Xhosa Cole (tenor sax/flute); Will Barry (piano); Will Sach (bass); Jas Kayser (drums).
(Screenshots by Ken Drew)
A Night in Copenhagen, to give the album its correct title, was recorded in 1983 and featured Charles Lloyd, Michel Petrucciani on piano, Palle Danielsson on bass and Woody Theus on drums. There were also a couple of Bobby McFerrin vocals on the album but, as presumably Jalen N'Gonda wasn't available, tonight was strictly instrumental.
The live stream began, as the album had finished, with
Sweet Georgia Bright. A contrafact I guess although you would have had to dig deep to find the source if the title hadn't offered a clue.
Night Blooming Jasmine was followed by
Third Floor Richard. A beautiful intro by Sach who mustn't have been home for the last three nights or maybe Smitty's
is his home. Xhosa blew flute on this one - nice ...
Jas had been attending to the business in her own sweet way but, cometh the hour cometh the woman, she exploded at great length when bringing in
El Encanto. "Follow that" I said to my cat who replied "Me? How?" Well Daphne may have declined but the cats at Smitty's didn't and Xhosa did some more fluting that set the bar for any future flautists who dare to set foot on stage here.
Lady Day - a rather sumptuous ballad - had Will Barry and Xhosa in a melancholic mood which befitted the subject of the composition.
Nothing melancholic about the final number -
Lotus Land. Frantic is as frantic does was the order of the day. Cole playing notes many sax players never dreamed existed. Sach seemingly attempting to saw the bass in half, Barry sending out signals to have a team of piano tuners on standby whilst Jas drove them to the brink. And then, like the calm after the storm, it gradually became a thing of beauty finishing very low key which, paradoxically, meant it finished on a high.
Another good one.
Lance
1 comment :
"Me? How?" Nice one Lance !! A good set full of dynamics and energy. Also, enjoyed hearing some Blues played on a Flute :)
Post a Comment