Eddie Palmieri at Dizzy’s

Eddie Palmieri’s Afro-Carribean Jazz Sextet Plays at Dizzy’s. I was dazzled by the view of Manhattan from the picture windows at Dizzy’s Club Coca-Cola, on July 2, 2009 when I went to see Eddie Palmieri’s group.

After the rain, thunder and lightning, amazingly the sky cleared up to reflect a gorgeous sunset. In the world of Latin-Jazz, Palmieri is one of the founders and stars of this genre of music, and is also the winner of nine Grammy Awards. Maestro Palmieri, known for being a creative bandleader who always has a trombone section, on this night he interestingly only had a tenor sax and trumpet.

In the band were: Eddie Palmieri, piano; Ivan Renta, tenor sax; Richie Viruet, trumpet; Rubin Rodriguez, bass; Jose Claussell, timbales, and Vicente “Little Johnny” Rivero on congas. The house was full, and there was excitement in the air.
The first tune was called “Slowvisor,” a Palmieri original in a cha-cha style. He began with solo piano, playing a haunting romantic melody, cueing in the rhythm section to begin a Latin groove. What great soloists the horn players were! With such a solid rhythm section behind them, they wowed everyone with high notes and fast virtuosic phrases. Palmieri’s solo on piano was relaxed at first, building up tension by his choice of single notes, followed by a resolution of big chords and intricate rhythms!
“Palmas,” the second number, had a more elaborate arrangement, but when Renta began soloing on tenor, he stopped looking at the music, closed his eyes and expertly created his own sound. Viruet on trumpet followed, and was it my imagination, or did he sound a bit like Dizzy Gillespie himself? The audience went wild after both their solos.
This band really knows how to back, and support a soloist. Whenever one person was soloing, the band played fully behind them, giving an upbeat feeling to push the music forward. It also made the band sound much larger than it actually was.
They quieted things down with “Bolero Dos,” which also had a beautiful solo piano introduction. The tune was based upon a simple rhythmic phrase, over which Palmieri’s complex harmonies flowed smoothly.
“Verdict on Judge St.” was a fun mambo, with lots of harmonic changes. By this time everyone in the club was dancing in their seats, the timbale player was dancing behind his drums, and even the waiters were doing a salsa step!