Soulful Groove Plays Well at Long Beach Fest

There was a decidedly soulful slant to Saturday’s edition of the three-day Long Beach Jazz Festival, held within sight of the Queen Mary at Rainbow Lagoon Park near the convention center.

Even headliner Bob James--best known for his early soft-fusion keyboard work and, more recently, his participation in the backbeat superband Fourplay--turned in an earthy, acoustic trio set that looked to the soul-funk jazz of the ‘60s for its inspiration.

Only when the program offered contemporary sounds (usually a big winner at the 9-year-old fest) did the party stall. But those interruptions were few as the crowd--estimated by organizers at 8,500--danced, waved hankies and sang along with such R&B-flavored; jazz acts as saxophonist Stanley Turrentine, pianist Ramsey Lewis and singer Ernestine Anderson.

Of the lot, Turrentine turned in the purest jazz set, steering his tenor through blues, ballads and the kind of soul-bound numbers (“Sugar”) on which his career was founded. Backed by a crack quartet that featured guitarist Phil Upchurch and pianist Kei Akagi, Turrentine played with a fervor that grew in measure to the audience’s positive response.

Even the standard “They Can’t Take That Away From Me” became a religious experience as Turrentine cajoled, pleaded and cried from his instrument. Upchurch took the familiar lyric out with his chock-a-block chording. The group closed its set in high fashion with Bobby Lyle’s rousing booty-shaker “Touching.”

Coming in the middle of the program, as the sun was sliding low in the sky, Turrentine’s performance was a needed lift from the preceding band, Special EFX, which seemed to lose the audience with its convoluted take on jazz fusion.

Despite interesting work from guitarist Ed Hamilton on his own “Gray Day” and occasional flashes of inspiration from percussionist/leader George Jinda, the group’s shiny, calculated sound fit uneasily into the otherwise soulful program.

*

Saturday’s other high points came at the beginning and the end. Keyboard player-singer Les McCann and his seven-piece Magic Band garnered one of biggest responses early in the afternoon while people were still filing onto the grounds.

McCann, who has been bravely regaining his ability to play since suffering a stroke in January 1995, was lively and animated behind the keyboard, leading the crowd in the lyric from his anthem “Compared to What?” and pushing his band members to soulful heights.

McCann only riffed along on themes and behind soloists, leaving the keyboard improvisations to Jon Mayer, whose rollicking efforts suggested McCann’s earlier days.

Bob James’ closing set was a delightful surprise. Working with muscular drummer Billy Kilson and a fine young bassist named James Genus, James showed taste, ideas and plenty of spirit in tunes from Horace Silver and Pat Metheny as well as with his own rhythm-minded numbers.

Genus, who could give Christian McBride a run for his money, added a number of stout, beat-wise improvisations, leading to the first time in memory that members of the Long Beach Festival crowd got up and danced to an acoustic bass solo.

Ramsey Lewis, who appeared earlier in the evening, was sometimes overshadowed by second keyboardist Michael Logan, whose synthesizer added string and brass accents to “People Make the World Go Round” and “Wade in the Water.” Lewis’ best moments came with minimal support as he explored Thelonious Monk’s “ ‘Round Midnight” and “Ruby, My Dear.”

*

Though blues and ballad singer Ernestine Anderson’s set certainly fit the day’s program, Anderson herself was flat, in both pitch and enthusiasm. She was backed by an excellent eight-piece band that featured trumpeter Oscar Brashear and drummer Ndugu Chancler, but Anderson (whose voice often was lost in the sonic mix) did little to excite the crowd until she closed with “Never Make Your Move Too Soon.”

Vibraphonist Roy Ayers’ set seemed like one endless groove in which he sang but played very little. Working with a trio of backup singers, one of whom also was a provocative dancer, Ayers didn’t actually sound the vibes until his closing number, “Searchin’ .” Before that, he used a vibraphone-synthesizer to trigger the tones one expects from electric keyboards.

The day’s scheduled opening act, the winner of the Orange County Youth Jazz Competition, was a no-show and festival organizers were at a loss to explain why. The festival, which opened Friday, was scheduled to close Sunday with Lou Rawls, Poncho Sanchez, Randy Crawford and others.