Tomatito

The great Spanish flamenco guitarist Tomatito brought his excellent ensemble to SF's Palace Of Fine Arts.  Tomatito (Jose Fernandez Torres), considered by many as the heir apparent to the late Paco De Lucia, made a strong case for himself with a beautiful show which showcased his flawless virtuosity.  His attack and command of the guitar was brilliant as he took the audience on a musical journey shifting moods from traditional bulerias to jazz.  He was the epitome of cool as he sat with the guitar on his lap, legs crossed and playing what seemed like endless streams of notes.  He was supported by his excellent ensemble which was made up of young budding guitarists El Cristi and Jose del Tomate, a duo of astonishing vocalists Kiki Cortinas and Simon Roman, the dynamic featured dancer Paloma Fantova and tasteful percussionist Moises Santiago.  The sold out crowd was treated to flamenco at it's best with a well paced show featuring this stellar ensemble playing the music of Tomatito.  It was also a dazzling feast for the eyes when Paloma was featured on a dance solo during the closing song framed by Tomatito's guitar.  Her feet were a blur displaying incredible speed while her facial expressions and graceful hand movements showed her powerful attitude and passion.  This was Tomatito's first visit to the SF Bay Area and the enthusiastic crowd responded with standing ovations.  It was a show to remember.

One of my old guitar heroes - Mike Bloomfield

There has been a lot of attention is finally being focused on the under appreciated guitar phenomenon Michael Bloomfield who died way too young at age 37 by drug overdose in 1981.  Bloomfield whose brilliant long fiery fluid solos were an essential part of recordings by Bob Dylan, The Paul Butterfield Blues Band, The Electric Flag and his collaborations with keyboardist/vocalist Al Kooper, never got his due until now.  The release of a new 3 cd, 1 dvd box set "From His Head To His Heart To His Hands" curated by old friend Kooper is changing all of that by pointing attention to his short prolific career.  Bloomfield who shared friendships and stages with Chicago's blues greats such as Muddy Waters and Howling Wolf was a stunning guitarist in person.  I had the luck in my teenage years to see Bloomfield perform live several times in different settings with The Electric Flag and the Bloomfield-Nafatlin Band.  I also saw him play at one of my last Mission High School assemblies!   I was always struck by his fiery virtuosity, intensity and brilliant fluid technique that he displayed on his trademark Les Paul standard guitar.  He was simply one of the finest blues guitar stylists I've ever seen!  Now the world is catching up and giving respect to one of the 1960's-70's all time guitar heroes...about time!!