Not only did Yelba sing, dance and play the guitar at last Friday night’s Keller Williams concert at Kings Harbor, she took the crowd on a musical tour of Latin America. She was joined by her husband Roy Heaton on bass guitar, Jerry Sanchez on keyboard, Vernon Daniels on drums and Yankar Gonzalez on trombone.
Singing in Spanish, Yelba started out her first set clapping hands to the music of Peru. She then tangoed to a song from Argentina, followed by country music ballads of Mexico, and completed the trip with a Cumbia from Columbia.
The Nicaragua native said her favorite Latin artists are those who made it big in their native countries before they had hits in the U.S. She performed a sampling of songs made famous by Cuban-American Gloria Estefan, Puerto Rican-American Mark Anthony, as well as Mexican-Americans Santana and Linda Ronstadt.
To be true to the name Yelba’s Variety Band, she threw in some cover tunes to the song mix. The band had a great time jamming to “Play that Funky Music.” Lady Gaga’s “Poker Face” was a favorite of the kids in the audience and “the young at heart.” Sanchez did a great job singing “I got a Feeling” by the Black Eyed Peas as he played the keyboard.
Yelba enjoyed dancing with the crowd on the plaza as much as singing. She showed off the meringue, which she called “the easiest of all Latin rhythms” and titled herself “the Queen of Swing.” She took a break to watch the skills of Fred Astaire Dance Studio instructors Zach, Alex and Sandra as they demonstrated the salsa , the cha-cha and a rumba line dance with the audience. Yelba went back to work dancing to salsa music from Columbia and finished up the night with another hip-moving meringue.
Faces in the crowd included Pam Dickson, executive director of The Mission, and Linda Prater, chairman of the Kingwood Women’s Club Holiday Marketplace. Introduced by Keller Williams Realty Northeast Team Leader Buddy Wall, the ladies represented the featured charities of the concert.
The Women’s Club sold tickets to their marketplace taking place on Oct. 25 and 26 at the Humble Civic Center. The Mission collected cash donations for Thanksgiving turkeys as well as food and personal care product donations for needy families.
The next Keller Williams concert is November 19 featuring the ‘50s group: Shake, Rattle & Roll.
