Ruth Lambert (vocals), Giles Strong (guitar) &
Mick Shoulder (double bass)
(Review by Russell)
The final concert of the year in Newcastle
University’s weekly lunchtime concert series
featured the Ruth Lambert Trio. Unrivalled exponents of the Great
American Songbook – vocalist Ruth Lambert, guitarist Giles Strong and Mick
Shoulder (double bass) – in an oversubscribed market place of ‘jazz singer with
accompaniment’, the regionally based trio with a national reputation
entertained a large crowd at Brunswick Methodist Church.
The concert set of fifty minutes comprised a balanced
selection of original compositions and much loved standards. The sound balance in
the auditorium was exceptionally good resulting in absolute clarity of vocals
and string instruments. Time After Time exuded
the sense of time, taste and swing one has come to expect of the trio. All are
songwriters and four of their tunes in succession held the audience spellbound
as did more familiar fayre. Lambert’s A
Love That Never Dies, Shoulder’s How
Could I?, the Lambert and Shoulder dark tale Lullaby and Strong’s Everything
Was Beautiful were given sensitive readings in the austere surroundings of
a city centre Methodist chapel.
Love Me Like a Man (Strong’s restrained blues feel), Devil May Care (Lambert’s innate swing
feel) and Love for Sale (Shoulder’s
effective tapped-out open hand rhythms) made the whole thing look easy. If
only! Master musicians were at work, the intimate songbook material magically
reaching the jazz ‘congregation’ up in the gods. This being the time of year to
be jolly (bah humbug!), Ms Lambert chose to close the concert with Santa Baby. Written in 1926, your correspondent would
happily hear Lambert sing the seasonal song every year for ever and ever! Dear Santa, I would like…
Russell.
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