CANDY DULFER ROCKS THE HOUSE AT THORNTON WINERY

Saxophonist Closes Out Jazz Season With Sizzling Show

by Glenn Wilson

When Candy Dulfer strode onto the stage at Thornton Winery this past Saturday, it was clear from the get-go that this would not be your typical smooth jazz concert.  Introduced by the effervescent keyboardist-singer Stanley “Chance” Johnson, Dulfer and her tight six-piece band Funky Stuff set the tone by opening with her R&B influenced 1995 hit 2 Funky.  Dulfer danced, sang, rapped and oh yeah, played the sax.

On a perfect Temecula evening, Thornton picked the perfect artist to closeout its 23^rd annual jazz concert series.  And Dulfer, the Dutch-born saxophonist did not disappoint.  Looking positively sexy in a black leather vest and a florescent yellow mini-skirt with matching shoes (according to her Facebook post, two suitcases full of her clothes were lost by Southwest Airlines earlier in the day), Candy turned concert into a big, wine-induced party.

Everyone was dancing and having a good time.

Concentrating mostly on material from her new CD Crazy, Candy kept the music upbeat.  During a break, Candy asked the crowd “Do you guys want romance or more funk?”  The crowd responded loudly MORE FUNK! And Candy obliged with songs such as Hey Now, Electric Blue and Please Don’t Stop.  She did slow the pace briefly with a beautiful instrumental rendition of the Alicia Keys classic Empire State of Mind, featuring a screaming guitar solo by Ulco Bed that would have made Jimmy Hendrix proud.

Dulfer band was terrific.  In addition to Chance Johnson (whom she selflessly shared the stage with), the musicians were Thomas Bank on keyboards, Ulco Bed on lead guitar, Manuel Hugas on bass, Kirk Johnson drums and Jan Van Duikeren on trumpet and vocals.  Included in the nearly two hour set was the Dave Stewart collaboration Lilly Was Here; L.A. City Lights and Flame.  Just when you thought the show was winding down, Candy and the band ripped through a twelve minute version the Average White Band’s Pick Up The Pieces in which Dulfer showed off her sax playing with drummer Kirk Johnson and bassist Manuel Hugas. 

Although she does not have the chops of a Mindi Abair or a Jessy J (she is a self-taught musician), Candy Dulfer is a complete show person.  She knows exactly what buttons to push with a crowd.  It was a spectacular show by a spectacular artist and band.

The evening began with a side-splitting set by comedian Alonzo Bodden.  The New York-born Bodden who was the 2009 winner of Last Comic Standing, had the audience in the palm of his hands.  One of his funniest lines was about the irony of camping.  “You work hard so that you can go to the mountains and pretend you are homeless?”