Caught a great local band the other day. Now this band is not strictly a blues band… they are really more of a jazz/pop band but I wanted to mention these guys because they show what a group of great musicians can do. It’s really a lesson on how “pros” make a living in the local music business.
Now I went to see this band because a friend of mine, Lori Cherry was in it. Lori is a regular on the blues scene in Tampa Bay and has been playing around for several years now. She is a full-time musician and tries to make her living only from music. You can see some of her earlier band videos here on my YouTube Channel. Anyway, Lori asked me to come down and make a video of the band. Sure glad I did because I had a great time.
Now Off The Cuff is a long standing band in the Tampa area. They’ve been around a while. When they lost their singer, they asked Lori to join. She was definitely in the right place at the right time. This band is a big upgrade from what Lori had been doing in the past. But you’ll see from the videos that she fits right in and can hold her own with these great players.
Now I mentioned how the band are all pros. These are serious musicians who really know their craft. Dennis is on drums, Rick is on keyboards, and Dan, all of 21 years old, is on bass. It’s obvious that Rick and Dennis have been around the musical block and Dan, has been studying with the great Jeff Berlin, so he’s been schooled well. Proof is in the great version of Spain by Return to Forever the last video on this page. Not many bands would even attempt this song let alone be able to play it as well as these 3 great musicians can do.
Now on this night they were playing a restaurant called Ceviche’s Tapas Bar in St. Petersburg. It was a Wednesday night so the crowd was a bit small but that may have been a plus. They got to do a few of their jazz fusion songs and were able to stretch out a bit. Something they might not have been able to do if the typical Ceviche’s crowd was there.For me, this was great. This is the kind of band other musician’s love to see so it was a treat for a musician like me. I got to hear songs that you just about never get to hear in a “club” in the area.
By the way, they play several Ceviche’s in the Tampa and Orlando area so go see them if you get a chance. If you’d like to get in touch with Lori to learn more contact her here.
Anyway, enough talk. Here’s a few of the videos I made. I will be making more because a few of the great songs they did in the second set never made it to video. Watch for them in the future here.
