If there”s anything to the notion of a second, brief storm chasing season in the fall, now would be a good time for that season to show up. So far I”m not seeing it. Oh, there have been some tantalizing displays on the long-range models, but they”ve had a way of disappointing when push has come to shove.\r\n\r\nLast year was a different story. On October 18, a powerful system generated a widespread outbreak across the Great Lakes and the South. Sixty-seven tornadoes raked eight states, from the Florida panhandle to extreme northern lower Michigan near the Mackinac Bridge. It was one heck of an event. Bill Oosterbaan and I tracked a beautiful classic supercell from its inception in north central Indiana. It displayed a vigorous wall cloud and a deep clear slot that wrapped nicely around the circulation. A large funnel descended close to the ground maybe three quarters of a mile away. The thing wanted to tornado so bad it was practically peeing its pants, but we never could verify ground-level circulation. Not far to our north, though, the town of Nappanee sustained EF3 damage from another storm. Thankfully, there were no fatalities. Other towns in the outbreak area were not so fortunate. Two died in Williamston, Michigan, as an intense, long-lived tornadic supercell moved north from the border to the Saginaw Bay. Four lives in all were lost in our state.\r\n\r\nThat was one year ago today. This year is a much different story. As I write, the sky is a crisp, moistureless blue and the temps are in the fifties. Not much here to gladden the heart of a storm chaser. Not much in the near future, either.\r\n\r\nBut that can still change. If I learned anything from the Van Wert, Ohio, tornado some years ago, it”s to never write off possibilities just because of the lateness of the year. Not until the snows fly.\r\n\r\nSecond season? I”m not holding my breath. But I am keeping my eyes open. You just never know.
Archives for October 18, 2008
Tuesday with Francesca at One Trick Pony
If you missed Francesca Amari”s breakout gig last Tuesday at One Trick Pony for her new CD, Better Days, you missed a standout evening. As her horn sideman, I admit I”m biased, but if you were to sample the sizable crowd, I think you”d get a similar consensus.\r\n\r\nThe two-hour show consisted of a mix of jazz standards, show tunes, pop, and special numbers with Francesca and some of her friends, including the fantastic Boogie Woogie Babies.\r\n\r\nFrancesca”s drumless backup combo included Wright McCargar on keyboards, Dave DeVos on bass, and me on sax. But Francesca was the centerpiece. Simply put, she”s more than a superb vocalist–she”s a delightful and engaging performer, both personable and professional. From my standpoint as a horn man, she”s fun and easy to work with, respecting her musicians and offering room for creativity.\r\n\r\nDave, Wright, and I got our chance to shine instrumentally on Horace Silver”s “Song for My Father.” Wright set a slower tempo than I”m used to, and the result was a moody, reflective feeling that I loved, and that inspired me to take a different approach to my solo.\r\n\r\nFrancesca and I teamed up on her vocal/sax arrangement of “Good Morning, Heartache,” which featured just the two of us, sans accompaniment, doing the same call-and-response rendition that we did on her CD. We joined forces again, this time with Dave and Wright, on a vocal/sax showcase version of “My Funny Valentine.”\r\n\r\nI love the small combo format, and I particularly enjoyed Tuesday evening. From what I”ve heard, so did the folks at One Trick Pony. Look for further announcements. We may be back.
