05/??/06 Mike Clark Trio @ Lucille's BB King's, New York, NY

This show featured Mike Clark of Herbie Hancock's Headhunters performing with a trio featuring local organ whiz Jerry Z, who I had met when he palyed with Melvin Sparks.

I ran into the hippie duo from my Green Apple adventures and we parked at a table right in front of the stage.

At one point, I drunkenly yelled out a request for "Watermelon Man" which Mr. Clark begrudgingly obliged, but not before sarcastically offering to play the Herbie composition as a 20 minute drum solo. The joke was on me because the song I meant to request was "Chameleon."

02/15/05 Mike Clark's Prescription Trio/Oteil and the Peacemakers @ BB King's Blues Club, New York, NY

The club had some sort of special so tickets for this show were only a few dollars each.

I was in the process of moving to Queens and I was looking at apartments prior to the show.

The opening act featured the bass wizardry of Allman Brother Oteil Burbridge fronting his own group. That set also introduced me to the beautiful and talented bassist extraordinaire, Tal Wilkenfeld.

Mike Clark was a drummer in Herbie Hancock's legendary Headhunters group, notable for the blending of jazz and funk in new and intriguing ways.

The Prescription Trio featured a revolving cast of jam and jazz heavy hitters, but this particular ensemble was the best of the various incarnations.

Skerik is a Seattle saxophonist best known for his work with various Les Claypool projects and his eccentricity. Robert Walters is Hammond B3 organ whiz.

The three of them together served up a delectable danceable cocktail and were joined for a spell by yet another jazz funk luminary, Melvin Sparks.