Karrin Allyson

With a sure and smoky alto, a wide-ranging repertoire from ballad to samba to blues, and a presence that nearly pulls you onstage beside her, two-time Grammy nominee Karrin Allyson is a deservedly popular jazz chanteuse—not to be confused with a “jazzy” pop singer. Of her distinctive voice, jazz historian/critic Gary Giddens notes, “She can swing, she can scat, she can croon the blues—and she plays one mean piano.” Touring in support of her latest recording, Footprints, Allyson will be on stage with Nancy King and local piano virtuoso Laura Caviani at the Fitzgerald Theater in St. Paul on October 7^th. It’s a bit of a homecoming for Allyson who lived in the Twin Cities early in her career, and she tends to find her way back every year.

Born in Kansas and raised in Omaha and San Francisco, Karrin Allyson studied classical piano before being turned on to jazz (and the songs of Nancy Wilson, Carmen McRae, Billie Holiday and Ella Fitzgerald) as a college student. After graduating from the University of Nebraska with a degree in piano, she spent her early professional career in Minneapolis, then moved to Kansas City to work at her uncle’s club, The Phoenix. Kansas City proved to be a great opportunity to develop her jazz chops, and there she met long-time collaborators Bob Bowman, Todd Strait, Paul Smith, Rod Fleeman and Danny Embrey. In 2000, Karrin finally made the move to New York City with orchestra conductor/husband Bill McGlaughlin. In addition to her frequent appearances in jazz clubs and festivals around the world, she has appeared at Carnegie Hall (tribute to Ella Fitzgerald), Lincoln Center’s Avery Fisher Hall, the New York City 92nd St. YMCA, on Public Radio International’s A Prairie Home Companion, and with symphony orchestras around the country, including the new Carnegie Hall concert series at Zankel Hall.

Karrin Allyson

In the past decade, Karrin Allyson has made ten recordings for Concord reflecting classic American jazz roots as well as French and Brazilian influences. In fact her minor in college was French (her major was music), and her love of both French and Portuguese seeps into her live performances as well as recordings, most notably on From Paris to Rio. Her 2001 CD, Ballads: Remembering John Coltrane, was nominated for a Grammy (best female vocalist). Wild for You (2005), a tribute to the popular songs of her youth, garnered another Grammy nomination "These are the songs I grew up with," she said, "the songs that made me want to sing in the first place. Before I got into jazz, I studied classical piano. But when I became a teenager, I heard these songs, and they piqued my interest. I got the sheet music and learned to play them and pretty soon thought, 'I'd like to do this for a living.’ ”

Footprints, released this summer on Concord, brings Allyson back to the classic jazz literature. Working with lyricist Chris Caswell, classic jazz works by Nat Adderley, Hank Mobley, Wayne Shorter, Dizzy Gillespie, John Coltrane and more are transformed into modern songs, along with contributions from Oscar Brown, Jr. and Jon Hendricks. Guest vocalists Hendricks and Nancy King join Allyson along with a smokin’ trio of Bruce Barth, Peter Washington and Todd Strait. “As a singer, I feel very influenced by instrumentalists and by many classic instrumental songs,” says Allyson. “It’s tricky to put lyrics to the great, iconic tunes, because you want to do them justice.” Justice is well served. [click here for jazz police review]

Nancy King

Of vocalist Nancy King, Karrin Allyson said, “She is, I think, one of the best singers that ever walked the planet.” Similarly, Herb Ellis labeled her “the greatest living jazz singer.” Arriving in San Francisco from Springfield, OR in the 1960s, she met future husband Sonny King at the Jazz Workshop and joined his band. In addition to performing for the next two years at the Workshop, she worked with Vince Guaraldi, John Handy, Sonny Donaldson, and Flip Nunez in San Francisco, and studied with Jon Hendricks. After moving to Las Vegas and then back to Oregon to raise her sons, King recorded her first album and made some appearances in New York before starting a collaboration with pianist/composer Steve Christofferson, with whom she has performed on the west coast since the 1980s. She released Straight Into Your Heart (Mons, 1997) with Christopherson and the Dutch Metropole Orchestra and appeared with Ray Brown on his Some Of My Best Friends Are Singers (Telarc, 1998), touring with Brown and his trio during the next year. Recent collaborations include performances with Karrin Allyson and Elvis Costello, as well as continued recordings with Steve Christofferson. Notes vocalist Mark Murphy, “Her singing flies between our ears with a certainty of inevitable rightness that is at least... simply thrilling.”

Laura Caviani © Andrea Canter

Joining Karrin and Nancy at the Fitzgerald will be long-time collaborators, pianist Laura Caviani and drummer Todd Strait. Twin Citians are well aware of Laura’s talents as performer and composer, and her regular appearances with her own trio, the JazzMN Big Band, Departure Point, Pete Whitman’s X-Tet, Soul Café, and more. Her latest recording, Going There, has been well received and rated high on jazz radio charts following its release. She was recently on stage at the Artists Quarter with a tribute to Horace Silver, and returns next month for her almost-annual Thelonious Monk Birthday celebration.

Todd Strait

Topeka, KS native Todd Strait was a member of Marian McPartland’s Trio for much of the 1980s and also appeared with Tal Farlow and Woody Herman’s 50^th anniversary “Thundering Herd.” While on the faculty of the University of Missouri-Kansas City from 1989-2002, he worked with notable area artists of the time, including Kevin Mahogany and Karrin Allyson. He recently relocated to Portland, OR but continues his work with Allyson as well as appearing on Laura Caviani’s Going There with old friend Bob Bowman.

Karrin Allyson bring together a very special ensemble in celebration of Footprints at the Fitzgerald on Saturday, October 7^th, at 8 pm. Visit fitzgeraldtheater.publicradio.org

“There’s nothing better than hearing what you’ve written interpreted by a voice that understands and improves every word.” –Chris Caswell

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