Orleans Hall was transformed into a Latin jazz nightclub last night as the Eddie Palmieri Latin Jazz Septet filled the intimate setting with contagious rhythms.
Latin jazz pianist Palmieri started the evening with a romantic piano solo that built with emotion. He was then joined onstage by the rest of the septet for an exciting rendition of Tito Puente's "Picadillo."
The first thing that hit you was the drum beats, then delicate touches of the piano, then fiery exclamations from the horns, building to a hot dance beat.
It was physically impossible to stay still.
The cowbell was a constant, then more trumpet (Brian Lynch) and trombone (Conrad Herwig). Lynch's melody was like a song soaring above a sort of controlled chaos.
The impressive solo work continued with frenetic playing by Jose Claussell on timbales - playing the drums as if having a conversation with them - each word pleasing him more than the last.
Palmieri got the audience clapping to the 3/2 beat that moved the composition forward. And there was plenty of toe tapping and swaying too. A few audience members accepted the bandleader's invitation to use the dance floor, because, as he said, "that's what it's all about."
The septet also featured Jose Santiago on bass, John Rodriques on bongos and Vincente Rivero on congas.
The music was sultry, sensual, punctuated by percussion, and proved its vitality.
More than 50 years after Palmieri's blend of Cuban rhythms and jazz first filled New York's Palladium Ballroom, the beat lives on.