The title for the evening’s show at Hartford’s Infinity Hall could easily have been “Bring Out Your Dead (Heads)”. The venue was packed with both young and old fans of the Grateful Dead to see Melvin Seals & JGB. Melvin served 18 years as keyboardist in the Jerry Garcia Band. Seals has been a powerful presence in the music industry for over 30 years with a long-established reputation as a performer, recording artist and producer. Along with JGB, Melvin Seals serves up a tasty mix of sounds. The blend blues, funk, rock, and jazz, with a little R&B and gospel thrown in to spice things up.
Melvin and JGB bring an intuitive, expressive style, soul, spontaneity and remarkable chops to the table. John Kadlecik handles lead guitar and vocal duties flawlessly. John-Paul McLean on bass and Jeremy Hoenig on the drums hold the rhythm section down impeccably. Of course, Melvin produces a heapin’ helpin’ of the wizard’s magic on Hammond B-3 Organ and keyboards.
Lady Chi & Darlene Coleman deliver exquisite back-up vocals. The mix is a most satisfying blend of natural organic grooves that challenges genre boundaries. The sky is the limit musically because their chemistry is the focus from which they create a spontaneous and high art. They offer an exciting, often psychedelic musical journey that changes nightly and keeps the audience dancing and smiling (and some staring in amazement) for hours.
Because they are on the road frequently, you’ll want to follow their tour dates as they update. Click here for their tour schedule!
Infinity Hall is a 500 seat venue that hosts many live performances throughout the year. The venue is located in the heart of downtown Hartford. There are several top shelf restaurants in the immediate area. Therefore pre-show dining isn’t a problem. Because it was built specifically as a music hall, the venue boasts a world class sound system. The sound system delivers a pristine sound which is unrivaled. With several bars, one can obtain drinks without missing a beat or the patron can sit and relax in the spacious main bar. Mind you, the main bar is pretty empty during performances. After all, who wants to miss a great show? Parking isn’t a problem because there is a lot of very inexpensive parking located a very short walk from the venue.
