Blue Collar Swings
It was evening time, when the sun seeks you out to sear your skin and pierce your retinas. It glared off the water and bounced from windows and windshields. Kayakers waited to ride the wave at Caras Park, and Downtown Tonight was in full swing. Blue Collar played oldies with verve and made them rock, while dancers filled the grass. Although the Downtown Tonight crowd was a bit smaller than Out to Lunch, the previous day, thanks to the band, it was livelier.
The heart and soul of Blue Collar sits at the drums, keeps the beat going and sings in a powerful bluesy voice.
Big Band Doesn't
Momma told me, if I couldn't say something good, don't say anything. OK. Let me think...
Benny Goodman's Sing, Sing, Sing was so exuberant, even this band couldn't dull it down, thanks primarily to the driving beat maintained by the drummer. To satisfy a request from the audience, Peter Gunn was the next number. It, too, was well-played but abbreviated.
This is my first negative review on the blog, but big bands are supposed to swing, not drag. Perhaps, this is a weekend hobby for the members of the Ed Norton Big Band, and practice time is limited, but often they didn't seem to be on the same page. Another point: big bands didn't play 70's rock. Why would anybody play 70's rock?
But the food is good
There was a good crowd attending the Out to Lunch event, and the vendors made up for the first cold and slow weeks. Here, the staff of Thai Spicy cheerfully serves their specialties to a long line of hungry folks.
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