About Me

brianb

My Favourites

Favourite JC Album

Twentysomething

Favourite JC Track

Back to the ground

Favourite JC Lyric

Other Music I like

My Reviews

Newport Jazz Festival

1 year 41 weeks ago

“I’m only gonna play this song if you all dance and sing along…”

That was seconds before Jamie Cullum launched into a rather unprecedented Newport Jazz main-stage encore of “Mixtape”, complete with about a hundred festival-goers standing next to the stage, jumping up and down “mosh-pit” style. To all the people on the lawn outside of Fort Adams, this was probably something of a revelation. To everyone else, it was just another Jamie Cullum concert…

What can I say about the guy that I haven’t already said 100 times? I think the exploding piano on the front of The Pursuit is symbolic of what took place at Newport yesterday afternoon. Not 30 minutes before, 4 jazz legends in Chick Corea’s Freedom Band improvised genius jams for a full hour, but to a sea of people in lawn chairs, not a single one of them clapping, singing, or dancing along. But as the wind cried “Jamie”, at 5:30pm, he transformed the festival from the rather snobbish, serene atmosphere into something completely different. The opening tune, “Just One Of Those Things”, could have easily been a part of anyone else’s set, but no one else would have followed with “Get Your Way”, ripe with all the piano-jumping, wild soloing, tie-removing antics we’ve come to know and love from Jamie. The rest of the set was short, but awesome.
Here is the setlist, as I remember it (though I'm sure it'll be officially posted soon enough):

Just One Of Those Things
Get Your Way
If I Ruled The World
Twentysomething
Don't Stop The Music
What A Difference A Day Makes
I Got A Woman/Golddigger/These Are The Days (I Feel Fine)
I Get A Kick (w/ Chris on bass)
All At Sea
Gran Torino
Wind Cries Mary
M

ixtape

And of course, he mixed up playing with lots of funny anecdotes. My favorite was the intro the WADADM, where he recalled playing the 2004 festival and being “scared shitless” because as he started that song, he saw Dave Brubeck watching from the side, and he proceeded to “make a complete mess of it”!
All in all, a memorable moment in Newport Jazz history for sure, and a perfect end to the US summer tour. The sooner you come back, Jamie, the better!

House Of Blues

2 years 10 weeks ago

As I stepped into the year-old House of Blues and watched Jamie take stage right, I couldn't help but be overcome with deja vu. Nearly 6 years ago, I stood in the same spot (while it was the Avalon Ballroom), and witnessed one of the most incredible concert experiences of my life, as Jamie made almost a thousand new fans (myself included) with his raw talent and incredible panache. Turns out a little wood banging and piano jumping can go a long way...

Flash-forward to 2010, and Jamie was back across from Fenway Park, now with over two-thousand in attendance, and history repeated itself. He delivered a solid, 2 hour performance to die for, filled with all the spontaneity and bag of tricks we've come to expect from the 21st century Piano Man. I think what really stood out the most to me was how confident he has become at, as he put it, his "massive back catalog" - being able to play through several new songs, while relying on 3 albums of fan favorites really takes his show to the next level.

The Pursuit is truly a new era for his career, and it showed. "Don't Stop The Music" is the PERFECT opener; "Just One Of Those Things" does what "I Get A Kick" did for Cole Porter music on Twentysomething, but even better; and "If I Ruled The World" chilled me to the bone. And that's just the covers! "Wheels", "Mixtape", and "I'm All Over It" are already new crowd favorites (people were singing every word!) - and we were treated to the debut of "Music Is Through" which is as epic live as expected. Get ready for that one, folks!

It was a special night, filled with genius Jamie moments, like the soon-to-be YouTube hit "Cry Me A River" mashup, and a hint of "Golddigger" amidst a gigantic "These Are the Days" gospel jam. By the end of the night, I could tell he really felt it, smiling tremendously at us before hitting the piano for one last encore of "I've Got You Under My Skin".

Thanks Jamie and fabulous new band for a wonderful night - see you in July!!!

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