Saxophonist Chris Godber to play Sunday in Apalach
On Sunday, Jan. 8, the Billboard-charting saxophonist Chris Godber and his band are presenting a concert of smooth jazz music at 4 p.m. at Trinity Episcopal Church.
Godber, a Panama City resident, started playing sax at age 12 when he lived in Germany. His 2015 album “Starting Over” launched his ascent into the smooth jazz charts and his 2018 album, “Momentum” had a Top 10 spot on the Groove Jazz Music Chart for 16 weeks. He has become an in-demand jazz musician playing at clubs and festivals throughout the country.
The band includes Eric Lampley on bass guitar, Caleb Middleton on keyboard, Quentin Potter on drums, and Antonio Reeves on guitar, all equally renowned musicians who tour and do backup recording sessions with artists such as Julian Vaughn, Blake Aaron, and Adam Hawley.
The concert playlist includes smooth jazz favorites mixed with a bit of rhythm and blues influence and some gospel jazz. It leads off with “Ain’t Nobody” by David “Hawk” Woliskie and features some Chris Godber / Caleb Middleton original compositions including their hit “Momentum” that headlined their latest album.
The concert also features tunes by Maxwell Itaal Shur, Andrew Ridgely, The Isley Brothers, Al McKay, Maurice White, and Allee Willis. A highlight of the program is a smooth jazz medley of “Amazing Grace” and “At Last,” two favorites of the gospel and jazz genres.
The concert, presented by the Ilse Newell Fund for the Performing Arts. is at Trinity Episcopal Church, 79 Sixth Street in Apalachicola. Doors open at 3:30 p.m. for the 4 p.m. performance.
Immediately following the concert there’s a reception at Trinity’s Benedict Hall, next to the church, where light refreshments and beverages will be served, people can meet the musicians and have an opportunity to purchase CDs of their music.
Tickets are $20 per person and can be purchased in advance through Eventbrite at the Ilse Newell Fund website, www.inconcertapalachicola.org. Or, concertgoers can pay cash at the door the day of the concert. The Ilse Newell concert sponsor this year is Construct Group SE, with additional funding by Duke Energy and the Franklin County Tourist Development Council.
Meet the Editor
David Adlerstein, The Apalachicola Times’ digital editor, started with the news outlet in January 2002 as a reporter.
Prior to then, David Adlerstein began as a newspaperman with a small Boston weekly, after graduating magna cum laude from Brandeis University in Waltham, Massachusetts. He later edited the weekly Bellville Times, and as business reporter for the daily Marion Star, both not far from his hometown of Columbus, Ohio.
In 1995, he moved to South Florida, and worked as a business reporter and editor of Medical Business newspaper. In Jan. 2002, he began with the Apalachicola Times, first as reporter and later as editor, and in Oct. 2020, also began editing the Port St. Joe Star.