers

Rain blew in for pianist Harold Lopez-Nussa’s survey of Latin dance energy, transmuted into quartet lyricism, on the Wood. Co-star of this set, chromatic harmonica wizard Gregoire Maret charmed in the ballads and charged up light-footed dance tunes.

Harold Nussa-Lopez, piano, and his Quartet

Joey Alexander Trio

Another pianist, festival frequent flyer Joey Alexander on the Main, won my coin toss versus saxophonist Tia Fuller on the Wood. Alexander started his fourth festival set in mellow new tunes framing “Amazing Grace,” his attentive, flexible trio of bassist Kris Funn and drummer Jonathan Barber following his fireworks. The Bonnie Raitt hit “I Can’t Make You Love Me” felt too short, but “Blue” with guest trumpeter Theo Croker stretch-explored “Blue” beautifully. Pedrito Martinez added congas to a mellow, then spirited, swirl.

Joey Alexander and Theo Croker – best hair of the day

Joey Alexander and Pedrito Martinez

Steve Bernstein Millennial Territory Orchestra, and raindrops

Trumpeter (valve and slide) Steven Bernstein’s Millennial Territory Orchestra made the rain-parka’ed walk back to the Wood well worth it, wrapping “St. Louis Blues” around Count Basie’s “Rusty Dusty Blues” and Herbie Nichols’ “Who’s Blues” in a droll, driving dust-up adroitly arranged for three reeds, trombone, violin, guitar, bass, drums and Bernstein his own bad self. Delicious.

Steve Bernstein, his own bad self

Dry inside the Main, Yussef Dayes swung drumsticks stout as tree-trunks, leading a gloriously loud funk-fest by his Experience, a brave moniker for any band not led by Jimi Hendrix. Bassist Rocco Palladino (son of bassist Pino P.) won the Gold Earplugs Award (see others, below) in forcefully amped beat blasts.

Yussef Dayes Experience; Dayes at the drums, center stage

Still hanging in the Main, I saw Samara Joy sing the best vocal set of the festival.

Samara Joy

Her voice foretold stardom, but her growing musical smarts, respect for tradition and shrewd song choices guaranteed it. She sang songs’ emotions, like Ella, like Sara; but freed their sonic potential in spectacular glides through an astonishing range.

Samara Joy and her expanded band

She charmed AND awed, bravely putting words to Charles Mingus’s tribute to Charlie Parker, updating “You Stepped Out of a Dream” and Monk’s “San Francisco Holiday,” lamenting “I Saw You Today” in wounded poignance and audaciously grafting an original onto Sun Ra’s “How Dreams Come True” into a swinging groove. She skatted through Betty Carter’s “Tight,” sang Jobim’s “No More Blues” in Portuguese and English and earned the festival’s first encore. Behind monogrammed music stands, her expanded band (two reeds, trombone and trumpet plus her piano, bass and drums trio) put a Nelson Riddle spin on “Day by Day.” Altogether wonderful.

Coco Montoya

Only briefly braving the rain, I savored a taste of guitarist-singer Coco Montoya’s blues on the Wood with the spry, wry “Hey Señorita!” Then back to the Main for Cimafunk whose songs, even a Prince cover, mattered less than the energy.

Cimafunk, center

While Dayes stretched funk for all-in jams earlier, Cimafunk made up-tempo muscle music for short attention spans. Singing in constant motion, he was a happy blur. Center stage before two percussionists – one briefly replaced by Pedrito Martinez – horns and rhythm section, he never let a riff wear out its welcome. He also never repeated a dance move in a non-stop, sweaty party that peaked with fans filling the stage. When he urged “Everybody get down!” everybody crouched in happy dozens onstage. See cover shot

Lake Street Dive, from left: James Cornelison; Akie Bermiss, Rachael Price, Mike Calabrese, Bridget Kearney

Lake Street Dive closed strong, audience love encouraging the Berklee-trained soul/R&B band with shout-outs and singalongs even on new tunes from “Good Together.” Band and fans were in the songs together, so three consecutive new tunes – the rocking “Better Not Tell You;” the languid, nicely harmonized “Seats at the Bar;” the big, slow “Get Around” – got the same recognition applause as “Side Pony” or “You’re Still the One.”

Lake Street Dive: Cornelison and Price

This brave move paid off as the band gained confidence behind the elegant, clear-voiced Rachael Price, while keyboardist Akie Bermiss sang lead at times. Harmonies meshed well, especially when they clustered around one mic in acoustic distillations of “Side Pony” and the privacy paean “Neighbor Song.”

OK, I know this is a lot, so feel free to take a pause here to pour a cold one, walk the dog or mow the lawn.

Meanwhile, more photos: