Where’s the Sweet Spot?
Two weeks ago, I made the 2 ½ hour drive to D’Iberville, MS to enjoy Satchmo’s first annual free jazz show. What a great investment of my time for such a great show. The line-up included Starz Live, Dee Lucas, Wake Campbell, Theresa Grayson, and Dean James. The compelling reason for the drive on a Sunday afternoon was to see who I believed to be two great saxophonists, Dee Lucas and Dean James. They did not disappoint. In fact, I was really blown away by Dee, he put on a tremendous show.
You see I booked Dee Lucas for our holiday show on December 21st based on the recommendations of friends and his YouTube videos. Dee did a 45-minute show and set the pace for the afternoon. Our team was completely stoked by inviting Dee to Fort Walton Beach, Florida. Although I’ve spoken to him on the phone a few times, it was much better spending a little time face-to-face getting to know this brother. I picked up a couple of his CDs and later realized I had already purchased “Going Left” his latest project, but a week later while on another drive, I popped in “The Sweet Spot” his 2017 release. The title track opened my show on the road, and I hit repeat 3 times. This is a super smooth track and it re-enforced my conclusion that we made a smart decision in booking Dee Lucas, the self-taught saxophonist who is burning up the road spreading his twist on Smooth Jazz…and what a great twist it is!!!
The show at Satchmo’s also offered the opportunity to see another great saxophonist, Dean James. We got a taste of Dean’s flow when we were at Satchmo’s in late October to see Michael Henderson. After the show, I got to talk to Dean, and he impressed me as a down to earth guy with great talent…guess what? We’ll be working on getting Dean here this coming Spring.
It comes down to this, we are hitting the road to check out great Smooth Jazz musicians, so you don’t have to hit the road. We want to bring them to your backyard or within a short drive of your backyard. I highly encourage you to come out and see Mr. Dee Lucas as he eases us into the holiday season on December 21st when he is joined by local vocalist Light Brown Lyrics of Pensacola, Florida. This time around, we decided to do a luncheon at The Island Hotel on Okaloosa Island in Fort Walton Beach. The show begins at 11:00 a.m. and this will be another great show with great food. Tickets are available at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/smooth-jazz-holiday-luncheon-tickets-79484798171 and November 30th at Mr. J’s Barbershop in Fort Walton Beach. Come Feel It!!! #FloridaJazzCentral #DestinSmoothJazz
