BasslineSpin.com
Ledisi, Mint Condition, Eric Benet @
the Fox Theater, Oakland, CA. …
I was relatively hip to Ledisi through ownership of one of her CD’s and
downloads of a couple tracks she has done for various projects. But I had never
seen her live until last night. Friends who have seen Ledisi perform have long
hyped her and now I understand what the uproar was about.
This woman could not have been more impressive. She absolutely stole the show
(…and that is saying something when Mint Condition follows you.) Ledisi’s voice
is an instrument. She has range, power, and a spirit that is damn near
hyper-kinetic. The recordings of her that I have heard to date just do not
reveal the dynamo that she is. Gyrating, smiling, making eye contact, and
touching the audience with her scatting skills – Ledesi WILLED the early show
goers into the biggest frenzy of the night. Individual crowd members were still
trying to get their buzz on as Ledisi ‘woke it up’.
Those of you who read my reviews know that I can be a harsh critic. And seeing
Ledisi reminds why I am so tough. It’s because when you hear the excellence of
a natural singer with heart, energy, and soul that maintains precise pitch
between multiple octaves – it sets the bar awfully high. All who cannot do that
suddenly seem pedestrian.
Not being that familiar with her catalog – I can not identify song names. She
played for roughly 30-45 minutes and her show included a couple of tunes she
identified as coming from her forthcoming CD (mid-August). One for sure was
called Goin’ Thru Changes (available now on i-tunes).
Mint Condition followed Ledisi – with Stokley commenting to the audience about
“being a witness” to her performance. He used the term “witness” – in the same
way basketball scouts talk about Lebron James. She was THAT dope.
Troubled by a horrendous mix and guitar problems to start their set – Mint
worked hard to recapture the house – running through hits as well as album
cuts. They reached the large (4,000?) crowd best on two tunes; Nothing Left to
Say (from E-Life), and of course during their encore – a chopped and screwed
“Breaking My Heart (Pretty Brown Eyes)”.
I enjoyed Mint’s rocking “Sometimes (Won’t You Spend the Night)” as my personal
favorite of the night. Jeffrey Allen’s saxophone solo smoothed out a moment
that had more than one or two
Songs I recall being played by Mint: Whoa, So Fine (rushed – and shortened),
You Don’t Have to Hurt No More, U Send Me Swingin’ (shortened), Nothing Left to
Say, Devotion (very nice!), and Love & Happiness (snippet).
Eric Benet’s set was disappointing. He appeared with just a drummer (on a click
track), a bassist, and a keyboard player. Background vocals were tracked as
well as all horns and percussion. As a headliner of the show – I expected so
much more. (Ledisi – the opening act had the biggest band of the night – with
two backing female singers, bass, guitar, two keyboards, two horns, and a
drummer.)
Benet is a great vocalist. We have seen him in concert several times (8?).
Unfortunately – Benet connected least of all (among the three acts) with the
audience. In my opinion – this was due to the lack of production and personnel
in his show. He opened with When You Think of Me – but without the signature
Roy Ayers solo – or anything close to it from any band member – it went over
like ho-hum. …Although the ultra talented Damonte Posey was on keys for Benet –
I never felt like the show was much more than Eric signing to tracks. I hated
that.
Given Benet’s jazzy soul sound on his biggest, most popular tunes, - we found
it particularly disturbing that he did not have a horn section or
percussionist. I understand budgetary constraints. A bigger band is more
expensive to travel. But at some point you have to think of the big picture. If
your show doesn’t move a FAN like me – then maybe you would be better off not
appearing until you can do it right (with a full compliment of players).
Benet scored his biggest ovation when he jazzed his way through an audience
participation cover of the late Michael Jackson’s Billie Jean. …Benet played:
Femininity, Chocolate Legs, Don’t Let Go, Spanish Fly, You’re the Only One
(nice!), Let’s Stay Together, That’s Just My Way (not funky – like the album),
Georgy Porgy, and Spend My Life with You (without a female voice).
Overall – we had a great time. We hit a favorite pizza spot on the drive into
the Bay area, and once there – parking was easy and within one block of the
venue. The Fox Theater is top notch and recommended to all – although the
acoustics are not great. Maybe they can add some foam in strategic places to
absorb some of that sound and make it even better.
Final thought: we came away with the conclusion that whenever Ledesi is playing
again in our area, we are there!