Bob James Live at Montreux, 1985

 

This week, Full Concert Friday features Bob James live at the 1985 Montreux Jazz Festival in Montreux, Switzerland.  The band lineup is:

Bob James: keyboards (grand piano, Rhodes electric piano, Yamaha DX7 synthesizer)

Dean Brown: guitar

Kirk Whalum: tenor & soprano saxophones, flute on "Angela" (Theme from "Taxi")

Gary King: bass

Harvey Mason: drums

Dennis Henderson: percussion

The track listing is:

1. Touchdown

2, Ruby, Ruby, Ruby

3. Night Crawler

4. Unicorn

5. Westchester Lady

6. Zebra Man

7. Angela (Theme from "Taxi")

8. Winding River

9. Medley: Spunky/Westchester Lady

This concert is a treasure in that it displays Bob James, Kirk Whalum and others in their prime. While the video is not the best and the sound is not state of the art, both are good enough for one to enjoy the skills these artists possess. I did not know how much Kirk Whalum influenced the Bob James sound. He has so much energy in his playing, it's infectious. If you want to see the real Bob James, this is the one to watch. The improvisation and overall playing is the best you will see from him and the other artist playing with him. I've only watched this one once, but I was overwhelmed by what I saw in these musicians. We should thank the folks at Montreux for having the foresight to preserve these artist performances. Robert G. Raynor, Jr.