On Friday, October 27th, 2007 I was invited to record the incredible FOCUS Trio live at the Red Poppy Art House in the Mission District of San Francisco. The trio featured Marc Cary (all the way from New York) on keys and synth, Sameer Gupta on drums and tabla, and David Ewell on double bass. They played a few new tracks as well as songs from their 2006 album FOCUS. The audience was also treated to a guest appearance by Marcus Shelby who stepped in to play bass on Elephants s Eye and Minor League. The recording is a bit ambient because I set up in the back of the room, but it s positively worth a listen, so you can thank Marc, Sameer, David, and Marcus for letting me share some of the tracks with all of you! “The concept of FOCUS Trio is a collaboration between three cultures. Aside from that, playing our asses off the in the tradition of the great Duke Ellington, Max Roach and Paul Chambers, is the focus. … The live show will expand on the concepts developed since the recording of our 2006 album, FOCUS. The recording is the seed and the performance is when the plant grows.” ~ Marc Cary
