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By Lisa Goich-Andreadis
Detroit

If you asked my feet today how much they enjoyed the 35th Annual Detroit Jazz Festival, they would probably be in disagreement with my heart. Though I wasn't wearing a pedometer, I'm certain I walked no less than 10 miles from Aug. 29–Sept. 1, bouncing from stage to stage not wanting to miss a single note coming from the four stages of this year's festival.

With the Detroit River and Motor City skyline as a backdrop, the grittiness and soulful pride of a city that has seen its share of trouble over the past few years came alive over Labor Day weekend. The Detroit Jazz Festival is considered worldwide by audience members and artists as one of the best jazz festivals in the world, and this year's lineup did not disappoint.

Among the jazz luminaries in attendance — with numerous GRAMMY wins and nominations between them — were: Phil Woods, Pharoah Sanders, Freda Payne, Joshua Redman, Regina Carter, Ramsey Lewis, Dave Holland, Wallace Roney, Stanley Clarke, Christian McBride, and Esperanza Spalding, among others. Though it was virtually impossible to catch every act without cloning myself, I tried my best to hit not only the big names, but also the college bands and lesser-known artists. After all, they are the stars of tomorrow.

Here are some of my highlights:

  • With my college roommates in attendance — celebrating the life of one of our roommates we lost this past month — the five of us spent Aug. 30 watching our alma mater's band — Central Michigan University Big Band — perform before a full house on the main stage. The talent the students possessed was mind-blowing.
  • Payne was a crowd favorite. She performed along with the United States Air Force's the Airmen Of Note and delivered her Top 3 hit "Band Of Gold."
  • Redman, the 2014 Detroit Jazz Festival Artist in Residence, performed with his quartet on Aug. 31. His closing number, "Let It Be," drew a standing ovation from the packed crowd.
  • GRAMMY winner Gary Burton performed with his quintet on Detroit's waterfront on Aug. 31. With the night settling in, their cool version of "My Funny Valentine" was exactly what was needed on an otherwise sweltering afternoon.
  • GRAMMY-winning bassist Dave Holland performed Aug. 31 with his band Prism, featuring Kevin Eubanks, Craig Taborn and Eric Harland. It was clear the band had been touring extensively for the past year as their playing was air-tight. Eubanks' solo on his composition "Dancing Sea" was visceral and flawless. 
  • There can't be a jazz festival without some good New Orleans music. This year the Dirty Dozen Brass Band had the crowd on their feet. Even my 92-year-old dad was on his feet, yelling, "Who dat?" in a call-and-response with the band.
  • GRAMMY-winning pianist Ramsey Lewis performed a tribute to Nat "King" Cole with jazz vocalist/guitarist John Pizzarelli. They covered "Route 66," "Smile" and a beautiful version of "Nature Boy."

The weekend wrapped with a Recording Academy-sponsored talk tent event featuring an intimate conversation with Clarke, who discussed winning his first GRAMMY for Chick Corea And Return To Forever's 1975 album No Mystery. He recalled learning about the win while watching the ceremony on TV when Ella Fitzgerald and Mel Tormé presented the award and Tormé referred to Chick Corea as "Chuck."

Clarke also discussed his career beginnings in Philadelphia — a city he refers to as one of two places in the world swarming with bass players (the other being Cameroon, Africa).

"Maybe it's the cheesesteaks," Clarke confessed.

Clarke also revealed it was Corea who enticed him and Herbie Hancock to move to the West Coast. "They got fresh orange juice out there" Clarke recalled Corea announcing after a visit, to which Hancock and Clarke enthusiastically responded, "Let's move there!"

Another highlight of the talk tent came during the question-and-answer session when an audience member asked, "I heard a story about you playing the EB3 bass using your thumb. Could you tell me a little bit about that?"

As Clarke began telling the story of "a drummer" who gave him that tip, the crowd — catching on before Clarke could see the audience member who asked the question — began laughing as Return To Forever bandmate Lenny White removed his baseball cap and sunglasses to reveal his identity. The audience members cheered as White joined Clarke onstage for a few minutes. It truly was a great moment in Detroit Jazz Festival history. 

(Lisa Goich-Andreadis, a Detroit native living in Los Angeles, manages the Jazz & Comedy Fields for The Recording Academy. She's currently working on a memoir titled 14 Days and can be heard as a special guest on "The Mitch Albom Show" on WJR-AM in Detroit. For more information on Lisa and her projects, visit her website at www.lisagoich.com.)