Meijer Gardens favorite and trombone/trumpet player extraordinaire Trombone Shorty kept the capacity amphitheater crowd on its feet with an entrancing set of funk/jazz/blues. The review and photos.
Crowd-Pleasing Affair: Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue on stage Wednesday. (Photo/Derek Ketchum)
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Beloved (and rightfully so) Fifth Third Bank Summer Concerts series fixture Troy “Trombone Shorty” Andrews charmed a sold-out crowd Wednesday at Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park, offering up an action-packed, efficient and intense 95-minute set of covers and originals to dazzle the on-its-feet crowd.
Slightly toned down from previous years — a show which previously featured a veritable parade of familiar NOLA/Treme names and faces — Andrews and company kept the focus on a tight, dozen-or-so-song set of old and new songs that amply showcased the Big Easy musicians’ considerable talents.
A man (and band) of hyperbolic skill and unique musical pedigree, Trombone Shorty and his Orleans Avenue delivered on the promise of incredible musicianship, lively atmosphere and sustained brass notes (have you ever seen Shorty hold a note on the trumpet or ‘bone? It’s something to behold]).
Trombone Shorty and his cohorts even took their impressive display right into the crowd at one point, marching through the amphitheater to the delight of fans.
Kicking off a sultry, upbeat evening, legendary soul/R&B/gospel singer Mavis Staples, 84, gave a roughly hour-long set in which she accurately proclaimed: “I’m on fire tonight. I don’t know what I’m going to do with me.”
PHOTO GALLERY: Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue, Mavis Staples at Meijer Gardens
Photos by Derek Ketchum
