Cork Jazz Fest review: Cymande get into their groove at Opera House
Cymande on stage at Cork Opera House on Friday during the Guinness Cork Jazz Festival. Picture: Darragh Kane
It’s a measure of the pulling power of the Guinness Cork Jazz Festival that a band like Cymande can pack out the 1,000-capacity Opera House. Any other time of year and the recently-reformed British-Caribbean funksters would likely be playing a Leeside venue half that size.
That’s no disrespect to a group who broke through in 1972 with classic single And who enjoyed a later revival thanks to widely-used samples by the likes of De La Soul and The Fugees. But Cymande were a group your cool DJ mate might have been into, rather than your Top 40-loving uncle.
By the end of their Cork debut, however, the vast majority of those in the room were cheering like lifelong fans of the band. They’d been won over by an infectious mix of soul, funk, reggae and other genres delivered with aplomb and good cheer.
Early sound issues were gradually sorted as the impressive eight-piece ensemble featuring founding members Patrick Patterson (guitar) and Steve Scipio (bass) warmed to their groove. As well as The Message, other highlights included from 1974, and a recent track that features Soul II Soul’s Jazzie B on the album version.
“We took a little break… it lasted 40 years,” explained singer Raymond Simpson of the band’s extended hiatus. In fairness, some of them at least used that time constructively. Patterson and Scipio working as lawyers in the Caribbean, with the latter figure even enjoying a stint as attorney general of Anguilla.
Thankfully, the music was always calling, and the band finally made it to Cork.
Other highlights on the Friday night of the jazz festival included Californian hip-hop veterans The Pharcyde at the Opera House; and emerging British star Sienna Spiro, whose Everyman set included her current Top 20 single
Also, the evening Street Stroll on Oliver Plunkett Street had various brass bands marching along the pedestrianised thoroughfare for delighted onlookers.
The fun continues in Cork on Saturday with an eclectic mix of gigs that includes reggae legends The Congos, soul star Lee Fields, and a homecoming gig for local heroes Sultans of Ping. Even the weather gods seem on side for this year’s festival, with sunny spells in store for anyone venturing to the city to sample some of the free music on offer on Saturday afternoon.
