Redford's Concert in the Park series is
winding down to its last concert program on Tuesday when the Missing
Links will perform Big Band sounds.
Last Tuesday, Doug Jacobs and his dixieland aggregation took the stage.
The six-piece group lived up to its billing. From San Francisco,
Jacobs came to Michigan 30 years ago where he owned and played at his
Red Garter nightclub.
Since arriving in Michigan, for 25 years he played for the annual Jerry
Lewis Muscular Dystrophy Fund-raiser.
The Dixieland group displayed a musical charismatic charm which was
reflected in the eyes and actions of the audience.
The band has delighted audiences at outdoor concerts throughout the
state and has been featured at summer festivals events and on radio
and television.
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"We have over 500 or more tunes from
the early beginnings of Dixieland, blues and the jazz line improvisations.
You just have to name it and we will play it." said Jacobs.
Jacobs, a banjo player, was joined on the stage by Nate Panicacci on
trumpet, Tom Bogardus on clarinet, David Henning on piano, Clarence
Isabell on string bass, Dan Maslanka on drums, and Fran Carmody of Redford,
a vocalist.
The band is a fun-loving group that exemplifies rhythms and harmonies
that set the tempo for metro Detroit and Michigan.
The closing set of the band exuded the exhilarating climax to an evening
of memorable listening.
The group has been dubbed as "The Little John Philip Sousa Miniature
Band."
Pianist Henning's closing narration, complete with a set of Sousa-style
marches, was followed by the hits of George M. Cohan, including "You're
a Grand Old Flag." Irving Berlin's "God Bless America"
brought the crowd to its feet. |