Stevie Glendinning Trio and Chris Jelly with guest singer Barry Keating – Salsa Café - Nov. 2

Stevie Glendinning (gtr), Mike Clarke (bass), Mark Robinson (dms), Chris Jelly (vibes) Barry Keating (Vocals)

(Review by Kath J.)

The evening promised to be like no other, a new combination of the well-known trio with the addition of vibraphone.  The wild weather had kept a few people at home but what a night they missed!

A gentle introduction saw Stevie Glendinning perform a beautiful La Pasionaria.  Vocalist Barry Keating joined the Trio for Besame Mucho and What a Difference a Day Makes, performed in his usual confident but relaxed style. A trio of treasures in the form of All the things you are, Moonlight in Vermont and Four on Six, with superb solos from the lightning fast fingers of Stevie.

Chris Jelly and his Vibraphone were then welcomed to the group for the rest of the evening, and wow… what and addition!   Red Clay introduced us to the stunning combination of Vibes and Jazz Guitar.  A lively bossa – Black Orpheus demonstrated how the vibes melodically complemented Stevie’s nimble fingers, and the solid backing from drums and bass also accompanied a bouncy version of Beautiful Love.  A Wayne Shorter number Footprints brought the first set to a stunning end.

The gently unfolding Saga of Harrison Crabfeathers grew into an energetic rendition from the musicians which was then knocked back to the pure Jazz ‘chill out music’ of Angel Eyes, beautifully led by Stevie with some lovely incidentals and complemented by a delightful solo from the vibes.  The next tune – Yo Yazz again exhibited the lovely combination of the musicians at their best, and then the vibes set the Gary Burton Number – G Minor Blues afire with a vigorous workout from Chris, that exhibited sparkling 4s from each member of the band.

The Big Schlepp was lively and unique, while But Beautiful was melodic and dreamy.  A Night in Tunisia brought a stop and then a surprising finish… with a lovely arrangement of God Bless the Child to bring the set to an end… but the crowd shouted for more… and so a dynamic Mr P C ensued, demonstrating the technical ability of the magical fingers of Mr Glendinning and the energetic vibes of Chris Jelly, and not to be left out, Mark Robertson and Mike Clarke joined the party on stage in a wonderful demonstration of 4s… as I said earlier… WOW! 

And the quote of the night… courtesy of Dave Parker…. “Jazz is a language, you can either speak fluently or you can order a beer”… but ultimately y'all get along to make Jazztastic music!

Kath J.