The Ocho Rios Jazz Festival 2001 in conjunction with the Grog Shoppe presents three fantastic nights of live jazz in the city of Kingston featuring Canadian/Grenadian organist, Kingsley Ettienne, on Monday June 11 and the world's only jazz bagpipe player, Rufus Harley, and his son, Messiah Patton, on June 12. This three-day event will close off on Wednesday, June 13 with the return of Harold Butler along with Pam Hall at the Grog Shoppe. All shows start at 8:30 pm each evening.
On Monday June 11, organist extraordinaire, Kingsley Ettienne, returns to Jamaica for what promises to be another stellar performance with his trio featuring Dougie Richardson on tenor sax and Jim Hillman on drums. Kingsley's last performances had the house jumping at the Grog Shoppe as he sang and performed beautifully, displaying his magnificent technique, vocal style and showmanship. He keeps the organ flame alive in the tradition of the greats like Jimmy Smith, Jimmy McGriff and the late Charles Earland.
On Tuesday, June 12, the world's first and only jazz bagpiper Rufus Harley, will perform for the first time at the Grog Shoppe with his son, Messiah Patton, on trumpet and flugel horn. He is no stranger to the Ocho Rios Jazz Festival but this is the first time he will be performing at the Grog Shoppe and although a player of many reed and wind instruments, he is truly a master of the bagpipe in jazz. He believes that the musician is a cultural shaman acting as a medium between the visible world and the invisible spirit world for the purpose of restoring and healing the soul of everyone towards "oneness".
Pianist Harold Butler will return to close the three-day musical festivities on June 13 along with singer Pam Hall and the Maurice Gordon Group. The "Butler's" last performance during the festival's Organ Summit brought him a standing ovation and the demand for more frequency performances. Maurice Gordon will perform and host throughout this three-day leg of the Ocho Rios 2001 Jazz Festival with a varied selection of musicians which will include Sylvan Solomon or Jill Gibson on piano, Deleon White on drums and Dale Haslam on bass guitar.