CAPE MAY – Spyro Gyra opened the 33rd Cape May Jazz Festival Friday April 16 to a large, enthusiastic crowd at Lower Cape May Regional High School Auditorium while a number of other acts played on Beach Avenue from the Grand Hotel to Carney’s.
Spyro Gyra started mellow but as drummer Bonnie B showcased a tune he composed “Ice Mountain,” the band shifted into a funk/fusion mode that reved up the audience. Jay Beckenstein provided saxophone licks familiar to Sypro Gyra fans over the past 30 years and nine Grammy Awards later.
Julio Fernandez played mellow and hot following the solid bass playing of Scott Ambush and drummer Bonnie B.
Keyboard player Tom Schuman varied from sweet to bluesy and again created the much beloved Spyro Gyra sound.
The weather was rainy all evening but jazz fans brought umbrellas and ignored the elements using school buses and shuttles from Great American Trolleys to get from venue to venue.
At the Grand Hotel, sax player Tim Warfield headlined two sets that saluted his friend, the late Shirley Scott. The tunes were heavy with the B-3 organ of Pat Bianchi and trumpeter Tim Thompson. Warfield pleased the audience with his fine saxophone and stories of working with Scott.
The jazz festival continued Saturday with workshops, jam sessions and singer Shemekia Copeland headlining two shows at the Lower Cape May Regional Auditorium. The festival closed with Sunday afternoon jam sessions.
Cape May – Governor Murphy says he doesn't know anything about the drones and doesn't know what they are doing but he does know that they are not dangerous. Does anyone feel better now?
