DO IT!

Great show in Houston Friday night! Sold out, intimate Warehouse live experience. Nicest people EVER - all Prince fans/Tamar friends.

Me and Sydney got there at 8:00, and Tamar's dad came over and introduced himself. He remembered me from last year, when I butchered "Play that Funky Music". He took a shine to Sydney and took her backstage to meet Tamar. You could not ask for a nicer father than Nolan Davis.

I also met a lot of people that knew Tamar from back when. Tamar went to the High School for the Performing and Visual Arts (HSPVA) here in Houston. That is a high school for artistically-gifted children - not easy to get into, and it isn't cheap.

The poet Se7en (not the same "Se7en" that posts on the org) opened the show and he was great. He did a piece before the opening act, and then a piece before Tamar. He was absolutely fantastic.

The opening act was a young man from Houston named Tommy (sorry, I can't remember his last name). He had a great voice and a very good stage presence.

Tamar came on and guys - you GOT to see this one. She had a full band - guitar, keys, bass, drums, two-piece horn section and three backup singers/dancers.

My friend Anthony ("Ant Boogie" to some of you) told me Rick, the guitar player, was from Minneapolis and played with Prince in the Grafitti Bridge era. Dude as EXCELLENT, and had many Princely moves. Especically the world-famous Funky Face.

I wish I knew all the songs she did, but I'm afraid I can only name (some of?) the covers: Fergie's "London Bridge"; Aretha's "Natural Woman"; Rose Royce's "Car Wash" (wow, did that sound good!); and Prince's "Kiss" and "Let's Go Crazy" (actually, Rick sang "LGC").

Whatever she was singing, Tamar tore it up. She is a ball of ballistic energy - she leaves it all on the field, as the athletes like to say. Her voice was excellent and her stage show was great.

Sydney got to dance onstage with some other kids and grown-ups - thanks Ant!

Tamar did not perform "Beautiful Loved and Blessed" - I wanted to see that one, but her and Prince didn't perform it last year, either. So, I guess that one's off the setlist.

No matter, the show was great. If she comes to your town, GO. Bring all your friends.

Thanks for the report.

Go TAMAR!

RodeoSchro said:

its sad she wont amount to anything...too close to prince....he got all her booty then left her like a bad habit!

mirrorbestfriend said:

you registered here just to post nonsense. You must be bored.

wonder505 said:

so you sayin she gonna be a hit?
Please she doesn't have the looks or charisma to be a star in todays market and you know it.....

mirrorbestfriend said:

i was responding to your previous statement. what you say now is different and unfortunately in today's market that maybe true. i disagree with the charisma part though, saw her perform live and she is a great on stage.

wonder505 said:

but people will always compare her to beyonce especially coming from houston so she will always lose

Give a girl a break and let her "be" damn...

RodeoSchro said:

Thanks for the report. I wish I could have been there.

Sounds good but too many cover songs for my taste. She could easily do a show without cover songs, couldn´t she ? Especially as an upcoming artist she should only do one or two covers, not more.
Covers are OK if you´re totally unknown OR if you´ve already made it and have nothing left to prove.
I like her own material much better than those annoying cover songs ( I don´t wanna hear Carwash for the gazillionth time by ANYBODY, whether it be Tamar or Christina Aguilera or whoever...that´s sooooo played out).

Tamar is cool , I like her, and she doesn´t really need to do coversongs, especially not those kinda coversongs.

KoolEaze said:

She played for about 1 1/2 hours, and there were a lot of songs she did (10 or so) that I didn't know, so she might have done a lot of original material for all I know.

I was bummed "BLB" wasn't performed. But the show was awesome and I have to tell you - "Car Wash" was the bomb! When they started clapping, I recognized the beat and thought "ugh" but it was done in a truly funky way. One of the best songs of the night, if you can believe it.

RodeoSchro said:

Sounds good ! It´s just that Carwash has been played and covered to death, and Rose Royce wrote sooooo many other, even better songs...like Love Don´t Live Here Anymore...

By the way, contrary to most people here on the org, I LOVE that song Beautiful, Loved and Blessed. One of my favorite songs on 3121.

sosgemini said:

Hey, my favorite American politician, what´s so funny ?

KoolEaze said:

hola...

nothing funny...that emoticon should have been this one:

RodeoSchro said:

Great report, I like Tamar and will certainly support her show if she comes to town again.

Report from a writer of the Houston Chronicle about Tamar's Show.

Tamar Davis rocks rhythmic groove at Houston show

http://blogs.chron.com/ha...st_20.html


Tamar Davis isn't yet a household name. But the Houston-bred singer is a bona fide diva in the eyes of Prince fans. She co-wrote the Grammy-nominated Beautiful, Loved and Blessed for the purple one's 3121 disc and shared lead vocal duties on the track.

It was truly puzzling, then, that she didn't include the gently grooving song in her set Friday night at Warehouse Live. Last year, the duet prompted a tour with Prince, which helped open Warehouse Live, and an appearance with him on Saturday Night Live.

Maybe Davis wanted to get past the Prince connection and prove herself as a solo artist. The Prince connection helped secure her a deal with Universal Records, but it went nowhere. The label opted to shelve her debut disc, Milk & Honey, even though it includes significant input by Prince.

Whatever the reason, it hardly seemed to matter. After an earnest opening set by local singer Tony Henry, Davis appeared to loud cheers from fans, family and friends. She was in great vocal form, danced like a pro and proved adept at a multitude of genres.

All that's missing is that one monster radio hit.

Until then, Davis sustains her show with a flood of carefully selected cover tunes, a few intriguing originals and playful onstage banter. She was backed by a ridiculously tight band and three energetic backup singers, who matched her every hip thrust and hair throw.

Davis filled the first half of her roughly hourlong set with a smattering of old-school soul grooves, including a fiery take on the oft-covered Natural Woman. She was dressed in a shimmery black top and skirt, accented by big gold earrings.

There were no breaks in between songs, and she usually addressed the crowd over the intros. They were clearly enthralled by Davis' presence, clapping along and shouting her on during dance breaks.

Sparkling ballad Sunday in the Park was an early highlight and seemed familiar to those in the attendance. It was originally slated to appear on the aborted Milk & Honey disc and will hopefully turn up on Davis' new solo project.

Equally good was an unnamed, rock-tinged tune that recalled Prince's Little Red Corvette. It was anchored by a searing guitar break and quickly turned into an epic crowd sing-along thanks to it's undeniably catchy "Uh-oh-oh" hook.

Davis and her singers made a quick change into blue and white getups for the show's second half, which was filled with youthful sparkle and a distinct disco flavor. The only thing missing was a twirling mirrorball.

She brought charisma and energy to Car Wash and was joined by a pair of male dancers for a solid take on Prince's Kiss. Davis took it to church during a brief riff on gospel standard I Go To the Rock, but it quickly gave way to Aretha Franklin's Rock Steady.

Original tracks Ice Cold and Nuthin, a shout-out to Davis "H-town" roots, showcased a more contemporary hip-hop sound that could find favor at radio. Both were better than Davis' decision to include Fergie's insipid London Bridge in her set, a misstep that seemed to dampen the audience's mood.

Things were back on track, however, with a fist-pumping take on Mary J. Blige's Enough Cryin' and Joan Jett's I Love Rock n' Roll, which was an impressive blast of energy despite a few initial sound problems.

The evening ended with Davis' wailing on the Gnarls Barkley hit Crazy, current cover tune du-jour for young divas. (It's been included in recent live sets from Beyonce and American Idol castoff Frenchie Davis.) The genre-hopping tune was perfectly in sync with Davis' own ability to master a mash-up of styles.

If the young starlet is able to smoothly transition her penchant for rock riffs and urban grooves onto disc, she just might emerge as a modern-day Tina Turner. What's Prince got to do with it?

Posted by Joey Guerra at June 2, 2007 09:37 AM

Nice article. I wish I was there. I'm telling you. She's incredible on stage.