Southern Avenue weren’t kidding when they posted on Facebook yesterday, “our show at Jams On The Sand in Asbury Park, NJ has been moved indoors due to tonight’s forecast of severe thunderstorms. We’re still coming in hot though!” The five-piece band from Memphis, Tenn., which blends traditional southern soul and blues with more contemporary R&B, is one of the few bright stars I know in today’s music world, a world I generally find uninspiring. So I was really excited to get the opportunity to see them for the second time last evening.
Initially, Southern Avenue were scheduled to play at Jams On The Sand, a weekly free open air concert series held in Asbury Park during the summer. But the weather gods weren’t kind, and it was great the organizers managed to move the event inside to The Wonder Bar, a well-known local performance venue. While the circumstances were unfortunate and likely decreased attendance, they may well have been a blessing in disguise from a performance perspective. The band had incredible energy and blew the roof off the place. My ears were still ringing this morning!
More frequent visitors of the blog likely know that I have covered Southern Avenue on various occasions since I started paying attention to them about two years ago, for example here, here and and most recently here. Therefore, instead of recapping band’s history and their members yet another time, let’s get to the action right away!
Southern Avenue’s set included a mix of tunes from their two studio albums they have released to date and some covers. Here’s a nice funky song off their most recent record Keep On from May 2019, which is called Switchup. Co-written by guitarist Ori Naftaly and lead vocalist Tierinii Jackson, it’s got a cool vibe that reminds me of Commodores.
Most of the songs the band performed were upbeat tunes, with Tierinii displaying an amazing amount of energy, seemingly feeding off the enthusiastic crowd. Every now and then, they slowed things down a bit, such as with It’s Gonna Be Alright, a tune that appeared on their eponymous debut album from February 2017. It certainly was alright!
Here’s another fun track from Keep On: Jive, which was co-written by Ori, Tierinii and her sister Tikyra Jackson who is the band’s drummer. It’s got a great driving beat and nice instrumental parts that in addition to Ori and Tikyra also feature keyboarder Jeremy Powell and bassist Gage Markey.
Next up: A cool bluesy jam take of The Beatles’ 1969 song Come Together, which blends into Keep On, the title track from Southern Avenue’s latest album. That track is credited to Ori, Tierinii and producer Johnny Black.
The last tune I’d like to call out is Southern Avenue’s usual concert closer Don’t Give Up and, it seems to me, is their signature song. Another track from their eponymous debut album, the powerful tune is one of Tierinii’s highlights, who is not only an incredible vocalist but also a compelling front woman.
In addition to being talented musicians and songwriters, Southern Avenue’s members are nice, approachable and down-to-earth people. Last night, prior to the gig, I chatted for a while with keyboarder Jeremy about their current tour and latest album – such a nice guy! I also ran into Tierinii who spontaneously gave me a hug after mentioning that I had seen them previously in New York last year.
Southern Avenue are a fantastic live band. If anything, their extensive touring has made them even better than the band I saw last August. In addition to touring the U.S. and Canada, they also do gigs in Europe. In fact, they just recently returned from a series of dates spanning various European countries, including England, France and Germany, among others. Tonight, they are playing a blues festival in Nescopeck, Pa. Upcoming gigs include Ottawa, Canada (Jul 13); Scranton, Pa. (Jul 26); Edmonton, Canada (Jul 28); and Mad Creek, CO (Jul 31). The full schedule is here.
Sources: Southern Avenue Facebook page and website; YouTube
Christian's Music Musings 
Geez, I go to see a lot of bands but I never get chatting with them much less hug them. How does that happen?
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They’re very approachable and humble people. I guess it also helps that I’m a friendly guy.😀
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