By Tanya Batson-Savage, Staff Reporter
From her second piece, Davis had the audience rocking and clapping along to her high energy performance and shouting 'amen' at the end of several songs. - File
THE OCHO Rios leg of the Redbones Blues Revue on Sunday night suffered from a very low turnout and a very late start. Fortunately, when the show finally started, it flowed smoothly and all the performers gave great sets. Those who had not made the event missed quite a feast for the ears, and feet, if one were so inclined.
Although it was scheduled to begin at 7:00 p.m., the show did not get underway until 9:00 p.m. When The Gleaner pulled into the parking lot behind The Island Village at a few minutes after 7:00 p.m. for the Redbones Blues Revue, music was beginning to fill the evening air. The assumption was made that the show had begun on time.
Unfortunately, the assumption proved untrue as the show was a very long time in starting. This struck a particularly sour note, since the audience was not informed of what was happening. Some had even begun to believe that the show had started after witnessing a Carlene Davis rehearsal at almost 8:00 p.m. A few disgruntled persons began leaving the venue close to 8:30 p.m., although most remained, if only to see what would happen.
Davis would be the first artiste to take the stage and got the show off to a swinging, amen-filled start. Introduced to the small audience by the evening's host, Tommy Cowan, Minister Carlene Davis began her set with a word to the Most High. She smoothly moved from the prayer to the hymn Precious Lord Take My Hand.
Interestingly, the beginning of the song highlighted the connections between gospel and the blues, but it soon swung into straight gospel, where her music would remain for the rest of her set.
From her second piece, Davis had the audience rocking and clapping along to her high energy performance and shouting 'amen' at the end of several songs. Her performance included backing vocals by The Forgiven and two choreographed pieces by The Rock Dancers. Davis' set included a great rendition of The Days of Elijah and a medley of popular hymns.
Davis was followed by the first true taste of The Blues with Clifford Hawkins' performance, though he also added some jazz and rhythm and blues with hits such as (I Love You) For Sentimental Reasons, Darling You Send Me and Knock On Wood.
It was then time for the most energetic performance of the night, when Git Shorty took the stage. Dressed in a dazzling jacket and undershirt which would shame the sun at noon, yellow shoes and a pair of black velvet pants, Git Shorty managed to sing and play his electric guitar several decibels above the volume of his outfit. He added spice to his performance with hollers and other indecipherable noises, and passed his infectious energy on to the audience. His performance included Rainy Night in Georgia and Mustang Sally.
Karen Smith performed a smooth set toward the end of the night. Smith's performance contrasted with the other performers as she concentrated on softer songs. She charmed the audience with classic ballads such as A Blossom Fell and Take All of Me. Smith's performance also included a velvety rendition of Don't Know Why, which could make Norah Jones weep with jealousy. Although the tempo was always easy-paced, she also mixed it up a little with the finger snapping classic Mack The Knife and the bossonova piece Desafinado (Slightly Out of Tune).
However, by the end of Smith's performance close to the witching hour, the audience, which was miniscule to begin with, had been reduced to under 50 persons. Nonetheless, it was not the end of a good night of performances, and those who remained were still having a good time.
The night ended with short, lively performances by Maryel Epps and Ike and Valerie Woods. Epps began her set with To Be Loved By You before moving on to Sweet Thing on which she did a fabulous job.
Epps soon invited the audience to join her in a roll down the river before she launched into Proud Mary. However, she and the band were out of sync and though she attempted to do the hair flashing routine for which Tina Turner is famous when performing this song, she never quite made it.
Ike and Valerie Woods put the cap on with a sterling performance with Ike on guitar. The duo shared lead vocals (though they performed no duets) and thrilled the audience with the likes of their original Don't Take It Like That and the classic Ain't No Sunshine.
Without any big goodbyes from the house, the night came to an end. Despite its late start, it had been a great show. The only thing it was missing was an audience.
