(Screenshot by Russell)
Kansas Smitty's is like a top football team. They have such a talented squad which enables them to juggle players and formations around, rest the stars, and still come out winning because they are all stars.
Tonight three of those stars drew their inspiration from, although not exclusively, Kenny Garrett's album Triology.
Trio albums without the harmonic foundation of guitar or piano place a hefty weight on the bass player's shoulders.
For the front man, he is faced with the option of blowing totally free and hoping the other two can hang on to his shirt-tails or capitalising on the freedom whilst keeping his feet on the ground. Wisely, Smith chose the latter and we had a wonderful evening as did the audience, drinking their own booze and enjoying a pizza or, in my case (at home), an English egg sandwich.
The Triology numbers were; Delfeayo's Dilemma; Night and Day and In Your Own Sweet Way. The Brubeck tune may have had Desmond and Brubeck turning in their graves but Joe Morello was probably smiling and saying, "I told them that tune needed a drum solo!"
Ireland provided an original, the name of which I didn't catch but which had Smith in Johnny Hodges' mood at least in his phrasing if not his sound.
Is there a better tune than My One and Only Love? I suppose there are a few although I can't bring them to mind at the moment. Not after hearing Giacomo's version tonight!
The finale was, I'm told, Green Chimneys. Sadly my machine ran out of gas and I had to reboot it and do all kinds of unmentionable things to it before it struggled back into life. It may have been Cleasby's drum solo that did for the pc!
No comments :
Post a Comment