Troy "Trombone Shorty" Andrews, left. Photos by Chris Boulanger.

The day couldn’t have started any better. Early this afternoon, genre-defying New Orleans music sensation Troy “Trombone Shorty” Andrews turned in what may have been the greatest opening slot performance in Tampa Bay Blues Festival history. The trombone-and-trumpet-virtuoso and his four outstanding backing players — guitar, saxophone, bass, drums, percussion — took the stage at 1 p.m. sharp and by the end of their 70 min. set had the crowd of several thousand blues lovers offering an impassioned standing ovation.

The 22-year-old Andrews coerced the typically sedate, lawn-chair-sitting, baby boomer attendees on their feet, had ‘em dancing, and waving hands in the air like they just didn’t care — another likely first in blues fest history. The singer/horn-player accomplished this rare feat with a precisely paced set of boisterous French Quarter funk, sizzling jazz instrumentals and Andrews’ groove rock originals, which were judiciously laced with fierce trombone blasts.

Having seen Andrews perform three times now in the past year, it’s clear that he’s consciously evolving from charismatic, wildly talented bandleader into a polished frontman capable of achieving mainstream success. When I saw him play at Tropical Heatwave last May, Andrews relied on horn-infused covers of classic rock favorites like AC/DC’s “Back in Black” and popular rap numbers such as Naughty by Nature’s “Hip Hop Hooray” to delight the crowd. Today, the first 45 min. of his set were almost all originals, songs that found Andrews singing, quite soulfully, rather than chanting or rapping the lyrics like he did in the past. And his stage presence, which he’s been honing since first performing in public as a grade-schooler, harks back to soul greats like James Brown. Andrews’ addressed the audience warmly in between and during songs, initiated call-and responses, spun, flailed his arms, clapped, grinned, egged on his saxophonist and guitarist during their respective solos — the young man knows how to work a crowd, even if the vast majority of them were his parents’ age or older.

“Now we’re really gonna take y’all back to New Orleans,” Andrews announced five minutes past when his set was scheduled to end. The band then launched into an exuberant, rock-and-funk version of the Big Easy gospel anthem “When the Saints Go Marching In.”

For the third time in 12 months, Andrews had done more than just impress me as a critic — he lifted my spirits. He’s a natural star, probably the only person capable of bringing the latest and finest incarnation of New Orleans party music to the masses.

Here's the interview I did with Andrews that ran in December, "Musical muscle: From jazz to pop to funk, Trombone Shorty flexes his chops."

The Tampa Bay Blues Festival, which is being held at Vinoy Park in downtown St. Petersburg, continues today through Sunday. Senior editor Eric Snider reviewed Friday’s performances by James Hunter and Robert Cray, see previous post.

This article appears in Apr 9-15, 2008.