As I headed out to the highly anticipated concert, my eyes landed on two Gold Records hanging up in a prominent place in my home…and smiled.  I was reminded that the artist I was about to see perform has been honored with several awards during his illustrious career. The two gold records were given to Juno Award-winning Rumba Flamenco master Jesse Cook and to associated record label personnel for creating very successful records produced by Narada. I was lucky enough to be one of those label personnel.

It was my first visit to the handsome Sharon Lynne Wilson Center for the Arts in Brookfield, Wisconsin, which opened in January 2002.  As I entered the Grand Hall, there was a palpable electricity of anticipation among the concert goers milling about before the show. Once inside the 600+ seat Kuttemperoor Auditorium, I was very impressed by its beauty.  It exudes class and intimate warmth.  Artist Steve Feren’s “Flock” chandelier creates the illusion, through fiber optics, that the 30 hand-blown glass birds are in flight through the Auditorium.

The SLW Center’s new executive director Jonathan Winkle stepped on stage and welcomed the audience, then introduced Patti Genko from the local Smooth Jazz 106.9FM radio station. Veteran radio talent Genko functions as mid-day host and Operations Manager at the station. She built the anticipation with a colorful introduction of Jesse Cook.  She talked about the fun lunch held earlier that day, which the station hosted for listeners and Jesse Cook.  Lucky listeners had the chance to meet, greet, and eat with guitarist Jesse Cook at The Grove in Elm Grove. 
Jesse Cook has previously performed at the Wilson Center. That would explain why this current concert run consisted of, not one, but two sold out shows. Billed as the “Frontiers Tour,” it was mainly a showcase for his sixth album, Frontiers.  The newest record from Cook is nominated for a Juno (the Canadian equivalent of a Grammy) award in the “World Music Album of the Year” category. 
                  
Like other guitarists of this music style, Canadian-based guitar virtuoso Jesse Cook mixes together many influences, like jazz, Latin, world music, and African percussion.  Beyond that, he conjures different textures and colorful  timbres in his thrilling playing style, taking it much further into an unparalleled, multi-faceted, global hybrid.  The raw passion of flamenco is unquestionable, driving listeners to tap toes, clap hands, and get up to dance.

Perhaps this is your first introduction to this remarkable artist. Jesse Cook was born in Paris and lived in southern France where he absorbed the sounds of gypsy and flamenco music.  Moving to Canada, Cook studied classical guitar before turning to the oral gypsy traditions. Over the years he traveled the world exploring various musical forms, blending them into his singular style of rumba flamenco, a style with roots in Cuban rumbas that migrated to Spain where it evolved into an exotic Spanish music form. Cook is also well known for the energy of his live shows, which seem to inevitably inspire a rumba party.  He is often the headliner of major concerts and festivals as well as an opener for such stars as B.B. King, Ray Charles, and Diana Krall.  Cook has recorded six critically acclaimed studio albums.  He won the 2001 Juno Award for “Best Jazz Instrumental Album” for Free Fall and most recently garnered two 2008 Juno nominations.

For this concert, the stage was set with two percussion set ups, three guitars, and one violin.  Before the artists came on stage, with all that instrumentation, I wondered just how big the band would be?  Maybe seven, eight, nine, ten performers?  Once on stage, Cook was accompanied by violinist/vocalist/ bassist Chris Church, percussionist Rosendo Leon, and guitarist Dominique Soulard.  While the entire band was a quartet, sometimes they sounded 20 musicians strong.

Much of the material performed that night may be found on Cook's most recent release, Frontiers, but he also played his celebrated tracks from earlier albums. In case you’re intrigued, I’ve listed the source recording in parentheses after the song title.

I’ve had the pleasure and privilege of seeing Cook perform on numerous occasions.  More so than ever before, this evening I witnessed the ease with which Cook now approaches the audience.  With his wonderful sense of humor, Cook introduced most of the songs, usually with a funny story.  He is quite adept at responding comfortably to shout outs from the crowd. 

“That’s Right” (Vertigo) opened the first set with “palmas” (hand clapping – in flamenco, an essential form of percussion to help punctuate and accentuate the song, keeping a strong tempo, and the basis for improvisation.)  As Cook played his fiery guitar, the audience was immediately transfixed, toes tapping, heads nodding, and bodies moving to the rhythm.  During the violin solo, the audience provided the percussion by spontaneously clapping along.  With his guitar slung across his back, Cook took up a percussion instrument, a shaker gourd with beads, which added to the complex rhythms.

