AMENDOLA VS. BLADES VS. BAPTISTA VS. GARABEDIAN

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About this clip:

Drummer Scott Amendola and organist Wil Blades perform their composition “Fess Up (Before Ya Mess Up)” from their 2019 album “Everybody Wins,” with guests Cyro Baptista on percussion and Raffi Garabedian on tenor saxophone, during their concert on September 15, 2023 as part of the 2023-24 Season, broadcast on Fridays Live.

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About the concert:

“Masters of improvisation, these gentlemen take a composed piece of music and bring it to the outer reaches and back” (East Bay Express). Berkeley-based drummer, composer and bandleader Scott Amendola showcases his longstanding partnership with Hammond B-3 organ star Wil Blades for an evening of greasy grooves and head-spinning musical telepathy. Their most recent Royal Potato Family album, 2019’s Everybody Wins, features Brazilian master percussionist Cyro Baptista, who joins them on these dates along with tenor saxophonist Raffi Garabedian — a fellow 2023-24 Season artist who also performs in Amendola’s Sticklerphonics trio.
An ingenious musician who pulls a remarkable array of sounds from his drums and arsenal of electronics, Amendola has a résumé that includes collaboration with Charlie Hunter, Bill Frisell, Pat Martino, and Wilco guitarist Nels Cline, singers Madeleine Peyroux and Norah Jones, and a commission for the Oakland East Bay Symphony, among dozens of others. He was a founding member of the infamous guitars-and-drums project T.J. Kirk and recorded three Blue Note sessions with Charlie Hunter’s audacious 1990s quartet.
A former East Bay resident now based on Los Angeles and easily one of the finest organists at work in jazz today, Wil Blades has been named as “Rising Star” in every DownBeat Critics Poll since 2006. He was described as “the future to carry on the legacy of the organ” by his mentor and organ legend Dr. Lonnie Smith, and has performed with the likes of John Lee Hooker, Nicholas Payton, Stanton Moore and countless others.

PERSONNEL:

Scott Amendola: drums
Wil Blades: organ
Raffi Garabedian: tenor saxophone
Cyro Baptista: percussion

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