Idan Raichel & India.Arie get down in O-town

On Saturday Oct. 15 Idan Raichel and India Arie came to Oakland as part of the annual SF Jazz festival. They performed songs from their collaborative album “Open Door,” to be released in the spring of 2012.

Arie twisted and swiveled around the stage in a flouncy dress. Idan fed off of her hippie-dippy energy, even abandoning his piano bench for an electric bass during one song.

photo credit Ronald Davis

They sang together in English, Hebrew, and songs with mixed lyrics from both languages. Raichel’s contributions proved him to be a talented lyricist in both languages. He said that he is greatly indebted to Google Translate. Raichel’s nimble-fingered piano melodies and breathy singing served as a catalyst for Arie's highly emotive vocals.

The songs were smooth, optimistic, and revealed a new flavor for Raichel, a refreshingly funky overtone.

This album was born out of the Arie’s travels to the Holy Land. In 2010 Arie went to Israel for a little soul searching after a disastrous turn in her career. She asked around who was the most radical songwriter in Israel. Raichel’s name came up again and again.

When Raichel got a call that India Arie was in Tel Aviv and wanted to meet him, he thought that it was a crazy fan pulling a prank. He offered that they meet at a falafel stand close to his house because he was afraid to give his real address. But then Raichel saw Arie waiting for him at the falafel stand and the rest, as they say, is history. 

Of course I was not deviant enough to smuggle recording devices into the concert. But lucky for you, others have been naughty at previous concerts.

Here are some clips of the two performing together.

God bless youtube.

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