Eyes of the World: Jade Bennett, Gino Matteo, and a Ripcat Records Night!

This title,

I suppose, is my way of

not naming EVERYBODY in the title

without sounding TOO exclusive. Too many people

to try to fit in...and too little space to NOT be

exclusive in some way. 

Oh.

And up front.

I didn't take any photos that night,

so everything here is the result of me trolling around.

I'll give credit where I know what's what,

and will add credit if someone id's

a photo as their work.

 

davidfleming28@gmail.com.

Saturday. March 3rd, 2012.

So here's Jade,

who got the night going,

as Gino hit the chords that made

me absolutely sure, under NO uncertain terms,

that we were about to start the night with Jade Bennett

singing Hunter/Garcia's Eyes of the World! 

One of my ALL time fav's!

 

(the above photo, I THINK I took. Me, or this guy Adrian, who was using my camera at that moment. This was on the same night that I spent some time drawing on Jade's arm.

The Vault. Redlands. I DID take the below photo)

 

Well,

Eyes of the World is not at all what

they started with, but I swear the chords were right.

Or at least the first chord and a kind of

da-da-da da-da

da-da

da.

And now I really wanna

hear a Jaded (as it were) version of that song.

But anyway.

 

It was a fantastic night

to be at the Mission Tobacco Lounge

in Riverside...a fit night to be representing

Ripcat Records.

  

(from a gig a couple of weeks prior to this writing - left to right: Joey Delgado, Trevor Monks, Jade Bennett, Tony Nouhan, Gino Matteo, James Breker)

The first set

began with an introduction

of Jade Bennett as the newest recording

artist to be signed to Ripcat Records, joining

Gino, Joey Delgado, and more.

 

Joey...one of the Delgado Brothers...

an East LA staple over the last 30 years.

Between The Delgados, Los Lobos, Tierra,

or over the last 15-ish years, Gino too - if you grew up ANYWHERE around East LA...

...SOME of these folk probably

played at your first wedding.

 

(I've gone on to repeat this joke with nearly the same reference. Didn't realize this. Good thing I write this stuff down)

 

Joey was in the audience at at this point,

later to join on stage. Since he wasn't on just yet,

then it was also at this point that I was sitting with a

bunch of Jade's family, silently projecting, "Hey Joey.

Learn Eyes of the World. Learrrrrrn Eyessssss of the Worrrrrrrld. You are getting SLEEEEeeeepy.

EYESSSsssss of the Worrrrrrrld".

 

He probably already knows it. But hey!

 

 

                                                  (photo by Mike Ingram, circa 11/11)

Backing Jade this evening

was the same line up as when

you go to see Gino Matteo play.

Gino on guitar, Trevor Monks on drums,

James Breker on bass, and Tony Nouhan

on keyboards, and the occasional vocals. The

name of the first tune escapes me at the moment.

It was an original - to be recorded on an

upcoming cd. She followed with

Shakin' All Over, If You Call,

and SO much more.

During the first few tunes alone,

between Jade's vocals and Gino's guitar,

I found myself lost in the middle of my own notes

while getting caught up with what

was going on onstage.

In the past,

I've described Jade's

singing as a kind of sultry, smokey-bar blues. If you had to stick her in a genre? Maybe blues...more of a Soul and RnB thing, really. But it's RnB the way it USED to be presented. Not...whatever it is now. If you wanna get a picture in

your head of what she sounds like...think Adelle.

Or maybe Janis Joplin.

But I really hate to

jump to such obvious choices.

She'll sing softly...then she belts it out.

You'll hear her bending the notes - like a

guitarist would. In only the last few months,

this is something I've seen mature SO incredibly.

When she covers someone else, she completely owns

the tune she's singing. Most of the nights I've seen Jade,

she's covered Amy Winehouse's Back to Black. This is

a good example. I didn't even KNOW it was a cover,

but then again my only exposure to THAT tune was

with Winehouse, a drunken idiot, stumbling all over

the stage in Belgrade...leaving most of the

words out, and making the

rest - well, painful.

What, too soon?

 

Jade stepped down for the next set,

as we saw Joey Delgado introduced as the

Godfather of East LA blues guitar. Also joining

at this point, the INCREDIBLE Jason Ricci on harmonica

(and some vocals). They started with material to be found

on Gino's new album...out REAL soon! And Gino, by

the way, will be on Jason's new album. I believe this'n

will also be out on Ripcat Records.

This was a great night for this band.

Gino was in the pocket. He was doing what

I love so much - going into solos hitting short

SHORT notes - OH so quietly, then following with

a major shred! Joey shone - not showing off what he

could BE doing, but rather humbly sliding in as a fifth

member, rounding out the sound. James wasn't just

hitting the bass notes. He was running up and down

the fretboard with a cool, funky drive.  Made you

wanna look up to see who's doin' it. "NOT that

quiet quy standing in the back", you'd think to

yourself. Sho' 'nuff though.

 

Trevor - I don't know

how else to say it - he was locked in!

But he always is. Look at his eyes sometime

when he's playing and  You'll see what I mean.

(photo by Mike Ingam)

Tony Nouhan provided

great work on the keys, while popping

in for some occasional vocal work as well.

Ricci's harmonica sounded at times like a third guitar.

And the way he changes tones and delivery...I made a

note to compare it to some Steve Vai kinda thing.

 

No kidding.

Some other highlights for the evening? 

At one point, Gino went cordless to go outside

and serenade Jade. On his way there, and back,

he'd stop and play for various tables, maybe

borrowing a lighter to serve as

an impromptu slide.

 During My Grandmother Told Me

(another original - out on Gino's upcoming cd)

Joey had a solo that was just so incredibly intense...and moving...have you ever seen a guitarist prop his elbow

onto his fret board, and cup his chin in his hand,

watching another guitarist on the same stage?