Cook explained that the next song, “Café Mocha” (Frontiers), is getting phenomenal radio airplay, even in Tokyo! It is the #1 MOST PLAYED TRACK on LA's KTWV, The Wave. Amid the fantastic percussion accompaniment, the guitar together with violin made such sweet yet plaintive melodies, culminating in a tender violin solo that was quite heart tugging, closing with a clean flourish.

Slowing things down, “Rain” (Frontiers) created an atmosphere of melancholy. A duet with Cook showed off Leon's percussion talents on “box.” With Cook, sitting on a stool, there was also dynamic interplay between his guitar and Church’s violin.

Next, they take it up a few notches! “Havana” (Frontiers) opened with powerful, intoxicating percussion and palmas, along with Cook’s skillful melodic treatment.  Even the stage lighting took its cue from the music – red!

In Cook’s humorous introduction to the next song, “Falling From Grace” (Gravity,) he explained that the track was originally recorded with a big orchestra.  He asked guitarist Soulard to demonstrate his “virtual orchestra” which really was phenomenal sounding for one guitar.  Ah, technology!  The percussionist has a nickname…The Hurricane!  What we experienced next was only four guys on stage, but they sounded like that large orchestra.  With Cook back on a stool, the melody became very soulful and bittersweet. The violin and guitar trade off playing the melodic lead.  As the percussionist joins in, Cook’s guitar runs are so fast one can barely see his fingers; they are just a blur.  Violin closes with a rather unique flourish.

“Baghdad” (Tempest) begins with Cook soloing on guitar.  Joining in, Leon’s percussion lends an Arabian sensibility, like a whirling dervish. There’s a feel to the mood that at any minute a belly dancer could come on stage and shake it! As Soulard’s guitar and Church’s violin add to the energy, the audience spontaneously claps.  Cook treated his guitar partly as a melodic instrument, partly as a rhythm instrument, and often like a percussion instrument.  The interplay between musicians was intense and mesmerizing. Leon performed another solo on box, with sleeves rolled up, hands flying, he wailed on that instrument, even percussing with his foot!  The band joins in for a rousing close.  Even the lighting crew got into it, pulsing the yellow lights in time to the music.

Next came my all-time favorite Jesse Cook track, “Mario Takes a Walk” (Gravity.) I’ve actually had the pleasure of seeing the song’s namesake perform this live with Cook and band.  Cook introduced it as a “dance song” and he’s right about that. I’ve never seen people sit still for this one, as they moved and clapped throughout.  Cook played with lightening fast speed and blazing power.  For a change, Church played bass guitar. Great performance of a really fun song!

Intermission came next.  That was a good thing because we needed to catch our breath and slow down our heart rates.

After intermission, Cook came out to play a solo entitled “Alone” (Frontiers.) He started by tuning his guitar and chatting with the audience, taking questions. Someone asked how long he’d been playing.  He responded by asking ‘What time is it now?  Let’s see, we started at 8 p.m. and it’s now 9:30 p.m.” which brought much laughter from the crowd. He did then say that he’d started playing as a very young boy, around age 6. Then audience members began to shout out songs for him to play.  He replied, “Look, I just can’t do requests.  We’d be here all weekend! Can you imagine if someone asked me to play “Stairway to Heaven?”  Much laughter ensued.  Performing “Alone,” Cook adeptly plays this piece, which was both mournful and at times heated. Once again, Cook astounds us with his skill and artistry, truly a gifted guitarist.

Cook was then joined on stage by Soulard. On guitars, the duo played a lively piece, “Dance of Spring” (Tempest,)  that showcased the skills of Soulard, hands flying up and down the fretwork, including percussion on the guitar itself. It was a fabulous explosion of dueling guitars.

Next came the romantic, delicate performance of “Come What May” (Frontiers.) This very lovely piece included some intriguing percussion on cymbal, chimes, and shaker, as well as a beautiful violin solo.

