Alice Grace (vcl); Paul Gowland (ten/alt/sop); Pete Gilligan (pno); Paul Grainger (bs); Russ Morgan (dms).
(Review by Lance).
The outstanding moment for me in the Danny Kaye, Bing Crosby remake of Holiday Inn - White Christmas - wasn't Bingo singing the title song, or even the delightful and amusing Sisters sung by Vera Ellen and Rosemary Clooney. No, for me, it was George's auntie's heartfelt crooning of the Irving Berlin number Love You Didn't Do Right By Me.
The years rolled by and I never heard the song again - apart from every Boxing Day or thereabouts!
Until tonight!
Tonight, Alice raised Auntie Rose's seemingly unpassable bar up to an even higher level!
Berlin had also provided the opener - an uptempo blast on Blue Skies and it just went on from there.
Alice sang and scatted and vocalesed (remind me what the difference is?)
She swung and swang, Paul Gowland swang and swung on saxophones galore. Gilligan was, simply, Gilligan - how many pianists just wish they were "Simply, Gilligan?"
Paul Grainger, his blossoming beard has a long way to go before it rivals the late Crombie's facial adornment - his bass playing makes up for it. In particular the fours twixt voice and bass that were just some of the highlights.
Russ, he was brill . Not just solos but, as sympathetic a player as you'll find behind any parradiddle.
A choice selection of the old and not so old. The familiar and not so familiar.
Blue Skies; Until You Come Back to Me (S.Wonder);
Secret Love; Nardis (Mile's tribute to Ben Sidran as lyricised by Sarah Elizabeth Charles);
What is This Thing Called Love?; Invitation; If I Knew Now; Love You Didn't Do Right By Me;
Everybody's Song (Kenny Wheeler);
Learnin' the Blues; God Bless the Child; Brenda Russell's
It's a Jazz Day; Just in Time; You Don't Know What Love is; On the Street Where you Live and, for an encore,
The Sky is There.
The sky certainly was there. This may not have been Berkeley Square although there definitely
was magic abroad in the air and a nightingale
did sing...
Photos.
Lance.
2 comments :
'Vocalise' usually refers to putting lyrics to a learned instrumental solo. Kurt Elling does it fabulously with a Charlie Haden solo on his recording of Moonlight Serenade.
Just in case you were serious.
Thanks John. This and many other jazz questions are answered in a soon to be published book by Dave Gelly - '30-Second Jazz'. Review coming up shortly.
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