Leroy “Lonnie” Jordan is a soul survivor with the band War and gave Savannah Center a hit of medicinal music on Friday.
It was an ideal tonic for those suffering severe ’60s’ flashbacks from the purple haze of those gone-but-not-forgotten high times.
“I survived 1969, and I’m the original OG on the keys,” said the keyboard player and lead singer of War. Then he took a hanky to his face saying: “Excuse me while I blow some of the residual from the 1970s from my nose.”
Or as Jimi Hendrix might say: “Excuse me while I kiss the sky.”
War came along with a boost from Eric Burdon of the Animals during the late ’60s. Burdon fronted the band on its first big hit, “Spill the Wine.” In September 1970, Burdon and War shared a London stage with Hendrix. It was Hendrix’s last public performance; he died two days later.
Burdon soon left the band. But War stayed popular through much of the ’70s, with such hits as “Low Rider,” “The Cisco Kid,” “The World Is a Ghetto” and “Why Can’t We Be Friends.”
War’s formula combined funk, jazz, blues and just about every other musical influence – with a dose of comedy. Think Sly and the Family Stone meets Bob Marley – with a little Richard Pryor thrown in for good measure – and you have War.
Early on, Jordan talked about touring with Bob Marley.
“People ask us: how come you didn’t play Woodstock,” Jordan said. “We couldn’t because we were on tour with Bob Marley. We smoked all the weed in the world on that tour.”
The band then offered a stirring version of Marley’s defiant anthem: “Get Up, Stand Up.” It’s about taking a stand for what you believe, “and we’re grateful to Bob for that song,” Jordan said.
War’s lineup has changed over the years, but the current edition can still deliver hot licks and thumping funk sounds. It includes Jordan, along with Stuart Ziff, guitar; Marcus J. Reyes, percussion; Scott Martin, sax; Stanley Behrens, harmonica; Rene Camacho, bass; and Sal Rodriguez, drums.
The band kicked off its 70-minute concert with extended jams on “Slippin’ Into Darkness.” Jordan would jump around the stage to let each band member showcase his talent.
Jordan opened “Spill the Wine” with a wicked keyboard riff and offered some new lyrics to the old song. He made his way into the audience to dance and sing with fans on the rollicking “The Cisco Kid.”
The pace changed dramatically when drummer Rodriguez sang lead on a soothing ballad, “So (Why Did You Go).”
War got back to its party music vibe with bar sing-along number, “Why Can’t We Be Friends.” Once again, the audience joined in, shouting the lyrics as Jordan urged them on. Then came maybe the coolest War song of all: “Low Rider.” It’s the kind of number where you can almost feel a street legal, low rider pumping up its automotive body. Saxman Martin turned up the heat with some stinging sounds on harmonica by Behrens, as Jordan riffed on keyboards.
In a way, that’s what War is all about – having fun and pumping up the jams.
Tony Violanti is a veteran journalist and writes for Villages-News.com.
