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Review: Goapele at Yoshi's 10.15.03 by lucy williams Last night I had the extreme pleasure of taking advantage of a job perk. Being the director of marketing and publicity of a small music promotion company in San Francsico, Mystery Machine Productions, I happen to know a couple of people in the industry. One of those people is the venerable director of publicity and marketing for the unique Yoshi's of Jack London Square in the one and only Oakland, California, so my friend and I got superb seats to a show to which I had been looking forward. I had been waiting to take said director up on a show, when I noticed that the lovely and local talent, Goapele (pronounced gwa-pole-ay), was performing at his establishment. I contacted him and he not only put us in some of the best seats, but strategically placed me near members of the press. Not a bad guy. Thank you Marshall. This night of firsts (my first time to Yoshi's, Goapele's first night playing Yoshi's) was a special one. Her band, The Heat, started jamming and set the mood of the sold-out room before she entered the stage. In honor of the sushi house, she wore an oriental gown and chopsticks in her hair. The virginial white dress fit her beautifully. She sang songs of love, songs dedicated to different stages of love, songs of hope, despair, the energy of life. Her sultry, soulful voice engaged the audience as her band brought the funk. The highlight of the evening, for me and it seemed for her as well, was when she brought three of her uncles on stage. The three are from South Africa and are themselves performers. They began the shared song by singing a capella. It was simple and moving. Then Goapele and her band joined in with her uncles as they performed "Soweto Blues." As the show continued, her injection of poignant words with both soul and substance continued to be a treat. At the end, she encored with a cover of "Tell Me Something Good," and had the entire crowd singing along. In return, we gave her a standing O. Not too shabby for her first time at Yoshi's in front of her friends, family and the community that helped and is helping her get where she is going. I urge you to catch her show if and when you have the opportunity. Check her out at www.goapele.com |
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