Jesse Cook takes the stage solo and jumps right into “Tempest” from his 1995 album of the same name. It’s a rocker and it’s immediately clear the audience is in for a great night of music.  

After playing this song, he talks about how on that first album, he played all the instruments himself. It was a lot of work. So, he decided to play with other musicians going forward. He brings out Marito Marques from Portugal to play percussion with him. They play “La Rumba D’el Jefe” from his 2009 album, The Rumba Foundation. They feed off each other’s energy in a great performance.

He then introduces Matt Sellick on guitar from Thunder Bay, Ontario in Canada. Later in the night, he tells the story about how they met. When Matt was 7 years old, he first heard Jesse Cook’s music and he told his mother that he wanted to learn to play that. So, he began taking guitar lessons. About 10 years later, Matt sends Jesse a recording of him playing. Jesse says it sounds like he plays the songs better than he can. So, he goes to Thunder Bay to kill him, just kidding he says. They do meet and play together and get along very well. Years later, when the guitar position in his band opens up, he invites Sellick to join and he accepts!

Cook then says they need to continue to fill out the sound and he brings out Dan Minchom on Bass Guitar. The now four piece band plays “Virtue” from the 2000 album, Free Fall. It’s very cool to see how the fullness of the music keeps building as they add musicians.  

To introduce the next band mate, Cook dives into the history of flamenco music. He talks about how Andalusia in Spain was under Moorish rule and that the capital was Baghdad. Then he brings out Fethi Najem on violin and mandole, who blends flamenco and Arabian music. They play “Baghdad”, which is also from his debut album.

In the encore, they play “Mario Takes A Walk” from his 1996 album, Gravity. This is his most popular track on Spotify with over 6.7 million streams. The audience is blown away and responds with a huge applause afterwards. Jesse Cook has truly assembled a superb band full of very talented musicians and it makes for a fantastic evening of music.

See a recent setlist here.

Cost of a ticket: $65 and up

PlaylistHQ Economic Rating: Worth It +

Rating Scale: Exceptional Value > Worth It > Half Price > Go for Free > Don’t Bother

Quinn Delaney