By Ade Omoloja
On a windy but warm London night on the final day of a two day Residency at the Pizza Express Jazz club in Soho, I went to see Alicia Olatuja. I had seen her a couple of years ago at this same venue, but not as a solo artiste.
Alicia’s global call to fame was her solo with the Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir at former President Obama’s 2013 Inauguration.
Back to Soho, the intro by the band was a taste of great things to come. Alicia comes to the stage with a big smile, and with the niceties over, she delves straight into business
Alicia Olatuja
Alicia Olatuja
The bulk of the set-list was taken from her current album - Intuition Songs from the Minds of Women, where she interprets songs by an eclectic range of female composers. She opened with Brenda Russell’s So Good So Right, Cherokee Louise by Joni Mitchell, followed by: No Ordinary Love by Sade Adu.
The standout songs for me were: Serrado - which I think might be one of her favourite songs to perform; and Child of the Moon. Alicia’s invitation of the audience to join the session by way of finger clicking participation in Oriana (I think) added more fun to the evening.
Alicia’s warmth on stage was infectious and her giving us the back-story of some of the songs was a nice touch.
The band was in top form in total sync - playing graciously and explosively
Robert Mitchell on Piano, Kevin Glasgow on bass and Asaf Sirkis on drums. Femi Temowo joined the band for the closing tune - Tracey Chapman’s Give Me The Reason.
All in all, it was a special performance in London town. In the words of Downbeat magazine: “Alicia possesses a special instrument - a full bodied tone, precise pitch and personal engagement at the lowest whisper or highest wail.” The instrument was present and in fine fettle.