A Journey with Jacob Fred Jazz Odyssey

Jacob Fred Jazz Odyssey, or JFJO for short, headlined the Paseo Arts Festival in Oklahoma City on Saturday, May 24^th. Thirty-three years in the making, the Paseo Arts Festival has only gained in popularity, and improved in talent within recent years. All styles of art, and many styles of music help to make this arts show a worth while investment in your time.

The boys from JFJO really had heads spinning, or was it the beer? Not that it matters, but the audience came away from the concert ready for more socializing, more music, and more booze. JFJO hit the stage just after 10:00pm. For anyone who was a first time spectator of this concert event, this set of musicians had a great sound, played passionately, and broke down the barrier between performer and audience.

Starting with a Duke Ellington re-arrangement put together by one of the bands founding members, Brian Haas, the band came right out playing for some unsuspecting crowd goers. Somewhere after 2 or 3 songs, Brian made an unusual announcement to the crowd. "If anyone out there has found some white envelopes, could you please be so kind to return them to the stage?" A gasp came over the crowd as Brian made it clear that there was money for their performance within the envelopes. Another song was performed and sure enough, he made a similar announcement. Appealing to the audiences compassionate side, he simply stated that there will be some happy people if those envelopes are returned. He stressed that whoever had them could simply slide them on stage and their face would not be remembered.

One song that seemed to be a crowd favorite of the evening was entitled, Drethoven. Drawing inspiration from Dr. Dre and Beethoven, this song struck a resonance with many minds in the crowd. By the time the show was soon to end, Brian mentioned that the white envelopes from earlier had graciously been returned. Everyone in the crowd cheered with relief, and for good measure, the band performed one more track. Good luck to Jacob Fred Jazz Odyssey, for they really have a sound that can be listened to for decades. Don't miss out on one of their performances if you can help it. You may just leave with a new favorite band.

JFJO has been teamed up with Hyena Records out of Brooklyn, NY, for a while now, anyone can download an album of JFJO just by going clicking HERE.

By visiting the link above, anyone can get a full length cut of the album, Winterwood. This album is simply fantastic, and for the free price tag, it really can't be matched. It's a collection of tunes that remain fresh even after the tenth listen.