NEW YORK CITY- It was a distinct pleasure to cover this show, as I had never seen Sanchez before. His voice sounded just as good live, if not better, and that's a rarity among artists in general. Sanchez' voice is unique, versatile, and powerful yet silky. He captivated the people from his first song to the very last.

I arrived at S.O.B's early and the famed establishment housed a very scanty crowd. They sipped drinks while head-bopping in unison to the early juggling of the Majestic King sound system. A dimly lit S.O.B's saw staffers expeditiously setting up the stage for the official onset of the evening. As more heads occupied the place, the One Vibration band took the stage and began to fill the air with nice and easy rhythms. The body count inevitably grew and so did the level of restlessness as they eagerly anticipated Sanchez' performance. He would not be up next however as Majestic King then selected more tunes, allowing Sanchez' band, The Chronic Band, to set up and replace One Vibration on stage.

Early 80's star Flourgon was introduced next and easily alleviated the edginess of the audience. He jumped right into a couple of his classics
including "Learn Fi Dance," and "Big Batty Gal." Flour went on with great renditions of other 80's hotshots, bringing back a feeling reminiscent of a
fantastically original era in reggae music. He dropped Shabba Ranks' "Punany," "Needle Eye Pum Pum," and "Original Fresh," as well as Buju Banton's "Boom Bye Bye." The massive devoured it whole!

Richie Stevens, not originally slated for the show, sprang up next to tactfully precede Sanchez (who I am not sure was even in the building yet). Stevens began with the endless "Trying to Get to You" followed up by his version of Beres Hammond's "Step Aside." He mashed up the place with Dennis Brown's "Love & Hate" and then persisted on with "Spanish Harlem" on
the True Love rhythm. Richie "battled" the crowd in a clash, challenging them to vocalize lines better than he could – opera style. Immediately after, he finished up a superb set with the American classic, "Twist & Shout."

Without further delay, Sanchez appeared on the main floor standing among his fans, awaiting introduction. He donned a sharp-as-shit gray suit, a blue silk tie, and a white top hat, which would eventually come off well into his performance. He made his way to the stage diving right into the
everlasting "Praise His Name," and the people went wild with
enthusiasm. Sanchez effortlessly took them down memory lane lacing them
with "I Can't Wait," "Give it a Chance," "Never Gonna Let You Down,"
"Loneliness," and "This Little Girl." Many of his songs were aimed at the
women and they appreciated it, singing along with every word while trying
to touch him from off stage. Sanchez, born Kevin Jackson, wouldn't allow
the energy to die from there, belting out several more tunes such as, "Missing You," "For You," "Back at One," "Let Me Love You Down," and "Never
Dis the Man." He also received much love for "Frenzy" which was forwarded twice. For a grand finale, Sanchez, Flourgon & Richie Stevens joined vocal
forces in performing "Love Mi Girl Bad," which the audience loved in full. Sanchez ended the night with the popular church-inspired "Amazing Grace." It was an amazing ending to an amazing overall performance.

The world was blessed with Sanchez on November 19th, 1964. He was given a
social security number in Kingston, Jamaica and grew up with both parents
and 4 siblings in the Stony Hill and Waterford communities. He began his
career singing in church choirs and he has never looked back, becoming one
of Jamaica's most loved voices.

Serious love out to Sanchez, and all Easy Star soldiers.