The Saturday schedule for Saratoga Jazz Fest at SPAC was full of artists who shared something in common: a willingness to incorporate a wide variety of influences that push at the boundaries of any one genre.
From vocal jazz to spiritual saxophone to electric blues guitar, the artists at both of the festival stages suggested that the state of jazz is alive and well in 2025 and that the definition of jazz is still open for revision.
Here are the top performances from a day that had far more good things going for it than any one reviewer could see. From the spectacular weather to the local food trucks to the festive lawn tent setups (this was better than chair rentals and clear purses), Jazz Fest was a relaxed and well-executed festival experience.
10. String Queens – Charles R. Wood Discovery Stage
Disclaimer: String Queens are not your typical wedding ceremony string trio.
The trio of Kendall Isadore (violin), Dawn Johnson (viola), and Elise Sharp (cello) are all music educators and performers who have gained a following for their spirited covers of popular songs. They also wore matching red outfits that were as fashionable and cool as they proved themselves to be in their set, which kicked off the festivities at 11 am.
In covers that ranged from “Eleanor Rigby” to “My Favorite Things” to an unexpected mash up of Gershwin’s “Summertime” with Santana’s “Maria, Maria”, the group produced an large sound that far surpassed what you would expect from three string instruments and occasional vocals.
The highlight of their set was their take on Stevie Wonder’s “Isn’t She Lovely”. Their arrangement of the tune was discovered by a booker for a Stevie Wonder tribute at Carnegie Hall, and led to the String Queens performing at that illustrious theatre. It also spawned a subsequent invite to play the tune for Kamala Harris at The White House.
9. Michel Camilo Trio
The classically trained Dominican pianist kept the percussive vibe of the main stage going with a Latin flavored trio set. Camilo has the rare talent to play in a percussive style that also sounds lush, full of legato arpeggios.
Ricky Rodriguez’s electric bass sound differentiated this trio from others and helped fill the sound of the amphitheater. A breakneck tempo take on a “A Night in Tunisia” showcased Camilo’s technical virtuosity and featured a great duo exchange between Camilo and his drummer.
8. Julius Rodriguez
It was impossible to be in two places at once, but I sprinted from the Kenny Garrett set because I really wanted to see Julius Rodriguez too. It was tough having the two performances staggered only 20-minutes apart but the embarrassing amount of talent present on Saturday was a good problem to have for concertgoers.
Rodriguez is an extremely talented 26-year-old pianist and it was fun to watch him communicate with and lead his trio. Just last week Rodriguez was in residence at The Blue Note in New York and his style is reminiscent of Jason Moran. He plays sheets of notes and was my favorite pianist of the day.
Nicole Glover, of Artemis, sat in with Rodriguez’s trio and played the straight forward Charlie Rouse to Rodriguez’s more experimental, Monk. These collaborations and unexpected guest moments are music festival gold, and had me excited for Artemis’ set later in the day.
7. Keyon Harrold
The bookers for Saratoga Jazz Fest must be watching a fair amount of NPR’s Tiny Desk Concerts, because Keyon Harrold was the third performer by mid-afternoon who had been featured on that web series.
A trumpeter, Harrold is an aggressive soloist, dynamic and forceful. He led his sextet (with swagger) through a confident set that defied easy genre categorization ranging from post bop to neo-soul.
Harrold noted what everyone was thinking in an introduction to “Beautiful Day”. All week it appeared rain might dampen the spirit of Jazz Fest, but the weather couldn’t have been nicer on Saturday. The lyrically sunny R&B of the tune (which featured a vocal duet between Harrold and guest vocalist Malaya) reminded all in attendance to feel optimistic that like-minded crowds can gather at festivals like this one in Saratoga to appreciate great artistry on balmy days in June. As a chalk-written sign said on one SPAC walkway — “no whining”.
Harrold also played material, including the title track, from his Grammy-nominated album Foreverland. “Foreverland” was inventive R&B with a hip-hop beat. Harrold can’t be limited by genre, and he follows in the footsteps of performers like Robert Glasper who keep things endlessly interesting because of their versatility.
6. Lettuce
Boston’s Lettuce might be the group with the greatest following for readers of NYS Music, and that’s understandable because to me they’ve always sounded like “The JBs that jam”.
