Rain can put a damper on the best laid plans. It almost ruined the performance of the five piece band, Tribal Nation. Water in the PA system as a result of the rain was the problem. Luckily, the patrons at the Flamingo Cantina were able to hear the driving rhythms of Mike Franklin on keyboards, Melvin Wilburn on sax, Jai Lopez on congas, Jay Williams on guitar and Dwayne Jackson on drums. Two of the musicians are from Texas, Mike Franklin (Bastrop) and Dwayne Jackson (Dallas). One is from New York, Melvin Wilburn and one from the Caribbean, Jay Williams (New York). All are seasoned musicians who have played together for the past four years as Tribal Nation and for about 12 years in a variety of different settings.

Mike Franklin has played with James Polk and Jay Williams with Sun Ra. Interestingly, the drummer, Dwayne Jackson is also a violinist. According to Mike Franklin, the group's music has a strong reggae influence.

Even though they are not Jamaicans, Franklin states, they nonetheless have a deep respect for the music. He believes their music also has a strong urban influence so that the resulting music is a combination of reggae, jazz, and funk. According to Franklin, the group's name does not have any profound meaning. It is actually a combination of names of bands that Franklin headed (One Nation) and Williams headed (The Jay Williams Tribe).

The group performed several standard reggae tunes, as well as original work. They opened their set with "Good To You," written by the drummer, Dwayne Jackson. They included a Bob Marley tune, "Get Up, Stand Up," as well as jazzy reggae tune called "Color Blind." Each member had credible enough voices to sing lead and harmonize extremely well. They have stage presence, exhibiting smooth choreography and tight musicianship. Nothing was extraneous. Tribal Nation is a together band. Their unique form of music can be heard on their new CD, "Our Thing."