Cook explained that the next song has taken on a life of its own. He described it as “organic,” each night is different. Leon and Church then joined the duo to play "Closer to Madness" (Gravity.) It opened with Soulard on synth guitar giving off a dark, ominous atmosphere, then Church’s violin joined in and became a very integral part of the performance.  Each musician got to explore and improvise for awhile.  Then Cook and Leon kick in, creating a large, lush sound, incredible for only 4 musicians.
   

Cook warns us that coming next will be a roll of several lively rumbas. “We’re going to do this dance party thing now!” He encouraged us to let loose, to get up and dance.  We were then treated to a medley of “Rattle and Burn” (Vertigo,) “Jumpstart” (Tempest,) and “Matisse The Cat” (Frontiers.) With a blazing opener of “Rattle and Burn”, Cook ignites his hands with supercharged energy, strumming with blinding speed. Percussion is off the hook and violin and rhythm guitar join in with passion and fury. Through the course of the medley, each band member performs blazing hot solos.  Cook steps to the edge of the stage where the some of the audience has clustered dancing and clapping.  He does a flamenco “Malaga” style solo, moving fingers and hands faster and faster, audience clapping in time.  He gets so fast, we cannot keep up with him!  So inspired, the entire crowd jumps to their feet in a rousing ovation.

As the audience begins to settle back into their seats for another song and Cook laughingly says “Don’t sit down so fast, here’s another dance song!”  Cook indulged us with the fastest version of “Tempest” (Tempest) that I’ve ever heard! Everyone stood, danced, and clapped through the entire song. And with a jump in the air, Cook ends the stimulating concert to rousing applause and standing ovation!  With gracious bows, the entire band leaves the stage.

Throughout his performance, Cook received enthusiastic applause from the crowd, but it was standing ovations that welcomed Cook and his fellow musicians back on stage for not one, but FOUR, encore performances.

The band returns to the stage and plays an intense, upbeat flamenco song “Viva” (Free Fall.) Another standing ovation occurs as the band leaves the stage.

Encouraged back to the stage by feverish applause, Cook walks out, pulls his stool out to the apron of the stage.  The others join him, but Church and Leon are without instruments.  Cook asks, “Can you hear me?  We’re going to try this the old fashioned way.”  They proceeded to play a stunning, acoustic version of “Fall At Your Feet” (Free Fall) which did a great job of displaying the excellent acoustics of that beautiful auditorium.  There was something about playing without amplification that revealed the unadulterated flamenco sound, quite soul stirring.  With Cook and Soulard on guitar, Church and Leon provided palmas and percussion with hands and feet, like the street performers of France. Suddenly, Church began to sing, Leon harmonizing. Simply magical! So captivated was the audience that one could hear a pin drop in the auditorium. In appreciation for the extraordinary experience, the audience exploded into deafening and relentless applause, cheers, and a unanimous standing ovation.  And it didn’t stop until the artists returned to the stage.

For the third encore, no one sat down.  We danced and clapped as Leon played box; Church was on violin and shakers; Soulard and Cook were on blazing guitars, playing “Air” (Free Fall) which is another one of my favorites – upbeat, joyous, lively flamenco. In a solo, Cook demonstrated lighting-quick finger picking punctuated by percussive guitar-slapping. Truly breathtaking!  And we’re on our feet with another roaring ovation and we wouldn’t stop until they came back on stage again!

For the fourth and final encore, Cook and band played a very soulful flamenco tune called “Luna Llena” (Gravity.) At the close of the song, we sent the band off stage with yet another standing ovation. That was it. They did not return.  As the fans slowly exited, most smiling and laughing, one could see they were completely exhilarated by the concert in which they had just participated.

Many of us lingered in the lobby, not wanting the evening to end.  In his friendly manner, Jesse Cook came out to greet many fans who lined up to get his autograph.  He makes a point of warmly connecting with those of us who appreciate him so much.  

As I reluctantly left the Center, I was struck by the fact that the tradition of flamenco music is alive and well in the adept hands of guitar virtuoso Jesse Cook. His music is soulful and passionate filled with romantic rhythms, world beats and jazz-inspired guitar voicings. His compositions reveal great depth of character and intellect. His performance demonstrated remarkable execution of guitar chord and fret work; the extent of his talent is far beyond any of his competition. In short, he’s a superb showman who is both funny and prodigiously gifted.

It was an thrilling evening and I was reminded how well deserved those gold records are on my wall…and I smiled all the way home.

For more information, visit www.jessecook.com