Tiny titan of the saxophone headlines Puckett’s on Friday
Pamela K. Ward stands four feet, eleven inches tall—barely bigger than the saxophone she carries with her onstage. But armed with her soul-filled powerhouse vocals, an engaging, energetic stage presence, and unmatched skill on the aforementioned sax, Shakespeare could’ve been writing about her when he penned the Midsummer line, “Though she be but little, she is fierce.”
An “early start” is a relative term for performers, but Ward’s earned the title, beginning at the tender age of two. She’s had a lifetime of experience in front of crowds, whether it’s fairs, festivals, headliners or opening acts, and her comfort onstage is palpable. When she and her backup band The Last Call Orchestra covered “Uptown Funk” in Little Rock, Ward easily transitioned between belting out soulful vocals to rocking out on the sax to dancing—either like no one was watching or, more probable, like tons of people were watching and she was too happy to care.
Ward’s first album of original songs was released July 2013, each of which Ward wrote or co-wrote. Visit her website and you’ll be greeted with the track “Stilettos,” packed with driving guitars, bluesy vocals, and more sass than a stereotype in a sitcom. Her videos feature her in Nashville performing “Momma’s Boy Blues,” where her skill as both a sax player and a vocalist get equal opportunity to shine.
Swing by Puckett’s this Friday at 9 p.m. to see and hear for yourself. You’ll be amazed by the little, but irrefutably fierce, Pamela K. Ward..