"Live on the Levee" lineup looks lackluster

The city of St. Louis and the Fair St. Louis organization have announced the concert schedule for this year's "Live on the Levee" concert series, and it's a huge disappointment for those of us who were hoping the event might follow the example set by the Riversplash concert series held two years ago on the riverfront.

Since Riversplash included such acts as Branford Marsalis, Medeski Martin and Wood, B.B.King, Dr. John, the Neville Brothers, Taj Mahal, Steel Pulse and Los Lobos alongside the expected pop and rock bands, I was optimistic - perhaps foolishly so- that the organizers of "Live on the Levee" would book a variety of bands with different musical styles to draw in different segments of the community, and perhaps even give a nod to St. Louis' rich history of jazz, blues and soul music. Instead, what we're getting is, for the most part, a bunch of second-tier rock acts that would seem more likely bets for the state-fair-and-casino circuit.

From a jazz fan's perspective, Lyle Lovett, who will play on July 28, is probably the only act of interest. He covers a wide spectrum of musical styles with a fine live band, and has even been known to open shows with a version of Horace Silver's "Cookin' at the Continental". Fellow baby boomers may still hold a soft spot for the likes of Cheap Trick (July 22) and Grand Funk Railroad (July 29) and blues fans might still have some interest in flashy young guitarist Kenny Wayne Shepard (August 5), though from what I understand he's playing mostly rock music now.

But what's most remarkable about the series is the almost complete lack of African-American performers. I counted just two - Darius Rucker, lead vocalist for the MOR rock band Hootie and the Blowfish (July 4), and singer/songwriter India.Arie (July 15). In a city with large numbers of African-Americans that touts its heritage of jazz, blues and soul to potential tourists, and whose most successful national artists as of late have been hip-hop acts such as Nelly, Chingy, J-Kwon, and the St. Lunatics, the absence of black music in this concert series is a travesty.

As presenters of the city's Independence Day festivities as well as the "Live on the Levee" series, Fair St. Louis is in effect the successor to the historically racist Veiled Prophet organization, and one can't help but wonder if they shied away from booking African-American acts because they were afraid that too many black concertgoers might frighten away the white St. Louis County and St. Charles residents that they hope to attract to the events on the riverfront. Moreover, even setting aside the possible taint of racism, limiting the concert series to acts that will appeal mainly to white folks in their thirties and forties doesn't seem like a formula for big attendance numbers.

Organizers have yet to announce bookings for August 4 and August 12, so there's still some possibility that the series may become a little bit more diverse, both musically and racially. But given past history, I can't say I'm very optimistic that it will be anything except more of the same.