by Tom Baldino
When Joanne and I arrived at the Woman’s Club on this last Friday in April, I could tell it was going to be a good night, as there were people already waiting for us! Indeed, it was a great night, as a packed house watched The Big Easy play its first public performance to this very receptive crowd. Horn man and leader, Lee Sanderson, who has played the room many times, most notably with Goldenseal, approached me with the information that he was starting a new band that would focus on songs done in the New Orleans style. Without even knowing who was in the group, I said let’s make this happen. I knew he would assemble a strong supporting cast, and when he gave me the lineup, I knew we would be in for an entertaining night. Singer Yvonne Miranda-Martinez, who also played the congas and percussion, including what I recognized as the business end of a soil tiller; Andy McDonough, on keys and vocals, Bobby Mancari on guitar and vocals, Gerry Gironda on bass and vocals, and Duke Clement on drums, are all veterans of the Jersey Shore music scene, with impressive resumes.
The night began appropriately with a Michael Brecker composition, “Midnight Voyage,” showcasing Lee’s fine sax on this instrumental number. Next up, the band took us straight to New Orleans with an infectious version of Dr. John’s “Such A Night,” featuring Andy on keys and vocals. The band then moved into Marcia Ball’s “Like There’s No Tomorrow,” a particularly poignant number for me, knowing Marcia was being honored at Jazzfest this week on her retirement due to health issues.
The next song, Pete Townshend’s “Squeeze Box” demonstrated the band’s versatility, giving it that Cresent City swing, with Bobby’s vocals and Lee playing the clarinet. Those Steely Dan fans in the house quickly recognized the Donald Fagan song “Walk Between the Raindrops,” from his first solo release, “The Nightfly.” Yvonne turned in an engaging vocal on a song that was tailored to this group.
“When You Get Back,” is a song I had just heard by the author John Cleary and his band at French Quarter Fest a week earlier, and this bands version held up very well to the original. From there, Yvonne’s vocals on Joni Mitchell’s “Free Man in Paris,” elicited a positive response, especially from the women in the audience. “Mr. Lee,” a number written by Fats Domino’s long time sax player, Herb Hardesty, was one of those hidden gems that only a sax student of history like Lee could pull out of the past and make sound as fresh as if it were new.
Another great selection was the late Robert Palmer’s “Every Kind of People,” a song where the band could inject that NOLA feel, and make it sound as good or better than the original. Brenda Russell’s “Get Here,” again showcased Yvonne’s vocals and included Lee’s beautiful sax solo. The set ended with their rendition of the Burt Bacharach classic “Do You Know the Way to San Jose,” with Yvonne’s powerful interpretation and the band’s backing, they made it their own.
After a short break, the band presented another far-reaching set that kept the listeners wondering what they would hear next. Eddie Harris “Cold Duck Time,” an instrumental jazz sax standard opened the set, with Lee doing what he does best. From there, the Ben E. King classic “Stand by Me,” included an organ shuffle by Andy, with Bobby on vocals and Yvonne on the congas. They then went deep into Aretha Franklin’s songbook for the gem “Until You Come Back to Me,” with Yvonne demonstrating her vocal range to the delight of the audience.
“Flip, Flop, Fly,” a jump blues tune made famous by Big Joe Turner, started with the audience clapping the beat to Bobby’s inspired vocals, with well-timed solos by Lee and Andy. From there, another interesting twist in the set list, had the band doing a lively version of Sonny & Cher’s “The Beat Goes On.” Lee mentioned the next song, “All that Heaven Will Allow,” was a Bruce Springsteen song that has been featured prominently in current tour. The band then proceeded to do a version that was more closely associated with the Mavrick’s cover.
Carol King’s classic “It’s Too Late,” was done with great feeling by Yvonne and suburb accompaniment by the band. They then went back nearly a century for a song adapted for film from the musical “Woopee!”, “My Baby Just Cares for Me,” and rather than doing it as a silly number, they played, and Yvonne sang it with some depth and meaning. It was back to New Orleans and Fats Domino, for one of his most famous numbers “I’m Walking.” They stayed in that era with Bobby Troup’s “Route 66,” closing out the evening on a high note and demonstrating to all in attendance that this band has legs.