Our friends The New Orleans Groovemasters featuring Herlin Riley, Shannon Powell, and Jason Marsalis have a timely new jam. It’s called “Get Back” and it’s not a cover of the 1969 Beatles song. Check it out here.
Messrs. Riley, Powell and Marsalis have been gigging as the New Orleans Groovemasters (a/k/a Groove Masters) for about four years, as far as we can tell. Of course these days there’s not much gigging to be done … except on-line.
This past June the Groovemasters played “Get Back” and much more funky music live on-line. You can watch the entire streamed performance below, on Jason’s Facebook page.
From time to time the Groovemasters lineup includes Roderick Paulin, sax, David Torkanowsky, piano and bassist Jason Weaver. When the pandemic finally burns itself out we can’t wait to see them all live.
Groovemasters Rock the Fest
The Groovemasters played the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival in 2017, and by all accounts it was a blast. You can catch samples of that performance (and snag a copy for yourself) here.
Groovemasters à la Carte
Each one of the Groovemasters is a groove master in his own right. Jason Marsalis regularly fronts his own groups — the 21st Century Trad Band, and the BGQ Exploration (BGQ stands for Benny Goodman Quartet.) You can hear the BGQ Exploration in the clip below.
Of course Shannon Powell, a/k/a the King of Treme, has his own Shannon Powell Quartet, as well as the Shannon Powell Traditional All-Star Jazz Band. Not to mention his collaborations with nearly everybody who’s anybody in New Orleans music.
Here he is in 2016 at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Center, in a show featuring fellow Treme native, John Boutté:
Herlin Riley’s 2019 album is titled Perpetual Optimism — and that’s a philosophy that shines through everything he does. One of our favorite New Orleans percussionists, Riley appeared in 2018 with another New Orleans groovemaster — Johnny Vidacovich. If you missed that concert at the New Orleans New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Center, thank goodness it’s on video:
