Joe Ruicci Lance Anderson – Writer, Composer, Producer, Director, Performer
The first time I met Lance was back in the 90’s when he came to Joe’s Place to play in Maureen Brown’s band, Big Hand
I think he was very happy to be performing at the club due to the fact, we had two Hammond organs, a B3 and a C3 (as a back up to the B3) and of course a Leslie Speaker.
A dream set up for a guy like Lance who is one of Canada’s premier keyboardist and B3 player. Not all piano/keyboard players can play the B3 the way it is meant to be played. It’s truly an instrument separate from the average mainstream keyboards.
Big Hand was a big band featuring Maureen Brown on drums, 3 horns, violin, guitar, bass and of course Lance on the B3.
The next time I had the privilege of working with Lance, was in 2005 when I was working with the Niagara Blues & Jazz Society, and one of our first shows was with the Duo of Anderson and Sloski (Lance Anderson & Mike Sloski).
I remember Lance pulling up with his custom trailer housing his B3 on a custom dolly. It was obvious to everyone that he is a serious B3 player. Many touring acts gave up hauling their Bs around and opted for electronic keyboards using sampled sounds of a real Hammond. Although convenient, they could never replace a real Hammond B3.
That performance was awesome. The audience was thrilled. It was a highlight of the first season of the Welland Downtown Music Series presented by the Niagara Blues & Jazz Society and the City of Welland.
My next opportunity to work with Lance Anderson was in August of 2006 when Lance came to perform at the Welland Downtown Music Series once again. This time he was presenting a show he produced “An All Star Tribute to Ray Charles.
And what an All Star lineup it was.
Joining Lance on the stage were Shakura S’Aida vocals, Danny Brooks vocals, Mike Sloski on drums, Jessie O’Brien on keys, and Al Lerman on sax. Amazing! What a great show!
The last time I saw Lance perform it was his critically acclaimed production of The Last Waltz featuring once again a line up of some of Canada’s greatest performers. He never ceases to amaze me and always blows me away.
“Hearing live music is a three-dimensional experience.”
Lance Anderson
I am looking forward to my next encounter with Lance Anderson. I am sure it will be another amazing experience.
I found this great article By Cece M. Scott on line and I believe it would be worth the time to read if you are interested in knowing more about Lance and what he is all about