The six piece group played a 5:15 set on the main stage and there were a lot of fans wearing Lettuce t-shirts that made their way inside. Erick “Jesus” Coomes holds down the low end of the sound like few others, and Adam Deitch is a true cement mixer on the drum kit. This was evident on “Do It Like You Do” as was the soulful singing and Hammond B3 playing of Nigel Hall.
Eric “Benny” Bloom is a true spitfire on the trumpet. Dare I say he’s as loud and in your face as a Boston Celtics crowd in a playoff series? His horn section partner Ryan Zoidis (saxophone) is no slouch either (he was once a member of The Rustic Overtones) and their tight horn parts reminded me of Tower of Power.
Gone are the days when Lettuce had membership overlap with Soulive or DMB (and gone too are some original members), but this current lineup is still funky as hell. And, if you like your funk diversified, the group can recreate a live dub sound that is pretty hypnotic as well.
A unique arrangement of Tears for Fears “Everybody Wants to Rule the World” was a late set highlight, notable for Hall’s soulful vocals and Coomes’ bass sound. Some mid-70s Herbie Hancock rounded out the set (“Hang Up Your Hang Ups”). The jam scene might never have happened the way it did in the 90s if not for jazz fusion.
5. Gregory Porter
Despite a bit of a late start to Porter’s set due to some travel difficulty for members of the band, he wasted no time showcasing his rich baritone on “Holding On”. Dressed in an all white with his signature black deerstalker hat, Porter was a transfixing (and tall) figure at center stage.
“Look, we must love you all, because we just drove eight hours to be here,” said Porter, who went on to say that “love” would be the theme of his set, before launching into the smooth balladry of “If Love Is Overrated”.
Then Porter and his five piece band took the crowd to church with “Liquid Spirit”, an uptempo, tent-revival gospel number that implored the audience to clap along.
Porter’s mother was a preacher and he recounted how she would go to the darkest and toughest places where he grew up to try and help those that needed it. That sentiment informed “Take Me To The Alley”, the title track off his Grammy-winning 2016 record on Blue Note. Porter’s vocals on the track are emotional – a deep sound from a big man with a big heart.
Porter could sing the phone book (okay, whitepages.com these days) and make it sound good, but his Motown medley was particularly well-suited for the Jazz Fest and Porter’s band. For “My Girl” the band departed save for upright bassist Jahmal Nichols who laid down the classic James Jamerson bass line and then some. The band rejoined for “Papa Was A Rolling Stone, which led into “Musical Genocide”, a commentary about the death of blues and soul (which were very much revived at SPAC by Porter and company).
4. Veronica Swift – Amphitheater
Along with Laufey and Samara Joy, the pitch-perfect Veronica Swift, 31, is leading a renaissance of young female jazz singers who are extremely talented and influenced by a lot more than the expected Ella and Billie.
Swift’s set drew upon operatic influences, show tunes (“Getting to Know You”), and even Mel Torme. Her take on Torme’s “A Stranger in Town” featured her beautiful phrasing and horn-like vocal sustain.
Julius Rodriguez sat in with the band for the first half of its set. Swift’s own song “Sports Page” featured some of the vocalist’s most powerful moments supported by some tasty comping from Rodriguez. “Room With a View” took things in a bluesy direction with Swift in full control as frontwoman.
Swift name checked Bessie Smith as her queen and then reimagined Queen’s “Dreamer’s Ball” in a barrelhouse style that sounded like I was listening to an old shellac 78 (and yes, she really did a “vocal trombone” solo, that was one of my top moments of the entire day).
3. Artemis – Charles R. Wood Stage
Close your eyes and you’d be forgiven for thinking Artemis’ sound is a recording of the Prestige years Miles Davis quintet of the late 1950s. Open them, and you’ll see a supergroup of female jazz artists who are keeping a classic bebop sound alive.
On the classic Burt Bacharach number “What the World Needs Now is Love” trumpeter Ingrid Jensen seemed to channel Miles with her moody mute work.
Then in a superlative reading of Monk’s “Hackensack” Nicole Glover took a burning bop solo that once again brought Charlie Rouse to mind as a point of reference. Ultimately, it was musical director and pianist Renee Rosnes who shined brightest on the Monk tune with a solo that recalled the master, but used a series of pedal tones in an inventive way that was all Rosnes’ own.
2. Gary Clark Jr.
Headliner Gary Clark Jr, turned the Broadside Stage at SPAC into a smokey blues roadhouse.
