Summer has a soft grip on Westlake Village these days. That's because I'm sitting (again) outdoors to listen to another jazz artist, part of the Westlake Summer Jazz program sponsored at the Hyatt Plaza Hotel by Mercedes Benz of Calabasas.
Tonight's turn is Euge Groove, born 46 years ago in Hagerstown, Maryland but now a Westlake Village resident...although, I don't know, he talks like a southerner ("Are you livin' large, y'all?" was his battle cry).
His style is smooth funky jazz, not exactly my cup of tea. A mix of Richard Elliott and Kenny G. at times, he exudes excellence in what he does: predictable sax riffs (see his beautiful baritone sax), so-so musical phrases and a penchant for showmanship. Not that tonight's audience was stuffy by any stretch of the imagination, but he kept interrupting himself to encourage the audience to "feel the funk," "livin' large," and "chillax moving your arms sideways, like this!"
At times, I was reminded of '90s sax sensation Najee, but Groove's style is less flowy and more staccato.
It was too much for me. I left after 25 minutes into the show and went for some cinnamon almonds at the local Trader Joe's.
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