 

That was Gino, blown away, watching Joey go.

Jason also. Normally his hands are near the mike - gettin' ready to blow us away on the harp. During Joey's

solo...Jason's hands were at his side. He was just

staring. Along with Gino, just watching in awe.

We all were. Thank you Joey. Gino followed

with a particular ride on the sustain, more

shredding, a whinney or two...

My God!

They played one of

my favorites - Soulshine. Dan Davis,

of Lunchline Jones, stepped in for a few moments

here for some wonderfully soulful vocals, Gino blew

us away with his soloing, and Tony Nouhan finished it

up with, again, some great great vocal work. He shone

again with Stevie Wonder's Signed, Sealed, Delivered.

Again - I have to point out Jason Ricci. This was an

incredible treat to have him back in the music

world, and with us in Riverside that night.

Before the night was over,

almost as a bookend, Jade took a break

from wondering what kind of notes I was taking

to join on stage once again. Nice thing was...it was

a song ABOUT her. 

 

Other nice thing. It's just fun.

Clearly!

 

Just SO glad I was there.

Gino Matteo just got Q'd (and then some)!

Finally. A new post. A lot has happened - and I have lots to talk about. A recent interview with Shirley Jones and Marty Ingals - and the re-opening of their new park - which I attended. Some changes to Twain. Tommy Womack and some Government Cheese in the near future...


So - the latest live act to blow me away?
 

(((photo by Mike Ingram)))

I got a message from a friend about a new "residency" of sorts. A weekly gig at a Redlands watering hole, The Vault. The gig was to be called The Hometown Getdown featuring Gino Matteo. The name? Well, that's easy enought. Gino Matteo moved from East LA to Redlands recently. It's now his hometown. Every Sunday night at The Vault? A getdown.

(((photo by Mike Ingram)))

Near 30 years old, Gino's been fronting one band or another for some 15 years. Most recently, Gino Matteo and the Family Funk. Do the math real quick and you'll know that for quite some time, he's been playing with people well over his age. Over the years, Matteo played with - and/or opened for - some fantastic artists, played for thousands (and thousands) of people, and picked up a LOT of valuable experience.

He had lost touch with something though, and started to re-examine why he might be playing. He wanted to get back to playing...because it's fun. He wanted to play with some folks who, closer to his own age, he might be hanging out with anyway. He broke down the Family Funk...and started from scratch. He brought in James Breker on bass, and Trevor Monks on drums. He'd known both of these guys for quite some time - one of whom since adolescence. These three jammed...got tight...then Gino made one more call. That call was to Q. That is, Quinton Hufferd. 

(((photo by Mike Ingram)))

Originally from San Diego, Q is becoming (has become?) a name in the Inland Empire and Southern California. Q was a founding member of the 5th Street Jazz combo (which still plays - sans Q - in the alley next to Augie's Coffee Shop in Redlands). He was also one of the original members of Big Papa and the TCB. Without Q, they will definitely still be a band worth seeing. BUT- without Q - they will definitely be less interesting. Q is with a couple of other area bands (The Griff Hamlin Band, Yardsale), and also teaches blues piano online. Q is also the friend who alerted me to this gig.

(((note~ I really DON'T mean to slam Big Papa and the TCB with that statement. It's really meant to be more of a compliment to Q. I recently (mid-march 2013) tried to explain my statement to Chris Thayer (Big Papa). He stopped me. Seems to have understood. Big Papa and the TCB is still QUITE a wonderful band - and as stated earlier - WELL worth seeing. DF)))


But back to Gino. It's his name out front.

(((photo by Mike Ingram)))

The man knows his fretboard! And...he in no way relies on any familiar tropes. Each attack is an exploration. Whether exploring sound effects, playing out Amazing Grace with Harmonics (at the end of THIS video), or flying up, down...then up the neck again...you want to watch as well as listen. He CAN shred when he wants to...but doesn't rely soley ON it. Too many people pick up this ability - then do nothing but. Thankfully this isn't the case with Gino. There's just as much variety in style as there is in music.


But there IS a constant.


Soul. 


Not - say - the kind of thing ya get from James Brown or Aretha or somebody. More like...ohhhh...The Allman Brothers. Not the Ramblin' Man kinda thing, mind you. Think more in the lines of In Memory of Elizabeth Reed. Think of some of the offshoots in the Allman Brothers family tree. Derek Trucks...Gov't Mule....there you go. Think Soulshine. Now throw in a bit of Tom Waits, Joe Cocker, a bit of New Orleans with a taste of a Southern black gospel church (chuch). 


Oh yeah! How about the slowwwww, building instrumentals. The kind with the gradual intensity to knock you outta your socks. Think Stevie Ray...think Stan Kenton's band doing a Dave Barduhn arrangement of My Funny Valentine. Take this all a step further when Jade steps up for vocals.

(((photo by Mike Ingram)))

Now...when you see this band, it's a treat to stay to the end. Not that they've been going off of a set list all night - Gino calls them out AS they're starting - but at the end of the night, it gets really fun. Start with ANY tune...soon it drifts into Suzie Q...then Billie Jean...then, while trading licks with Q, some Christmas tune...all with the same funk-driven backbeat. 


They've promised to be an every Sunday thing - 7-11pm - at The Vault - in Redlands. BUT - I'd catch 'em while you can. These guys are a touring band. Mostly along the coast...up to the Bay area and back. Gino just happens to live in Redlands now. 


Which is good, 'cause I just couldn't see myself driving to East LA every Sunday night. 


Much less making it out.


Come back to this page soon. I'm sure I'll be editing, adding photos and more.