Steve Freund's World Famous Blues Jam Report

Last night, the moon was nearly full and brightly illuminated the evening sky. There was an Indian kid sporting a fake mohawk singing horribly on America's most watched television show that used to be talent competition. It was sort of a strange evening.

I arrived a bit during the middle of Steve Freund's opening set. He was in the middle of some tough blues in the West Side Chicago Blues tradition. Joining Steve onstage was East Bay Wes. After another tune, Wes stepped down and handed his guitar to Johnny Cat. Steve and Johnny played a couple more great songs before taking a short break. Nothing strange about this set. The music was great.

There were a number of musicians at the Mojo last night. There must have been a big guitar player convention last night because there were very few in attendance.

Here's the strange part.

There were more drummers present than guitar players. June Core, Luke Piro, Norm Decarlo, the majestic E-Rock and a couple more were present.

Back to normal things.

For me, the highlight of the jam was when Pat Wilder took the stage with Norm Decarlo and Ray Figueroa. She played some very intense Blues. I had seen her several times in Redwood City. She was always grouped with some horn players. Her participation in a smaller group made her music a bit more personal and intimate. She did a fantastic job.

Back to some strange stuff.

There was a very non-traditional female singer in the house that sang one of the most ethereal versions of "Got My Mojo Working" that I've ever heard while dancing rather suggestively. She followed that up with a free form number which included suggestive dancing and moaning. Her singing and dancing brought something new to the Blues.

Back to normal things.

At this point, it was difficult to ascertain whether things had returned to normal or not. Steve finished up the evening and asked Don Yonders and me to join him.

Overall, it was an odd, but fun evening at the World Famous Blues Jam.

People that performed during the course of the evening included: Steve Freund, June Core, Marcus Carino, East Bay Wes, Johnny Cat, Scott Duncan, Eric (the keyboard guy), Dawon (phonetic spelling), a new bass player, Double G, Don Yonders, Pat Wilder, Ray Figueroa, Norm Decarlo and (a singer named) Faith.

Robin O dropped in for a bit. Celia made the trek and brought Francis Clay down. It was nice to see him.

It was a crazy, but fun evening.