Submitted by Al Kanovsky 03/5/14
...ain't just a holiday in New Orleans. It's a
joyous celebration in lots of places. In order to enjoy Fat Tuesday you need a
number of ingredients including, boiled crawfish, live music, masks, beads, a
bunch of folks wanting to have a good time, and a cordial host at the party. If
you add a great looking man or woman on your arm you are totally in Fat Tuesday
mode. It happened for me last night at The Fish House on Miller Rd. in
Kendall.
As I approached
the door, the woman who calls me her "weekend man", Ms. Rita Wilbern appears.
Rita is a full head taller than I and has appropriate adornments to her body.
She is wearing a relatively short dress in black and white horizontal stripes.
The thoughts running through my head could have put me in black and white
stripes including ankle chains. Jose and Angela's Fish House is laid out in 3
rooms. For this 'parrrtaaay' they have put tables out on the patio (read parking
lot). There is live music inside and out. Outside it's David Leon and his band
playing JAZZ. In the main dining room there's Motel Mel and Piano Bob
alternating on keys and dishing out some swing and boogie-woogie. Next door a
small dining room for those who just want to gorge themselves and in the
showroom wall to wall celebrants listening to Darrel Raines (guitar/vocals),
George Caldwell (bass/vocals), Nate Wish (drums), Mike Wainright (keys/trumpet/tenor sax/vocals) and Bill Clark
(harp/bongos/percussion). My buddy Bill has saved me a seat. We squeeze in and
Rita sits with us. George doesn't generally sing but it being Fat Tuesday and he
being in a really good mood he does "Going To New Orleans". He should sing more
often. They follow with "Sissy Strut/Down, Down, Down". Darryl's solo has the
joint jumping. Next a swinging "Sweet Home Chicago". Then in my favorite 'fish'
tempo is "Rainy Night In Georgia" There is scant room to dance but I don't plan
on too much moving around. Just some holding----tight and close----I ask Ms.
Rita to dance. We do.
The party-goers delight in seeing this old, shot, fat dude
holding on to this statuesque beauty and then laying his head gently on her
bosom. It is Fat Tuesday, after all. I don't know why but the rest of the
evening seems somewhat of a dream. Digging deep into the BLUES, Darryl sings
"Born Under A Bad Sign". Girls get up to shake those B&B's, notably 2 young,
pretty gals, Kristin Verde and Vivian Medina. White boys can't jump or dance.
They say that black folks have rhythm. When it comes to shaking those body
parts, I'll take Latinas every time.
When they do "Black Magic Woman to a tropical beat, Rita
and I, do it again. Dance, I mean. We shake it up with Ms. Wilbern doing most of
it. The girl can 'show off'. The 2d set starts with Rita joining the band. Mike
introduces the tune with a nice sax solo and Rita gets right down with "Let It
Roll". I ask for "Rock Me Baby" because no one does it like Rita---not only down
but add a little 'dirty'. "Like my back ain't got no bone" takes on a special
meaning when intoned by Ms. Rita Wilbern. Still swinging she sings "Are You
Ready For Me" and then calms the audience with a very pretty "The First One To
Say Goodbye". We wouldn't stay mellow for long because she does "Someone Else
Was Stepping In". oooooweeee baby.
It's not easy to follow Rita but Katt Riggins is up to the
task. She starts with "Right From Wrong" and has the audience in her palm. She
then does a unique version of "I'm A Woman" and an equally unusual "They Call Me
The Voodoo Woman". During 'Voodoo', Katt moves away from the hedonism toward
real religious belief with several verse of "Tell Him What You
Want". She concludes the 1st set with "How Blue Can You Get". The 2d set was
just as exciting as the first with tunes including a shuffle which had 1/2 the
joint packed on the small space left for dancing. "Any Way You Want It", "Let
The Good Times Roll", Katt slows it down with "Ain't Nobody's Business" done
with passion. Piano Bob walked in, in time to catch it. They return to party
time with "ooopapadooo". Two pretty gals drag me out of my chair to dance with
them. If there's anything better than dancing with a pretty girl, it's dancing
with 2 at the same time. The question you might ask is 'How does an overweight,
82 year old guy, do it, just shy of midnight?'. My answer is---drink a little
too much, eat a lot of fatty foods, have 2 or more cups of coffee before going
to bed and--------swim 3/4 of a mile every day. Add a little S E X when you can.
I am living proof that 'clean' living is not the key to long life. Off to MJC's
noon time concert at Coral Gables Museum with Ariel
Pocock.
I can't wait for
Saturday night in Mizner Park --- Arturo Sandoval at Festival of the Arts Boca ---
Al's Disclaimer:
A short note: The reason I write this is because I love music and words. I do not book acts. I do not promote acts. I do not accept invitations to review artists. I go to venues of my own choice. When and where is not influenced by anything other than who I would like to hear that night or day. If I don't like what I hear, I won't write about it. When I like it I let you all know. I never mention a name without asking permission. "Pardon me, Miss. Would you like to dance?"
~ ~ ~
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