Mickey Hanson - File Photos

IMAGINE, AFTER spending a long day at work you are invited to dip into a big pool - a pool of jazz music. That was what Mickey Hanson promised the capacity-size audience at Redbones Blues Café last Friday.

In a soothing and captivating voice, he told them not only would he dip into the pool, but he would mix it up and weave it up. When the last note was delivered, there was a wonderful feeling of complete saturation.

The occasion was the third of a series of shows produced by Griot Music. Mickey Hanson, one of Jamaica's premier trumpeters, was the featured artiste. He had support from a group of four skilled musicians, along with special guest, Karen Smith.

When he took the stage, Hanson first thanked the audience with a fantastic rendition of All the Beautiful in One Place at One Time. However, it was on an excellently arranged Poincinia, Poincinia the four supporting musicians - Othneil Lewis (keyboard), Karl Gibson (bass), Obed Davis (percussion drums) and Ritchie Cunningham (Congo drums) - were given the spotlight. They "stood up" and were recognised.

The language of jazz

First dip came from the fingers of Lewis. With his two keyboards, he transported the audience to the source of the pool, a gentle trickling of water (not literally). Gradually fading in and out. Gibson, Davis and Cunningham too used their instruments to speak the language of jazz. And the sounds of intermittent "Yeah" from the audience gave the performance the final touch.

Jumping off the deck, Hanson next brought jazz to Bob (Marley), with a pure-sounding interpretation of Natural Mystic. It was as if there indeed was a natural mystic blowing through the air. The first segment closed with a delightful jazz-up and mix-up of Kisses in the Rain.

When songbird Karen Smith took the stage in the second act, the level of the jazz pool moved a notch higher.

With her trademark radiant smile she began with a chit-chat, before she lunched into A Wonderful Day Like Today, an uptempo jazz song. Her delivery of The Life of a Fool brought a change in tempo. The Mickey Hanson-arranged When I Fall In Love was also well delivered.

Smith ended her stint with a special treat for independent women with another beauty, Money Can't Buy Love. The audience would not let her go so she dug deep and declared, My Love Has No Beginning My Love Has No End. Only then, reluctantly, the audience conceded. On his return to the stage, Hanson summed up Smith's performance in one word, "Wow!"

Before the last note was played, some ska was weaved into the pool. It brought Ossie D to the stage. With some fast-moving steps he demonstrated why he is worthy of the title, 'The best legs Man'.

Karen Smith

Musical fairyland

Before he performed his last act, Hanson invited the audience to "close your eyes and journey to fantasy land with me. Imagine a Jamaica free of crime and violence". He transported them to a musical fairyland. When the programme came to an end, the evening could best be described as great - a description concurred by University of the West Indies Trinidadian, student Cenesia Marshall, who came to the show because she was tired of the "ragga ragga".

Alas, Marshall, her friends and those other lovers of jazz will be disheartened to know that for CEO of Griot Music, Seretse Small, this may be his last such show for awhile. The hardworking producer and talented musician told The Gleaner he is seriously thinking of moving to the North Coast to take up a job offer as a music director in a hotel.