Lettuce & Steel Pulse Heat Up St. Petersburg
After a sweltering night for their tour opener in Miami, Mother Nature sent a band of storms through St. Petersburg early Friday, June 16, lowering temperature and humidity for the Lettuce and Steel Pulse concert in the Jannus Live courtyard. What unfolded was a wonderful if too-short night of positive vibes.
Makua Rothman, world champion surfer and musician, is opening each show on his SHAKA U FAKA run. Rothman has a brand new single, “The One And Only,” out tomorrow (June 21). He and his band put on a bouncy, positive opening set, including his 2020 song “Paradise.”
The crowd was totally pumped for Steel Pulse, and they crushed with a powerful set of positive reggae vibes and a great visual show. Led by original band members David Hinds on lead vocals and rhythm guitar and Selwyn Brown on keyboards and backing vocals, they rocked through tracks from throughout their 48-year, 13-album career. Hinds was in constant motion all set long! [Steel Pulse and Lettuce perform in Boston Saturday with very special sets as part of WasFest.]Â
Regardless whether they were playing or singing or just grooving, Wesley Etienne (trombone) and John Avery (tenor saxophone) danced the entire evening. And bass player Amlak Tafari was off the chain — literally, several times running down the stage ramp and into the crowd.
And then he led a group of more than a dozen dancers onto the stage and eventually back off. That was all while they were playing the 1968 Roy Hamilton hit “Don’t Let Go” that so many bands have covered since the ’70s.
Wayne Clarke tried his best to keep everybody in line from his drum kit, and David Ellecirri threw out numerous great guitar runs in addition to the familiar reggae chunka-chunka.Â
Then it was Lettuce’s turn to keep the dance party going. The crowd had thinned out a little, but it was still packed like sardines down on the floor and in the VIP lounges. They jumped right to it with “Squadlive,” one of those tunes demanding audience participation as Nigel Hall (keyboards) whipped up the crowd as drummer Adam Deitch and the band responded to Hall’s count.
Next up were the Middle Eastern grooves of “Vámonos” from last year’s Unify, followed by a second Unify tune, “The Lock,” with Eric “Benny” Bloom blowing a world of trumpet, Ryan Zoidis tearing it up on saxophone, and then Adam “Shmeeans” Smirnoff with a brilliant solo. All the while, Deitch and birthday boy Erick “Jesus” Coomes kept the tempo just below boiling.
Hall grabbed the microphone again for the mid tempo tune “Ready to Live,” Bloom and Smirnoff on backing vocals and Bloom with a trumpet solo. As they began to work into the next song, I was sure it was The Wailers’ classic “Exodus,” but shortly the showstopper “Madison Square” emerged — briefly — before the band slid right into — “Exodus”! The red, yellow, and green stage lights made it all the more magical. Deitch and Coomes were completely locked in.
Another true crowd favorite, “Phyllis,” poured out next, the crowd absolutely electric. Finally, they gave other hit, “Do It Like You Do,” a 15-minute spin, with everybody stepping up once again. Time for an encore? They played a short tune, although nobody yet can recall the name of it! Hall on synths and then Smirnoff on guitar gave it real punch.
[LETTUCE: Squadlive, Vámonos, The Lock, Ready to Live, Madison Square > Exodus > Madison Square, Phyllis, Do It Like You Do; E: ]
These three bands are combining forces through July 8. This is a tour you don’t want to miss!
Our photographer had a last-minute cancellation. We are thankful for some great photos from Shelley Smith, Pam A Lama Songstress, and James Ketch!
