Review: In a rare hometown concert, St. Paul R&B star Stokley proves he's got too much talent

St. Paul R&B star Stokley seems like a stranger in his own hometown.

Since the Mint Condition frontman released his debut solo album in 2017, he has given only one high-profile performance, that year at the Ordway.

In 2021, he dropped his outstanding, deep and diverse sophomore album, "Sankofa," and, on Saturday, he finally returned to a Twin Cities stage at the newly remodeled Uptown Theater in Minneapolis.

"Is that too much music for you?" he asked well into his two-dozen-song set. "It's been a long time. We've got a lot [of music] saved up."

Yes, it was a lot of music — two full hours' worth. Funk rock, R&B, soul, hip-hop, blues, jazz, Black vaudeville, Prince covers and other oldies. Stokley's smooth voice was elastic and soulful (and he impressively scatted trombone), his rubber-legged dancing was nimble and dynamic, and his tight band, the Vu, was as accomplished and versatile as he was. It all added up to a show that could be called "Stokley's Got Too Much Talent."

At 56, he certainly manifested his ambition, which may have been greater than the focus of the show.

Refusing to be restricted to one genre or era, Stokley, sporting a sparkly rhinestone jacket and wide-brimmed hat, opened with a run of songs from "Sankofa" — including the funk rock "Recipe," the groovy "Vibrant" (with Snoop Dogg visiting via video) and the tasty slow jam "Café." He sneaked in a couple of selections from his debut disc, "Introducing Stokley" — "Organic" and "Cross the Line" — before easing into the unstoppable '90s Mint Condition seducers "Forever in Your Eyes" and "U Send Me Swingin'."

Stokley also reprised a bit from his 2017 Ordway show in which he acted out, with a change of hats, some Black music history as a vaudevillian ("Honey Chile"), a jazz hoofer ("Take the A Train") and a bluesman ("I'm a Man/Mannish Boy" during which he flashed photos of Black male heroes including Martin Luther King, George Floyd and Mahmoud El-Kati, Stokley's dad).

Both segments of covers were as engaging as they were indulgent. The music history exploration would have benefited from a verbal setup as Stokley, the son of two educators, was trying to enlighten as well as entertain.

Concertgoers were excited to hear Stokley's recent hits, "She" and "Verbalize," which made a splash on Billboard's adult R&B charts. They were sandwiched around the Mint Condition classic "Breakin' My Heart (Pretty Brown Eyes)," which still resonates with music lovers of a certain age.

At the end of the long evening, Stokley not only introduced his four musicians and two singer/dancers, but he brought out all three of his local opening acts — Jordan Johnston, Bakarii and L.A. Buckner & Big Homie — for a jam and a bow. The Twin Cities has talent, indeed.