Like Father, Like Sons, and Dynamic Sheila E

The motto for Pete Escovedo and his kids should be, “The family that drumstogether stays together.” The veteran Latin jazz percussionist has managed to do something that eludes most parents: He has persuaded three of his children to follow in his professional footsteps.

In the case of daughter Sheila E, of course, it has resulted in a high-visibility star. But his two sons, Peter Michael and Juan, are first-rate talents in their own right. And when everyone gets together, as they did Thursday night at the Conga Room, the results are a percussion spectacular.

“The Escovedo sound is the Escovedo family,” Pete once said, and he was right.

Escovedo was celebrating the release of his latest Concord Picante CD, “E Music,” with a performance by an ensemble that included, in addition to his children, a five-man horn section, keyboards and bass.

Although the music moved through mambos, cha-cha-cha and guajira, it was firmly rooted in Escovedo’s first love--jazz.

And it was fascinating to see a full-house crowd totally captivated by the music, with its rolling rhythms, brassy horn explosions and splendid soloing (by such L.A. jazz stalwarts as Justo Almario on saxophones and flute, Andy Martin on trombone, Ray Vega on trumpet and Joe Rotundi on keyboards.

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Holding it all together, the Escovedo family percussion corps drove the rhythm with power and precision. Complex accents, breaks and shifts of tempo were handled by the four players with ease, enthusiasm and a palpable sense of sheer joy in the process of making music.

Each took a solo spot, with high-voltage results in all cases. But it was Sheila E, playing a full drum kit, who stole the show. Performing with the sort of exuberant, smiling, totally involved manner that is typical of veteran jazz drummer Billy Higgins, she was a virtual force of nature throughout the set.

Her solo on “Flying South,” in particular, was as musically gripping as it was virtuosic, the work of an artist who possesses the natural ability to communicate and entertain without sacrificing an iota of her musical creativity.

Pete Escovedo should be, and obviously is, immensely proud of her--and her siblings.