Music On A Summer's Eve

Skyliners Swing Out At Chico's City Plaza For Friday Summer Concert Series

The Skyliners Big Band, pictured above, performing at City Plaza in downtown Chico (CA) as part of the free Friday Night

Summer Concerts series on June 8, 2007.

by

Stephen Fratallone/Jazz Connection Magazine

           There was a "whole lotta shaking going on" at the City Plaza in downtown Chico (CA) thanks to the intoxicating music of the Skyliners. The explosive18-piece big band from Chico led by John and Joey Mahoney, got a good number of the enthusiastic crowd of about a couple hundred to "swing and sway" on Friday evening, June 8, 2007, as part of the city's free Friday Night Summer Concert series. 

The band got things off to a swinging start with a flag-waving version of Band Stand Boogie, the well-known theme song of Dick Clark's American Bandstand. John Mahoney was then featured on his tour de force piece - Nelson Riddle's 1956 arrangement for Frank Sinatra of I've Got You Under My Skin.

Joey and 22-year-old daughter Molly Mahoney teamed up giving a "vanilla" flavoring to hipster Louis Jordan's 1946 hit, Choo Choo Ch' Boogie. The piece was arranged by Skyliner trombonist Dave Chollet. Molly Mahoney was then given the solo spot presenting her vocal interpretation of Artie Shaw's 1940 hit, Frenesi, sung entirely in Spanish. Muy bueno, Señorita Molly!

Substitute alto saxophonist Adam Johanson came out from the saxophone section and got the crowd in a frenzy singing Louis Prima's Jump, Jive And Wail, while the Mahoney triad of John, Joey and Molly combined voices calmed the audience down on the soothing and relaxing Blue Moon.

Other highlights of the Skyliners' affair included a bouncy rendition of Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy (from The Andrews Sisters canon) sung by Joey Mahoney; some nice clarinet work by Tanner Johns on Shaw's Begin The Beguine; exceptional trombone fluidity by Dr. Lloyd Roby on Tommy Dorsey's theme, I'm Getting Sentimental Over You; a wonderful vocal rendition by John Mahoney on Come Dance With Me, from Frank Sinatra's 1959 Grammy Award winning album by the same name; and some sultry vocal stylings by Molly Mahoney on Peggy Lee's Fever and on Boogie Blues, from the Gene Krupa-Anita O'Day collaboration from 1945.

While the Skyliners are organized to showcase its singers, they are in keeping with some well-known big bands of the past that were led by singers, i. e., Vaughn Monroe, Orrin Tucker, Ozzie Nelson, Eddy Howard, Skinnay Ennis - however, it would a wonderful change of pace for the band to feature more instrumentals in their sets, so as to let the fine musicians that are in the band more freely showcase their stuff.

While the band played on, a good number of youngsters were engaging in some refreshing aquatic fun of their own by frolicking in the fountain in the middle of City Plaza.

The Skyliners were fresh off the heels of completing a successful engagement over Memorial Day weekend with crooner Don Cherry who headlined this year's "Jukebox Saturday Night" concert at the Paradise Performing Arts Center. (See Jukebox Saturday Night Concert With Don Cherry And The Skyliners)

Rounding out the Skyliners personnel for the City Plaza gig are: Trumpets: Jim Metroka, Don Poetker, and Claire Cooper; Trombones: Dave Chollet, Juan Aguilar, Laura Antonaisus, and Dr. Lloyd Roby; Saxophones: Steve Margolin, Tanner Johns, and Loren Parks; Electric Bass: Warren Haskell; Piano: John Gonsalvez; and Drums: Peter Moog.

The Friday Night Concert series for the summer at the downtown Chico City Plaza is presented by the downtown Chico Business Association and funded in part by the City of Chico.

Click on images below to enlarge.

        The Skyliners 1                        Adam Johanson & Joey Mahoney 1       Adam Johanson & Joey Mahoney 2          Joey & Molly Mahoney 1

    Joey & Molly Mahoney 2                    John Mahoney                                     Tanner Johns                                    Dr. Lloyd Roby

                                                                              Kids in the fountain

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