Sheila E. & Friends LaVeLee, Studio City, CA 15 March 2003 The Band Sheila E.: drums, congas & vocals Lynn Mabry: vocals Raymond McKinley: bass Myron McKinley: keyboards Vadim: guitar Songs Hurry Up 1 in 7 Weight Limit That's All That's Left Of Me Street Life My Help Conga Solo E12 Virtuosity/Drum Solo Medley: The Glamorous Life Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Again) It's Gonna Be A Beautiful Night (with rap) One Nation Under A Groove Virtuosity / Drum Solo

Sheila E. & Friends performed 4 shows at the LaVeLee nightclub/restaurant in Studio City, CA over the weekend March 14 to 15, 2003. They surprised everyone with a totally unexpected set list of new music that had just been created a few days before.

Sheila explained how at the beginning of the week she thought she'd better get a band together and start rehearsing for the shows. So she called a couple of friends and they rehearsed and played together as a group for the first time the day before the concert, coming up with and learning all the songs. The result was funky and experimental music, mostly instrumental jams. It was all very relaxed and just about having a good time.

The evening started on a funny note with singer Lynn Mabry making a quick announcement of Sheila E. & Friends which had to be repeated a few times because Sheila thought it wasn't exciting enough. Sheila then pointed out that she grew up on jazz and fusion and that's what they were going to play that night.

The first song "Hurry Up" was a fast and funky jazz instrumental mainly driven by bass and drums. The next song "1 in 7" continued with a similar groove but even funkier and went on for at least ten minutes, stopping and starting all the time with keyboard, guitar and bass solos. Next Sheila introduced the band and they went into a slower bass driven song called "Weight Limit". It had a very atmospheric feel and included a short drum solo.

The mood totally changed for the next part of the concert with the songs "That's All That's Left Of Me", "Street Life" and "My Help". It featured Lynn Mabry on vocals and focused on gospel music. The version of "Street Life" played was simply grooving, starting out slow, then picking up with Lynn's strong vocals giving the direction and the guitar imitating her lead.

"My Help" is a song from the gospel cd "BAM Crawford's Purpose: The King Is Coming Any Day". Lynn explained how this song got a lot of publicity after 911 since it showed that there is one place to go to get help and provide the hope that we all need. It was very moving and Sheila was singing background vocals and playing the drums with a special kind of red drumsticks that made a very soft sound. The song was dedicated to Sheila's brother, Juan Escovedo, who was in the house that night celebrating his birthday. Of course, everyone sang "Happy Birthday" to him while a birthday cake was brought out. Sheila also introduced her parents who were in the audience and mentioned that she learned everything from her dad. She continued talking about the Elevate Hope Foundation (founded by Sheila E. and Lynn Mabry) and how they were trying to build a Compassion Care Center for disadvantaged children. Donations and support are much needed and greatly appreciated.

For the next part of the concert 3 congas and a kick drum and cymbal were set up on stage and a chair was brought for Sheila to sit down and play. Sheila explained that they just made this up that day and it was only the second time she was playing like this. She didn't have another drummer and would now be the drummer and conga player at the same time. She did a long conga solo playing the kick drum simultaneously. She even played the congas with her nails and the cymbals with her hands. You could tell the audience was amazed at the end of the solo.

Sheila E. & Friends returned back to the funk with the next song "E12" (Exercise 12) followed by "Virtuosity" from the E-Train album "Writes Of Passage". It ended in a powerful drum solo.

The finale was a slow jazz version of "The Glamorous Life" with the guitar and keyboard player picking up the chorus on their instruments. Next Lynn sang a few lines from "Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Again)", then Sheila started the "Beautiful Night" groove on drums and had the audience sing the chorus before doing the complete rap without missing a word. This medley also included a bit of "One Nation Under A Groove" before it looped back into "Virtuosity". Sheila ended the night with another energetic drum solo.

Review & Pictures: Andrea L.