The singer in question was London born, Nigeria raised, singer / songwriter, Ola Onabule.
In front of a full house, he prepared for his first song, dressed in a red, white and blue stripped shirt with large cuffs, blue tie and pinstriped trousers, this was not the 'Soul Man' image I was expecting. But looks, as we know can be deceptive, and once Ola released the first long, haunting note, all thoughts of his wardrobe gave way to a familiarity as I responded to a caress from a long missed friend.
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Ola was on stage at the Jazz Club Soho, a venue perfect for caressing. With it's intimate lighting, and tables so tightly packed there was hardly any room for the waiting staff to move around. This layout gave us Jazz devotee a good view of the stage, the luckily few who had bagged the tables at the front, were so close, they were practically the stage. I was not so lucky, but I wasn't complaining as I seated in direct view of the stage, on one of two tables I had booked for the group (16) of 'positive black women', I had joined three weeks ago via Meetup.com.
Shortly after joining the group online, I invited them to join me at Pizza Express to see Ola Live, I knew very little about Ola, aside from hearing his songs now and again on Jazz FM. Two weeks ago, after playing one of Ola's tracks, the the JazzFM DJ announced Ola would be at Pizza Express from Jan 23rd. I found more information on the Pizza Express Live website, then headed to Ola's website where I heard the songs from his sixth album, The Devoured Man. I played the songs for the rest of that afternoon.
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By a few minutes to eight, most of the group had turned up, and between pizza, cannelloni, garlic bread and chocolate fudge cake we got to know each other. Then at 9pm, the lights dimmed and Ola's band of Michael Mondesir on bass, Geoff Dunn on drums, Nial Tompkins on guitar and, Ugo Demirani on piano, warmed us up with a pulsating Latin - Afro fusion introduction. Now ready for the main act, Ola took to the stage around 9.10pm.
According to the musical press ...
"As a vocalist, Ola possesses a stunning voice of enormous range and emotional clout. His voice is beautifully clear and appealingly textured, almost classical. During his shows there are moments when he lets fly with a kind of yodelling ululation and a range and elasticity to match his rich tonal qualities. The influences of soul, jazz and African music come together in subtle and sophisticated melodies and time signatures, seamlessly documenting the issues of the day with the universal subjects of love and loss."
The press were not wrong! Ola treated us to a medley of songs from his current album, The Devoured Man, and songs from albums past. In between songs he entertained us with gentle humorous banter about love and life. After the intermission he returned looking more comfortable in a black t-shirt, obviously I was not the only one bothered by his wardrobe.
Through-out his playlist, Ola demonstrated his tonal dexterity, passionately and smoothly travelling from a soulful bass to a heart-wrenching tenor. I was unable to sit still, his songs were obviously meant for dancing, particularly my favourites, Truce (Album - The Devoured Man
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Though deservedly, often compared to some of the soul greats, he reminded me of Frankie Beverly and Donny Hathaway, it was clear to me Ola's sound is his own. That's why he is popular with some of America's finest soul and jazz artists, having been a guest of Diane Reeves, Gladys Knight, Al Jarreau, Patti Labelle, Roberta Flack, and Natalie Cole. And judging from the sold out tables, I heard he was sold out the next day too, he has a keen UK following.
While Grant Mitchell types are not my cup of tea, Ola with his seductive cocktail of Jazz, Latin and Soul sprinkled with a pinch of Africa can devour me anytime. Why this very talented man, now on his sixth album is not a prominent name on the UK music scene is a mystery to me.
Listen to more Ola at his website: http://www.olasmusic.com
Find out what else is on at Jazz at Pizza Express: http://www.pizzaexpresslive.co.uk
