Fri 2/28 @ 8PM
Trombone player Sammy Williams aka Big Sam is a New Orleans native steeped in the city’s musical traditions. He formed a brass band in high school and later went on to perform with the illustrious Dirty Dozen Brass Band, who expanded the range of the style, incorporating more genres and expanding awareness of it beyond the city through copious touring.
In the early 2000s, he formed his own ensemble, Big Sam’s Funky Nation, which, while still grounded in the music of New Orleans, ranges even further afield, working in elements of rock, funk, various permutations of jazz, both traditional and contemporary, hip hop, and modern dance music. Their latest album, 2018’s Songs in the Key of Funk, Vol. 1, describes their mission, with a titular (and musical) nod to Stevie Wonder’s 1976 Songs in the Key of Life.
The group will be at the Rock Hall to put an exclamation point on its annual Black History Month celebration. They’ll perform on the ground floor main stage. Tickets are $15, or $40 with admission to all exhibits.
rockhall/big-sams-funky-nation-concert
1100 Rock and Roll Blvd, Cleveland, OH 44114