Playing these gigs

It’s just a gig, but you gotta love it. I caught some of the best players around town playing a Sunday afternoon gig for families and lots of kids and the mothers down the back swilling a few wines. This was Ipanema and Basin Street and Georgia and even All of me and a touch of funky with Let’s stay together. Standard practice for a dinner dance or the like. But this was not at all uninteresting. Paul lets go with the most substituted solos that you can imagine on the oldie-songbook and James lays down outspoken and insistent blues licks in his fluent solos, and Steve and James play easy, reliable accompaniment that spells the chords against Paul’s colours, and Alopi is just an open personality with a smooth and often caressing voice. I liked these tunes. I liked Alopi’s original that touched on country and suited his voice so well, even if the key change stretched it. Sunday afternoon gigs like this don’t lay claim on great art, but these guys do the job with panache. Easy feels and entertaining and pushing the envelope with some devilish substitutions. Alopi Latukefu (vocals) led Intaploping with Paul dal Broi (piano), James Luke (bass) and Steve Crispin (drums).