The Lawrence Olds Quartet

Between the Carolina Chocolate Drops, The Sometimes Favorites, and Galactic just to name a few that popped out at me from the packed music schedule, it was, as usual, a busy weekend in Charlottesville.

Buried on that list was a band you’ve probably yet to hear about, The Lawrence Olds Quartet, hailing from RVA.

Likely, you've not heard of them for a variety of legitimate reasons. First, despite the straight shot on Route 64, Richmond, musically, is another planet. Second, they’ve been on a bit of a hiatus, and they’re just, literally, getting back behind the wheel with a new release called “A Second Chance.”

If you read their blog, (http://www.lawrenceolds.com/), or the liner notes on A Second Chance, you can piece together the story behind the release’s title. You see, Lawrence, a former JMU footballer, is as big and strong as they come. You wouldn’t expect a guy like that to succumb to a rogue infection, lose part of his lung and almost die. But that’s where he found himself last year. Lying in the ICU, he announced to everyone in the room that not only was he going to get better, but he also was going to release a CD to celebrate his second chance.

True to his word, Lawrence has gone and done just that, and playing to an intimate and appreciative crowd at Cville Coffee this Saturday, the Lawrence Olds Quartet kicked off what I’m sure will be an increasing presence here.

Beyond the standards, I’ll admit that I don’t know a whole lot about jazz, but I do know that this quartet has a special combination of skilled musicianship, velvety vocals and, well, darn it, just plain LOVE about what they are doing and why. They’ve taken songs that I knew, and many that I didn’t added their own arrangement and polish and they’ve hit the road with them, driving hard from jazz to blues and back.

I took my kid to this show, and Lawrence says he loves nothing better than to see younger fans in the audience. “I love that kind of vibe, where kids can really get turned on by the stand up bass or the guitar riffs.” I wasn’t surprised to find my son at the end of the show up front and center with guitarist Chris Whiteman, asking questions and telling him all about the lessons he has started taking.

I want these guys to play at my house. Or maybe at your house, and you could invite me. But, barring that, I want them to make a return trip to Charlottesville as soon as possible and I want you to be there when they do!

The Lawrence Olds quartet is Lawrence Olds, Chris Whiteman, Charlie Kilpatrick and Mike Hawkins.