Every song of Clark’s should probably be used as a needle drop in a TV series or movie or commercial (and a lot of them are). He’s a master of the riff, and he creates a lot of ambiance with his dirty guitar sound. He also continued the theme of the day — he also incorporated a number of musical genres into his brand of the blues to keep things interesting.
He opened the show playing slide on “Catfish Blues” and took a left turn on “Maktub” which had a riff right out of African Taureg music. “Maktub” is the lead track off of Clark’s most recent record JPEG RAW. In Arabic the word means “it is written” and has a connotation of referring to fate or destiny. Clark’s lyrics call for progress and revolution. They reminded me of Gregory Porter’s message in “Musical Genocide” and suggest that artists of Porter and Clark Jr. are doing a lot more than carrying a torch for music of the past – they are innovators and ambassadors of music (and moving it forward into the future).
Clark’s lyrics show a social consciousness (“Feed the Babies”) that allies him as much with Sly Stone or Curtis Mayfield as it does with blues guitar slingers like Stevie Ray Vaughan. “What About Us” channeled Sly and the Family Stone’s sound and “Ain’t Messing ‘Round” was a slab of 60s pop-soul that became a launching pad for on of Clark’s finest guitar solos of the evening.
Clark’s band was fun to watch and dynamite with the dynamics. Drummer J.J. Johnson has worked with everyone from John Mayer to Lenny Kravitz to Tedeschi-Trucks Band, His double kick drum set was loud and so was the snap of his snare drum. And, beneath the strobing light show, rhythm guitar player King Zapata was the essence of cool in sunglasses and a wild shawl. On “My Baby’s Gone” Clark started a slow blues that sped into gospel double time to set up Zapata for a blistering slide solo of his own.
Keyboard player Dayne Reliford was probably my favorite sideman of the night. His lengthy synth solo at the end of “Feed the Babies” would receive a Herbie Hancock stamp of approval. His gospel comping style also added textures to the full-band sound.
Along with Reliford’s jazz-influenced keys, “Alone Together” brought special guest Keyon Harrold to the stage for some muted-trumpet accompaniment. Harrold plays on the studio cut, so this wasn’t just a nod to the fact that Clark was headlining a jazz fest. Here’s to more collaborations between these two fine genre-busting musicians in the future.
Towards the end of the hour and a half long set, Clark commented that he remembered his first time on the SPAC stage, years ago with DMB. As he closed Saturday night with fan-favorite “Bright Lights” it was a reminder of how far Clark Jr. has come on his own, ever-evolving, musical journey toward the bright lights of headliner-stardom.
1. Kenny Garrett – Amphitheater
Sometimes, I guess you save the best for first.
Garrett’s six piece band kicked off the festival’s main stage in Saturday and may well be the blue ribbon performance of the entire weekend.
A lot of us in the crowd were unsure if Garrett performed early so he could get a soundcheck, so he could get to another gig, or if he was strategically scheduled in that slot to get some butts in the seats early.
Relying heavily on cuts from his 2021 record Sounds From the Ancestors (Mack Avenue), the alto saxophonist and NEA Jazz Master covered a lot of territory in his hour-plus set. From spiritual jazz to African and Cuban-influenced pieces, Garrett also drew heavily on the sounds of John Coltrane. In 2025, Coltrane remains the supreme jazz ancestor for good reason. Garrett’s plaintive wailing and teases of “A Love Supreme” caught the audience’s attention. The saxophonist’s percussive playing style was matched by the equally large sound of Billy Hart-protege Michael Ode on drums.
Rudy Bird and Melvis Santa added percussion instruments to create dense textures. Santa and Garrett also incorporated vocal percussion and scatting to deepen the polyrhythms further.
Pianist Keith Brown was no slouch either, keeping up with Garrett on several warp-speed solos. Garrett kept the party going all set, working the crowd and stretching the tunes to several false endings. The crowd seemed to love it because the groove was just so right.
This is a crack band and it’s a shame people were still arriving at SPAC during their set. If you were in the half full amphitheater for it, count yourself lucky.
Lesson from Saratoga Jazz Fest day one – arrive early on Sunday.
Gary Clark Jr – Saratoga Jazz Fest – June 28, 2025 Setlist
Catfish Blues, Maktub, Ain’t Messing ‘Round , When My Train Pulls In, My Baby’s Gone, Feed the Babies, Alone Together, Our Love, Funk Witch U, What About Us, Bright Lights
→ Continue reading at NYS Music
