Michael Reckord, Contributor

Barbara Cadet in performance at the Jazz In the Gardens concert at the Jamaica Pegasus hotel, New Kingston, on Sunday. - Photos by Colin Hamilton/Freelance Photographer

The Jazz in the Gardens concert series, which has been staged almost every month-end at the Jamaica Pegasus hotel for some years now, arguably had its best show ever for the largest audience ever on Sunday night.

Many components gave pleasure, among them the coolness of the overcast evening.

The main contributor to the high-quality of the evening, though, was the line-up of performers, the largest ever.

Charmed the audience

The evening's first jazz segment came from radio jock Patrick Lafayette who played recorded music. MC Weston Haughton, as jovial as ever, introduced the first act, a medley of sparkling mento music by the backing band, Harold Davis & Friends.

Keisha Wright, who Haughton said had worked with both Noel Dexter and Beenie Man, an indication, perhaps, of her versatility, was the first vocalist.

Relaxed, confident and pretty in her black dress, she charmed the audience with three well-delivered songs.

Rainne (pronounced 'rain'), formerly of Ashé, seemed to be about the same age as Wright, but was not as sophisticated. However, she has a lot of potential and her three songs were quite well received.

She could learn much from the next singer, Ian Andrews, who oozed charm and sophistication.

But he brought more than that for his audience. For his first song, Strawberries, he carried on a container with the fruit and distributed it to about a dozen members of the audience.

With Nat 'King' Cole-like smoothness, he offered Misty, upped the tempo a bit with There's a Kind of Hush, and to put the icing on a tasty cake with his excellent, amusing impersonations of Billy Eckstine, Louis Armstrong, Willie Nelson, Julio Iglesias and Brushy One String.

Amoree was a bit of a letdown after Andrews but, like Rainne, she has the makings of a fine singer.

Naturally vivacious and willing to try difficult pieces, as her Brown Skin song showed, she should continue to improve.

The final performer in the two-hour-long first half was Nicky OJ, and he took the show to its highest level up to the break. Energetic, humorous, interactive and dressed in a red suit, he virtually mesmerised the audience with his showmanship.

He pulled a couple of ladies from the audience to dance with or sing to as he delighted with eight songs. They included On Broadway,Fly Me To the Moon, Girl from Ipanema,I Love My Wife, and Groovy People.

Barbara Cadet was the special guest of the evening. The outstanding St. Lucian musician, composer, singer, saxophonist and keyboardist said her appearance marked her fourth visit to Jamaica.

Highest order

Her offerings included Missing You, an original composition, I Just Can't Seem to Get You Out of My Mind, and Cocoa Tree.

Excellent on sax and keyboard and in song, she showed herself to be an artiste of the highest order and certainly worthy of being invited back a fifth time.

Ian Andrews offers strawberries literally and in song at Jazz In the Gardens at the Jamaica Pegasus hotel on October 29. His was one of a number of great performances at the show.