Funky free rock’n Motown jazz concert (with a dash of Reggae)

For those of you who are looking for a FREE opportunity to go dancing or just listen to an outdoor concert Harrah’s is hosting a summer concert series playing from 8-10 p.m. on July 7-9, 14 and 16 at the Plaza at Harrah’s, 219 N. Center St. Harrah’s employees working the beer stand said they enjoyed the series so much they regularly volunteered to work the booth for free.

The first sampling played last Saturday. The local band Music in the City filled the outdoor arena of hotel-casinos with skillful renditions of songs by Bob Marley, saxophone legend Grover Washington Jr. and soul pioneer Wilson Pickett. It may sound unlikely that one band would play such a diverse repertoire including funky songs like “Low Rider” alongside 1959 hits like “Sleep Walk” but the band says it adds to their popularity.

“We do well wherever we play because we cover a lot of ground,” singer and guitarist Pat Chabez said.

Whatever style of music they’re playing, you can be sure it’s going to have a dancing rhythm. Singer and saxophonist Bill Davis said the band’s motto is to start dances instead of fights. Chabez said watching an audience enjoy themselves takes all the work out of performing.

For Davis, playing the sax may be more of a method of communication than a performance. He said he can make his saxophone laugh, cry and tell dirty jokes. I heard the laughter and certainly the crying, but he must have cleaned up his act for the Harrah’s Plaza performance. That or I missed the punch line. The audience loved his solos and after each one the audience clapped and howled in enjoyment.

Audience member Joe Mitchell said he remembered the group from their performance last year on the Harrah’s Plaza. “Bill is the man,” he said enthusiastically.

Aude Alle said she came for good music and for her good neighbor, Davis. She said before Davis came to the concert Saturday night he made time to help a stranger carry her groceries home. Alle said the woman was struggling to carry groceries and steer a baby carriage, so Davis walked a long way under the hot sun to help her get it all home safely.

“He’s a beautiful person,” Alle said. “It takes a special person to do that.”

At the beginning of the concert people were seated along the edges of walkways and on concrete benches, but toward the end more than 100 people were dancing and swaying in the center. One group of women bowlers from Louisiana vacationing in Reno began an impromptu synchronized line dance and strangers joined in, forming two rows. Some never caught onto the right moves and nearly collided with the original four, Charlotte Larson, Cynthia Johnson, Marie Smith and Cindy Holton. But others had more success including Annette Taylor who just danced her way in after watching a Chippendales performance with her mother Geneva Pope.

The outdoor venue added to an enjoyable atmosphere and Music in the City bid the crowd a good night after ending on the lullaby-like notes of “Sleep Walk” (listen). The normally harsh glare of downtown’s neon seemed transformed into gentle glows and twinkling lights as the crowd drifted happily homeward.