Concert Review: Raphael Saadiq, Jimmy Lee Tour
February 13, 2020
“Your music should live longer than you,” said Raphael Saadiq to the audience at The Fillmore Philadelphia. Saadiq, who started his professional musical career as the bassist for Sheila E. in the mid-80s, has been in the music world for close to 40 years. In that time, Saadiq’s contributions to music have been numerous, as a musician, producer, and solo artist. Saadiq is Connecting artists across time, Saadiq is like Thoth, the Egyptian god of wisdom. Saadiq’s career is a bridge connecting Funkadelic, Earth, Wind, and Fire, and Prince with D’Angelo, Bilal, Solange, and many others. His career is a testament to the statement he – his music and influence will surely live on long after he is gone.
In August of last year Saadiq released Jimmy Lee, his first album in 8 years, a touching, and sometimes heartbreaking, tribute to his late brother. On Wednesday, February 12th, Raphael Saadiq played a headlining show The Fillmore Philadelphia. After the show I wrote about some of my feelings
Raphael Saadiq has HITS — Raphael Saadiq is probably singlehandedly responsible for most of the music I like. Like, for real. Close to the end of the show, Saadiq played a string of songs he’s helped produce or co-wrote. Cranes in the Sky (Solange), Untitled (How Does It Feel) (D’Angelo), Lady (D’Angelo), Love of My Life (An Ode to Hip-Hop) (Erykah Badu), and he could have gone on (he didn’t even do Soul Sista). And I didn’t even include his music with Tony Toni Toné, Lucy Pearl, and others. Truly impressive.
The other side of this is that, well, he barely did any songs from the album for which the tour is named! I guess it’s a good problem to have so many songs you just literally can’t do them all, but it would have been cool to hear more songs from Jimmy Lee.
Raphael Saadiq can shred! — Before Tony Toni Toné, Lucy Pearl, or his solo career, Raphael Saadiq got his first break as a member in Sheila E’s band as a bassist. For the most part, he’s been known as such. But somewhat recently, Saadiq’s been playing the electric guitar more, and he can absolutely shred. Like, surprisingly good. He played a rearranged version of Toni Toné’s Let’s Get Down, a pretty standard mid-90s R&B tune, but he turned it into a full fledged Rock song, and capped it off with a powerful solo.
Jamila Woods — I struggle with being on time to concerts. Like chronically struggle. But I knew I had to be there to see Jamila Woods. Woods, who released her sophomore album LEGACY! LEGACY!, is a tribute of sorts to the artists she’s admired and studied. Jamila Woods and her band absolutely killed! Woods’s voice and presence was strong, the arrangements were interesting, and the songs flowed together nicely.
Where was Rob Bacon? — One thing was painfully obvious to me throughout the night. Long time friend, collaborator, and guitarist Rob Bacon wasn’t there! Bacon, a Detroit native, is a child of Motown, Funkadelic, and Eddie Hazel. He’s most known for his work with DJ Quik, offering the funk/rock edge DJ Quik’s music is known for. In particular, Something Keeps Calling Me, produced by Bacon, is a musical ode to the Isley Brother and Eddie Hazel.
Not having Bacon there last night certainly changed the dynamic of the music. The band was comprised of drums, bass, piano (acoustic and a Fender Rhodes) , and Saadiq playing guitar at times. But it felt like they needed one more, consistent piece – a second keyboard or guitar. There was a noticeable difference when Saadiq played guitar, versus when he wasn’t playing guitar – having that extra piece helped fill out the room. Just wish that could have been there the entire night.
Old School — In true old school fashion, everything you heard in the room came from the people on stage playing it. This might sound like a “wELl dUh sTaNLeY” moment - but it’s pretty common for performers to perform with a backing track/stems (computer). A backing track can include extra vocals, sound effects, or instruments. It’s low key a way for [some] artists to cut corners and not pay musicians OR a way to hide their own flaws. But, to quote Prince “I go on stage, and my microphone is on” — Saadiq’s microphone was on and he sounded great! Saadiq’s from an era where you play everything. In some ways it was to his detriment, as the sound often wasn’t rounded out and didn’t sound full.
Arrangements — One of the things I really enjoyed about Saadiq’s live show was his willingness and ability to rearrange songs. Songs like Tony Toni Toné’s Just Me and You, Be Here, Feels Good, and It Never Rains. He made those songs work in a new context, and it was good! A real joy to watch.
