On October 31, multi-instrumentalist and songwriter Jon Batiste, the former musical director and bandleader of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, performed at The Anthem in Washington, D.C. to an audience of around 6,000 people. This particular concert, which was the last show of Batiste’s Big Money tour, featured several special guests, including New Orleans trumpeter Julian “Juice” Gosin, percussionist Pedrito Martinez, guitarist and songwriter Nick Waterhouse, and bassist Blu DeTiger.
Batiste’s nearly 3-hour set reflected the eclecticism of his discography, with songs ranging from improvisations on pieces by Beethoven, similar to those he recorded on his album Beethoven Blues (2024), to pieces that heavily featured electronic instruments, such as “Worship,” during which Batiste triggered pre-recorded samples of himself singing. He also featured several different configurations of his band; some songs were performed by a full band, while others exclusively featured the guitarists, and Batiste even played some songs by himself. Batiste also played several covers, including “Lonely Avenue” by Ray Charles (which he recorded on Big Money), “Nobody’s Fault but Mine” by Blind Willie Johnson, and James Brown’s “I Got the Feeling,” as well as a variety of original songs, mostly from his four most recent albums, Big Money, Beethoven Blues, World Music Radio (2023), and WE ARE (2021).
In addition to playing a variety of songs, Batiste regularly engaged the audience throughout the show. For instance, at the beginning of the show, Batiste marched through the crowd onto the stage, playing a tambourine. Near the end of his performance, Batiste showed the audience a dance that they could perform during a certain part of the title track to Big Money. He ended the show similarly to how he started, except this time he had the entire band march through the crowd, out of the venue, and into the street.
If Jon Batiste ever comes back to the area, I highly recommend seeing his show because of its sonic eclecticism, audience involvement, and the joy that Batiste finds in making music.
