On Sunday night, February 9th, the incomparable Raphael Saadiq brought his highly anticipated Jimmy Lee Tour to DC’s 9:30 Club. Mr. Saadiq, a native of Oakland, CA, is a brilliant musician (bass and guitar among other instruments), singer, songwriter and producer who started his career with the legendary group Tony! Toni! Toné! before embarking on a very successful solo career.
Saadiq and his new band formed an impressive quartet, with Saadiq on his guitar and (of course) lead vocals. He was backed by his drummer, bass player and keyboard/piano player. All Saadiq’s band members are very skilled and were at the top of their games on Sunday night. The 9:30 Club was sold out and packed (top to bottom) and the crowd was hyped to see a great show!
Raphael has a huge catalog to choose from and he put together a nice setlist, which pulled from his hits with Tony! Toni! Toné!, his latest critically acclaimed release Jimmy Lee and his classic Instant Vintage album. He also thrilled the crowd (and educated some in the audience who were not aware) with snippets from hits that he actually produced for other artists such as D’Angelo (Lady and How Does It Feel), Total (Kissing You), Solange (Cranes In The Sky) and Erykah Badu (Love of My Life).
This was the third time I have seen Raphael Saadiq live since 2018 (including Kennedy Center in 2018 and the Summer Spirit Festival in 2019). I am very familiar with his music and consider myself a huge fan. For this tour (or at least this show), Raphael came up with new arrangements for some of his classics, and that to me was refreshing. One prime example of this was the Tony! Toni! Toné! hit Get Down, a classic R&B club banger (that featured the legendary DJ Quik). Saadiq and the band transformed it into a hard rock version that allowed him to illustrate his amazing skills on guitar.
The show started off with the slower paced, bass heavy I’m Feeling Love from Jimmy Lee followed by one of my all-time favorites, Skyy Can You Feel Me from Instant Vintage. Saddiq has love for Washington DC and its musical tastes, so in a brilliant move, he invited members of the legendary DC Go-Go band the Backyard Band (BYB), including Antwon Glover (Big G) and Leroy Brandon (Weensey) to help him sing Still Ray.
BYB has a version of Still Ray that simply cranks and is a DC favorite, so it was good to see them perform it with him. Saddiq also performed one of his most popular songs from Jimmy Lee, Something Keeps Calling Me. Saadiq killed the guitar solo on this one and the crowd loved it. He also sprinkled in classics like Get Involved, You Should Be Here, Feels Good, Dance Tonight (where he encouraged the ladies in the audience to sing the female lead verse), Just Me and You and a re-arranged, jazzier version of It Never Rains in Southern California.
Raphael wrapped up the show (which lasted approximately 90 minutes) with Anniversary and then an encore of Still Ray (with props to the Tuba player that joined the band, as that is one of the highlights of the song).
This was an amazing show, and I especially appreciated that throughout his performance, Saadiq shared some interesting stories about his experiences on the road, working with other artists, etc. Be sure to check out Raphael Saadiq’s latest project Jimmy Lee and go see him live when he is in your area. I promise if you are a music fan, you will be glad you did!
