Kansas Smitty's play Hoodoo Man Blues and more - Jan. 20

Jalen N'Gonda (guitar, piano, vocals); Dave Archer (guitar); Will Sach (double bass); Jas Kayser (drums)  

(Screenshots by Ken Drew)

What a turn up for the books...Jalen N'Gonda singing and playing guitar and piano, no harmonica! Snatch it back and hold it, yes, this was Junior Wells, followed by Ships on the Ocean, the opening two tracks from Junior Wells' album Hoodoo Man Blues. Fabulous vocals, decent rhythm guitar, JN leaving the lead stuff to Buddy Guy, sorry, Dave Archer. 

The material wasn't all from Wells' 1965 Delmark album, although tonight's band (Will Sach, five string bass guitar, Jas Kayser, drums) did play the title track, Hoodoo Man Blues, N'Gonda simply had to play it! Main man N'Gonda playing guitar came as a surprise, but not half as much as piano. Yes, our man rattled the 88s on How Long Blues (memories of Jimmy Witherspoon singing the number at Newcastle's Corner House Hotel), one sensed a good vibe going on; Dave Archer the ace guitarist in the house, Sach and Kayser somewhere between London and Chicago. 

N'Gonda and co playing the blues deviated from the usual top notch jazz fayre, but Kansas Smitty's was none the worse for it. Hesitation Blues and a 'couldn't-put-a-name-to-it' boogie shuffle concluded an excellent, but all-too-brief, three quarters of an hour. Tomorrow (Thursday) at eight, it's Paul Desmond and Gerry Mulligan (Rachael Cohen and Alex Garnett).  

Russell