Porter Carroll Jr. with Wali Ali & the Tambourine Band

Cabaret at the Metropolitan Room

It was a different vibe at the Metropolitan Room last Sunday night when singer, songwriter, turned soloist,  Porter Carroll and Wali Ali & The Tambourine Band took the stage.   I spend a lot of time at the Metropolitan Room, and I am usually listing to the American Songbook, Broadway Tunes, Ballads of all kinds or to my iconic Dorothy Bishop and her Dozen Diva’s, but on this night it was smooth jazz delivered by the sexy voiced  Carroll and accompanists Wali Ali and Kevin Hill on  strings along with the rest of the musically adept band, Danny Obadia on electric keyboard, and Eric Perez on drums.

Porter is no stranger to the limelight.  He is a renowned songwriter, toured as drummer with Hall & Oates and is the founder of Atlantic Starr  (formerly known as Newban). But on this night he owned it it all.  The music went from sexy cool rhythm and blues tones to  finger snapping jazz  starting with opener It Don’t Mean a thing (Louis Armstrong) then slowing it up with Stevie Wonder’sCreepin, and when the Wichita Lineman (Jimmy Webb) came down the line, I could barely compose myself.   I was on the edge of my seat for what was next, and Ooh Baby, Baby (Linda Ronstadt) begins to play.  It was obvious that the audience was entranced.  Most could not sit still as I watched them swinging and swaying to the beat.  I don’t care who you are. There is going to be one song in this set that will touch you in a special way.  I’m talking Hot Fun in the Summer Time (Sly Stone), and Prince’s Purple Rain.  It just kept getting better. So much so that they could not even finish the set list.   When Sun Goddess (Ramsey Lewis) played, the final song of the night, it was the first that I have ever seen the audience at the Metropolitan Room getting out of their seats to dance.  Admittedly, I did too.  It was impossible  to resist.   Porter rocked me to the core of my soul with this delectable palate of music history.   Don’t miss his next show at the Metropolitan Room on Sunday, December 17th at 7pm. Learn more about Porter Carroll Jr. at his website http://portercarrolljr.net/ ThisbroadSway 10/1/16