People visit Jamaica for many reasons, one of which is the island’s many world-class music festivals that include Reggae Sumfest, Rebel Salute, Sting and perhaps the most popular, Jamaica Jazz & Blues Festival. From January 28 - 30, more than 20,000 Jazz and Blues aficionados flocked the lawns of the Trelwany Multipurpose Stadium in Greenfield, for the 14th staging of the trendy event. Staged at the stadium for the first time this year, most skeptics were quickly won over by the ease of access and superior parking facilities of the venue, which comfortably hosted VIP tents, skyboxes, a craft market and a wide variety of food & beverage outlets. Combined with the world-class music line-up and masses of happy music lovers, the stadium formed a perfect venue.
Visited by thousands of people at its former home at the iconic aqueduct of Rose Hall, the Jazz & Blues Festival has seen outstanding performances by major international stars such as Lionel Richie, Michael Bolton, Patti LaBelle, Al Jarreau and Jamaican greats such as Beres Hammond, Shaggy, Ziggy Marley and Maxie Priest over the years. Explained festival organizer Walter Elmore of Turnkey Productions, “One of the biggest considerations for moving the venue of the Jazz & Blues Festival was that of growth. The event gets bigger and bigger every year, and we needed to ensure that everyone is comfortable and that the venue would support the kind of international event that we want the Jazz & Blues Festival to be.” A full week of music was kicked off on January 24, 26 and 27 with pre-event performances in Kingston, Ocho Rios and Montego Bay, followed by main stage events on Thursday January 28, Friday 29 and Saturday 30.
Twenty-two year old British soul and R&B singer Joss Stone stole the limelight on the first night, stunning the crowds with her raw talent. The barefooted bundle of energy gave everyone a taste of her biggest hits from her extensive catalogue, showing off her versatility with an amazing version of Marley’s
Is This Love. Next, singer and songwriter Kenny ‘Babyface’ Edmonds entered the stage with a band dressed in black tuxedos and paid homage to the ‘many beautiful women of Jamaica’ with classics like Every Time I Close
My Eyes and My My My, Mama, Can We Talk For A Minute and I Wanna Rock With You Baby. The crowd was touched by his Michael Jackson tribute Gone Too Soon and his outstanding guitar skills, which he showed off with Wonderful Tonight, a hit he wrote for Eric Clapton. Joe Roy Jackson, Monty Alexander and The Whispers completed Thursday night’s music fiesta in great style.
The song gala continued on Friday with performances by Erykah Badu, Billy Ocean, Machel Montano, Robin Banks and the Queens Project with Tamia, Kelly Price and Deborah Cox. Said one festival supporter, “I was dragged into the beat by Machel Montano’s high energy performance.” The Soca star had the masses dancing and jumping, while the eccentric Erykah Badu delivered a theatrical performance of percussion and rhythmic soul. Billy Ocean delivered another solid act showcasing his powerful voice, versatile dance moves and charm his fans are accustomed to.
Saturday night was the icing on the cake for many festival goers. The audience was able to witness another side of Marion Hall a.k.a. Lady Saw and enjoyed Latin rhythms by Cuban-American singer and songwriter Jon Secada. The ambiance took on a new mood when music industry veterans Daryl Hall and John Oates entered the stage with Family Man and proceeded to take the masses back in time with all time favorites like Maneater, She’s Gone and I Can’t Go For
That. Showing off unbelievable guitar skills, the duo’s performance ended on a high when ‘new found friend’ Maxi Priest and Billy Ocean joined the pair on stage with fabulous collaborative performance of Caribbean Queen and Love Train.
Following Hall & Oates, the crowds went wild for song diva Gladys Knight who reminded the audience, “Some of you weren’t here when this music was made” before performing hit after hit from the Motown era including The Nitty Gritty, I Heard It Through The Grapevine and One Of Us. Telling the audience that she was pleased to see the island even more beautiful than the last time she visited, the diva singer finished her act in great style with a breathtaking encore of Midnight Train To Georgia.
One of the most successful reggae bands in history, renowned for their mix of roots reggae, R&B, funk and disco, reggae ambassadors Third World filled the final spot of the night and the entire festival. Kicking off their 35th anniversary, new album Patriots and upcoming global tour, Stephen ‘Cat’ Coore told the media, “We will try our best to show you who Third World is. We are going to play our classics along with other great songs to create a celebration of Third World.” So said, so done. Starting their act with a brand new tune from their upcoming album, The Spirit Lives, dedicated to the people of Haiti, the band had the audience grooving for 90 minutes to hits like 96 Degrees, Reggae Ambassadors, Try Jah Love and Now That We Found Love.
If you have not yet been to the Jamaica Jazz & Blues festival, join us for the music extravaganza in January 2011. We promise you will not regret it! www.jamaicajazzandblues.com
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