Shortly before boarding Jam Cruise 10, Adam Deitch and Skerik joined John Medeski for an improvisational freak out at New York City’s Le Poisson Rouge. It was a pre-show for NYC’s 2012 Winter Jazz Fest and also featured Jessica Lurie‘s new ensemble (featuring Will Bernard) , Marc Ribot‘s Young Philadelphians, and up and comers, Red Baraat (who have a crazy sound of New Orleans brass band funk mixed with Indian bhangra) .
Some of you may have noticed that our friend jamjoints posted 40+ minutes of video of the Medeski, Deitch, Skerik set on youtube last week. He was gracious enough to supply me with the raw video files so I could upgrade the audio (kindly recorded on stage by Mr. Eric McRoberts). So here it is. 40+ minutes of improv including a cover of John Coltrane‘s A Love Supreme.
BTW, the audio download for the Medeski, Deitch, Skerik set is here.
When we left Atlanta on Friday morning, our goal was to arrive at Bear Creek Music Festival, set up camp, and get our asses down to the Dr. Lonnie Smith Trio set at 3pm. After some fast driving and an even faster tent set up, we set out to explore the magical Spirit of the Suwannee Music Park with time to spare.
As we exited the campground area, I encountered the Big IV Ampitheater for the first time. I had seen pictures and heard stories, but now I was able to truly appreciate the wonder of this small piece of earth they call Suwannee. At that point in time, the Spam Allstars were on-stage with Pee Wee Ellis guesting.
As I pulled out my video camera to shoot my first video of the weekend, they began the James Brown classic, Cold Sweat! I started shooting immediately, then decided to try out my new press pass to enter the pit area. You can see at the end of the video as I try to enter and security informs me that my press pass only allows access to the pit during the first 3 songs of each set. Turned away, I stopped filming in order to better absorb this magical place with my own senses, rather than the camera. Accordingly, this particular video is less than 3 minutes long, but it shows some of the vibe on this Friday afternoon.
Bear Creek is like late night at New Orleans Jazz Fest on steroids. You have to walk away from someone like Pee Wee Ellis in order to catch another legend like Dr. Lonnie Smith. I was excited for his trio in large part because of the drummer, Jamire Williams, who has played with Christian Scott, Robert Glasper, Gretchen Parlato, Bilal, and others from the NYC jazz/hip-hop scene. Although, I was equally impressed with guitarist Jonathan Kreisberg, whom I wasn’t familiar with. Anyway, When the good organ doctor and his trio came out the silky smooth B-3 organ sounds wafted through the warm afternoon air and all was good…
Dr. Lonnie Smith Trio – Mellow Mood 11/11/11 Bear Creek:
Dr. Lonnie Smith Trio – Beehive 11/11/11 Bear Creek:
Finally, I’ll include another early afternoon video, this one from Sunday morning. Breakestra took a rare trip out of the LA area to bring their non-stop medley of hip-hop samples to Florida, and I was able to capture a few bars…
Breakestra – Medley (Ring Of Fire > Greedy G > Shifting Gears > Champ > Because I Got It Like That > Funky Soul > Getcho Soul Togetha) 11/12/11 Bear Creek:
Before I hit the road to my first Bear Creek Music Festival, I have to unleash my videos of Dr. Klaw on the Creole Queen Riverboat during New Orleans Jazz Fest 2011. The full video is on youtube in six parts, listed below. I recommend watching in HD in 1080p or 720p. Also, if you are so inclined, the DVD is available to download at The Trader’s Den.
I’ve posted about Dr. Klawbefore. For those that don’t know, Dr. Klaw is a supergroup featuring Nick Daniels III and Ian Neville (both of Dumpstaphunk), along with Adam Deitch, Eric Krasno & Nigel Hall (of Lettuce, Soulive, Chapter Two, etc.). Basically, Dr. Klaw is a special conglomeration that only plays shows at Jazz Fest and Bear Creek (and sometimes Jam Cruise). Word is that they’ve been in the studio and will be releasing their new album at Bear Creek next week.
This video documents their only performance this year (until Bear Creek next weekend), and features several original tunes, as well as two Parliament covers that feature The Shady Horns (Ryan Zoidis, Sam Kinninger, & Rashawn Ross). The video was shot from right up front (because there really was no other way to see the band considering that the stage was only a few inches tall) with a Canon Vixia HF21 video camera and a Sony ECM-MS908C stereo mic. The audio is raw, dominated by Deitch’s cymbals and rim shots, but is still very listenable compared to the quality of most of the stuff you find on youtube. Enjoy, spread the word, and I’ll see you after what is sure to be an incredible Bear Creek Music Festival weekend!
Dr. Klaw – Part 1 of 6 – Beef, I Believe It:
Dr. Klaw – Part 2 of 6 – I Believe It (cont.), God Made Me Funky:
Dr. Klaw – Part 3 of 6 – Dr. Funkenstein, Do That Stuff:
Dr. Klaw – Part 4 of 6 – Do That Stuff (cont.), Rat Race:
Dr. Klaw – Part 5 of 6 – Lost Rager:
Dr. Klaw – Part 6 of 6 – Leave Me Alone:
Kirk Joseph’s 504 Brass Band w/ Steven Bernstein – Treme Theme Song:
