The Greyboy Allstars are celebrating the upcoming May release of Grab Bag: 2007-2023, their eighth LP, which includes nine cuts previously unreleased over the past decade and a half of the band’s 30-year history. The quintet is also playing a few live dates leading up to their appearance at Tipitina’s as part of the New Orleans Jazz Fest in late April. Fans in Portland, Oregon were the first to bask in the signature West Coast boogaloo sounds of the Allstars on their short swing through the Pacific Northwest. On Wednesday, April 2nd, they hit The Get Down for the first of two shows.
Several people I chatted with at the show had mentioned seeing the Allstars before, but couldn’t remember exactly when. That may be because the band doesn’t get to tour all that much as they are off fulfilling the “Allstar” aspect of their individual careers. The rhythm section, made up of bassist Chris Stillwell and drummer Aaron Redfield, are session players who have appeared on recordings by CeeLo, Sia, Elton John, and Charli XCX. Guitarist Elgin Park has composed scores for films and television, including Donnie Darko and Freaks & Geeks. Keyboardist Robert Walter, in addition to leading his band 20th Congress, has also been touring with Phish bassist Mike Gordon and Pink Floyd’s Roger Waters. And Karl Denson has been playing saxophone with The Rolling Stones when he’s not leading his groups Tiny Universe and KD3.
So it’s a somewhat rare opportunity to witness a Greyboy Allstars show, and the sold-out crowd at Portland’s The Get Down was eager to get down to business on the first of two consecutive nights at the venue. The Allstars eased into the evening with “What Happened on TV,” and gathered steam on the following “Steel Bender.” The first set contained a few tracks from the 2013 album Inland Emperor, including “Breaking Blood,” “Old Crow,” and the set closing “Profundo Grosso.”
Set two kept things cooking. A few songs in, Denson dedicated one of the newly recorded Grab Bag tracks, “Watch Out Gail,” to Gail Mattson, who, at the age of 79, was killed by an elephant who attacked a vehicle she was riding in during a game drive in Zambia. This unique introduction gave Park and Stillwell time to switch instruments, with Park playing bass and Stillwell playing guitar for a few songs. The night’s extended encore consisted of “Quantico, VA,” from 1997’s A Town Called Earth and the Grab Bag: 2007-2023 track “Pixie Stick.”
Glide was not on hand for night two, but a glance at the setlist showed only one repeat from the first night and several songs from Grab Bag: 2007-2023, including an instrumental cover of Michael Jackson’s “The Way You Make Me Feel.” This Portland shows proved that the Greyboy Allstars and their West Coast boogaloo sound are as powerful, playful, and relevant as ever.
