Every summer since 1980, the Montreal Jazz Festival has given millions of people the opportunity to take in thousands of acts ranging from the biggest musicians in the world to that girl at Starbucks in the weird xylophone blues drum ‘n bass group. Last month, the city attracted more than 2.5 million visitors to check out 3,000 artists from 30 countries.
With music playing nonstop from noon to midnight at 10 free outdoor stages and an additional 10 concert halls, only the most curmudgeonly and elitist of your friends will find something to bitch about at this festival. And contrary to the name, countless genres besides jazz are represented, as our list of our 10 favorite acts shows.
Dee Dee Bridgewater – “My heart beats ten times faster when I’m in Montreal,” said jazz vocalist Dee Dee Bridgewater before her tenth visit to Jazzfest. With ostentatious platform shoes and gaudy, long eyelashes, Bridgewater has the performing aspect down pat. But tonight, Bridgewater’s charismatic, jovial voice lent a different vibe to the set, comprised entirely of Billie Holiday standards.
Bootsy Collins – “Humans were not meant to be funkless,” shouted legendary James Brown and George Clinton bassist Bootsy Collins at the beginning of tonight’s set. We can’t disagree. With a 14-piece band in tow, Collins’ mix of Parliament Funkadelic and original tracks straddled the line between funk show and Las Vegas revue. A tribute to Jimi Hendrix went a bit long, but for his first Montreal show in a decade, Collins gave the crowd three hours, three wardrobe changes, a nimble Bernie Worrell and himself, as the singer walked through the packed crowd to hang with, and sweat on, his disciples.
Lee Fields – Before Adele, Sharon Jones had quietly been revivalist soul’s breakout star, yet when she was discovered, it was as a backup singer for veteran singer Lee Fields in the mid-90s. Fields’ dirty, sweaty raw grunting – the vocal equivalent of a back-alley brawl on the Bowery – mixes soulful brutality with a lush, smooth sound that can only come from decades in the game. Tonight, rollicking funk and female friendly slow jams are given equal weight, with Fields handling both sides handily.
Wanda Jackson – You may not know the name, but Wanda Jackson, The Queen of Rockabilly, remains an integral part of rock ‘n roll history. Drawing primarily from her Jack White-produced covers album released earlier this year, the pioneering singer exhibited an energy and enthusiasm that has inspired singers half her age. In between classic country, rockabilly and rock, Jackson told the crowd about Elvis teaching her how to sing and other stories from the road. By the time she got to her cover of Amy Winehouse’s “You Know I’m No Good,” a former queen regained her crown.
Kaki King – It’s no surprise 32-year-old guitarist Kaki King was the sole woman on Rolling Stone’s 2006 list of “New Guitar Gods.” The virtuoso has historically played with both a live band and solo. Tonight, the Montreal crowd primarily got just King, her guitars and her stories. In between intricate, precise instrumentals, King regaled the theatre with stories of bad road food and bikinis in Brazil. The music may have been serious, yet King displayed a playful demeanor supplementing her auteur hands.
Theophilus London – New York rapper/singer/style torchbearer Theophilus London combines a stylish urban aesthetic with music that draws on glossy funk, pop, electro and R&B — all under the umbrella of hip-hop. In one of the festival’s most packed shows, London worked the crowd nonstop, bounding around the stage all while looking like a reincarnation of Fab 5 Freddy.
Sade – Has any singer done so much by doing so little? At the sold out Bell Centre, Sade Adu and her longtime collaborators gave a rare and memorable performance, running through a greatest hits of their 27-year catalog. No one does elegant like Adu, who at 52 exudes the sultriness and confidence as a quarter-century ago. Sure, there were arena-appropriate theatrics, but tonight, all it took was one breathy voice to fill a 15,000-person room.
Trombone Shorty – 25-year-old Troy Andrews, better known as Trombone Shorty, has long been considered a precocious talent in the jazz and funk scenes. But the New Orleans native has come into his own as bandleader, emulating James Brown’s emphatic “ooohs” and bolstering the already energetic crowd. Tonight, he’s treated as a national hero, covering “Let’s Get It On” and “Sunny Side of the Street” as well as his own original numbers. The show is as much church revival as concert; the sight of a musical messiah shepherding his flock.
Esperanza Spalding – The confidence and technical ability displayed by this year’s Grammy winner for Best New Artist belied her age. At 26, the Berklee-trained Spalding has closed the gap between jazz and classical. Tonight, the upright bassist showed a neo-operatic quality, using the side of her bass as percussion and conveying full stories through individual syllables. With a shocking mane of hair and boundless energy, Spalding cuts a mesmerizing frame and entranced the sold-out crowd.
The Unsettlers – This local 10-piece is so dark, they should never play before midnight. Dressed in 1940s dresses and Appalachian chic, the band led through numerous murder ballads and gypsy folk songs to the hipster crowd. Lead singer Baltimore Washington Brandes channels Tom Waits in a (slightly) more pleasant mood, and the instrumentation, which includes clarinet, accordion, violin and mandolin, have made the band unlike any other in the area. Add in a live contortionist and you have one of the festival’s best show.
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