THE NANIKI CARIBBEAN JAZZ SAFARI continued at Harrison’s Cave last Saturday on the first leg of its Caribbean tour.
The Cave, accessed by a 100-foot glass drop elevator, provided a laid-back ambience for an afternoon of jazz. The temperature gauge registered cool, mirroring the offerings from the stage.
In the spotlight were Panama’s Reggie Boyce And The Jazz Effects, plus British-based Dominican guitarist Cameron Pierre supported by a cast of West Indian artistes and the Haitian Buyu & The Blues In Red.
Reggie Boyce And The Jazz Effects connected with the audience through their ancestral relations with Barbadians. Both Boyce, who plays horns, and lead singer Idania Dowman-Mendez
are grandchildren of Barbadians who went to Panama years ago.
On trumpet and flugelhorn, Boyce is a stand-alone act. His style is unpretentious and he extracts all the emotion from his instrument.
Dowman-Mendez, a “teaser”, discovered how to please the audience with traditional standards like Summertime, Night And Day, Georgia On My Mind and I’ve Got You spiced with sumptuous Latin rhythms.
Virtuoso keyboardist Albert Phillips, producer/arranger of the band, cool and steady bassist Antonio Jamerson, and stand-in drummer Christian Lasso came together and reassured purists that traditional jazz still holds its own among the new wave of musical expression.
Guitarist Cameron Pierre and his band were the second act onstage. His picking style generally bordered on the ordinary; it was left to Emerson Nurse’s excellent piano, Ricardo Francois’ drums, and virtuoso percussionist Wayne Poonka Willock to inject life into the set.
Buyu & The Blues In Red brought down the curtain on the afternoon of jazz.
Buyu Ambroise on tenor sax and Waldron Ricks on trumpet evoked a spiritual bond with the audience via their instruments.
Not given to much interaction with the audience, the Blues In Red let their tones and harmonies define musical satisfaction. Bassist Robert Raymond, drummer Allan Mednard and pianist Louis Rainone gelled well, with the upfront horns stamping their authority when given the chance.
If their objective was to make a good impression, they accomplished their mission.