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Melvin Sparks
Boom Boom Room | San Francisco | 03.22 & 03.23
Judging from the line outside the door to the Boom Boom Room on Saturday night in San Francisco, one had the feeling something very cool was happening in there. Judging from the sounds emanating from the stage once you got inside, there was absolutely no question something very cool was indeed happening. Sitting on a chair on stage left was a hip looking gentleman in a stylish cap generating some of the funkiest guitar playing to ever grace this listener's ears. That gentleman was Melvin Sparks, a somewhat long lost obscure cult figure of the instrument who has recently experienced a well-deserved revival of interest in his music.
Originally from Texas, Melvin made a name for himself on the both the Prestige and Blue Note labels in the late 60's and early 70's, where he not only put out records under his own name but also played on sessions with such jazz greats as Lou Donaldson, Houston Person, Lonnie Smith and Idris Muhammad. It is his connection with these players that has earned him the rightful title of one of the "fathers of acid-jazz", "soul jazz", or "barbeque jazz". Whatever these terms mean they don't even scratch the surface of the importance and greatness of Melvin's playing. Taking everything that is good about the blues, jazz and funk and putting it into one explosive package, Melvin delivers a sound that is so direct, so simple and so fun its almost hard to believe its possible. Carrying on a lineage of jazz/blues guitar that many people identify with Grant Green, Melvin rocked the house on Saturday with a band of young cats from New York who are also featured on his latest release, "What You Hear is What You Get." Particularly impressive was drummer Carter McLean, who laid down the grooves with bassist Derek Layers. George Papageorge delivered a classic Hammond B-3 sound and Joe Hrbek rounded out the band on alto sax.
Melvin showcased his strong voice on James Brown's "Funky Good Time" and the soul classic "Money" and throughout the night mixed his originals, such as "Another Joe", with jazz funk classics like Eddie Harris' "Freedom Jazz Dance" and Lou Donaldson's "Hot Dog". Playing a fat hollow body Gibson right into a Fender Twin with only an octave pedal for occasional effect, it was hard to determine what was more impressive: Melvin's undeniable rhythm or his lightning quick, melodic single note soloing. No need to fret about it. As Melvin said throughout the night: "it's all good!" And it was.
Melvin played on through 'til past 3:00 AM; to a house that remained full of boogie-hungry, elated people, bumpin' hard to the relentless Groove that pulsed from Melvin's stage. All the while, a broad smile covered Melvin's face as he peered out over his guitar onto the bouncing crowd. Under all of this rhythm and in the throws of it all, the crowd just kept on smiling and steppin', silently hoping the music wouldn't ever stop. Melvin Sparks had hit the West coast and San Francisco was happy about it.
Players like Melvin Sparks put the fun back in jazz, and keep you on the dance floor while they're at it. His music is totally unpretentious and straight from the heart. Any guitar players (or anyone for that matter) out there interested in funk, jazz or blues would do good to go check out Melvin live or pick up any of his own albums, such as his most recent release or the older "Akilah" on Prestige, or dig deeper and explore his session work on records like Lou Donaldson's "Hot Dog" or "Everything I Play Is Funky". Here's to Melvin Sparks for keepin' it fun! And funky.
For more info on Melvin, check out the Melvin Sparks website.
Dave Ridnell
JamBase | San Francisco
Go see live music!
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