If you listened to WKNH from 2003 to 2005 and heard the intro riff of “Chameleon”, then you probably were listening to my show: The Alternative Pollution. Herbie Hancock’s funky tune was my intro every week as I played new alt-rock for the next few hours. At a staggering 15 minutes for the song, I usually played the first two riffs and read news. Last Wednesday, Herbie played the entire 15 minutes in front a good sized crowd at Hampton Beach.
Heading to this show, I was more excited to hear my theme song played than anything else. Of course seeing a jazz legend is also a good enough reason. Touring behind his Grammy winning album: River: The Joni Letters and his previous release Possibilities, Herbie pulled most of the 11 song set from those two records, including tunes like: “River”, “All I Want”, “A Song for You” and others.
The lineup included: Vinnie Colaiuta – drums, Dave Holland – bass, Lionel Loueke – guitar, Chris Potter – saxophone, with Sonya Kitchell and Amy Keys trading vocal talents. Opening up with the bombast of “Actual Proof” off Thrust, the show proved that despite Herbie’s age, he can still funk the funk.
Each performer was given a few minutes to shine on a solo, most notably Dave’s incredible stand up bass jam and Lionel’s incredible blend of guitar and African vocalization. This was an amazing night for music. Throwing the classic “Cantaloupe Island” the band took a break and returned to completely jam on “Chameleon” and close the whole show.
Herbie made mention that he doesn’t get to New Hampshire very often, which is a shame, jazz acts seem to fit nicely in a venue like the Casino Ballroom. I’d also rather pay the price for seeing him here than in Boston, I probably saved a chunk of change overall.
