Loverly

Sooner or late, it seems every jazz vocalist digs into the Great American Songbook, jazz classics, or popular canon. For some it is a safely charted journey of well worn songs bound to find a receptive audience. For others, it’s an opportunity to take the familiar into unmapped territory, to surprise, reconsider, reinvent the songbook and challenge listeners to respond rather than merely receive. No one would ever accuse either Cassandra Wilson or Patricia Barber of following the path of least resistance, and neither does so on her new Blue Note release of mostly standards. Two contenders for jazz vocal release of the year offer aural bouquets of (mostly) old tunes for new ears. 

Cassandra Wilson, Loverly (Blue Note)

It’s taken me a while to become a Cassandra Wilson convert. Consider me a late bloomer. And consider Wilson’s return to standard repertoire on Loverly as one of the most welcome homecomings on record. Make no mistake, however, no matter how “loverly” the tunes, these are standards only in their songbook publication, not in execution. Each of the 11 timeless songs (in addition to one original track) included here reflects Wilson’s respectful yet personal reinvention and the simpatico collaboration of a vocalist’s dream band—Jason Moran on piano, Martin Sewell on guitars, Lonnie Plaxico on acoustic bass, Herlin Riley on drums, and West African percussionist Lekan Babalola; Reginal Veal comes aboard on bass for one track. This may be Moran’s most extensive foray into vocal accompaniment, and while he may be too far to the left of standard for most singers, his multilayered journeys are a perfect foil for the never-conservative Wilson, who seems to be scatting even when each word is clearly articulated. 

Nothing’s the way it used to be. Wilson and company put a samba spin on “Gone With the Wind;” the husky alto interlaced with Moran’s urgent phrasing and harmonic deviations and Sewell’s twists and turns give “Caravan” one its most effective and dynamic treatments in memory. Broadway (and another Wilson) has never been so tropical or alluring as on “Til There Was You;” “St. James Infirmary” bursts with a sinister undercoating of percussion and another explosive solo from Moran; “Sleepin’ Bee” swings deeply but there’s nothing old fashioned about Wilson’s phrasing or the band’s comping. A sparse counterpoint with just Sewell on acoustic guitar polishes the facets of “Spring Can Really Hang You Up the Most,” a deceptively simple arrangement that stands out in a stand-out program. Similarly a knock-out is the voice/bass duet with Reginald Veal on “The Very Thought of You,” the timbre of Wilson’s deep tones in sultry sync with the thick-as-honey bass notes.  Loverly is on my short list for vocal recording of 2008.  

Patricia Barber, The Cole Porter Mix (Blue Note)

The Cole Porter Mix

The ten Cole Porter tunes and lyrics provide apt palettes for a vocal painter of Barber’s ingenuity and dark mood. Not often a swinger, she brings new life to these songs, not just through the rhythm of her phrasing but by varying the dynamics from one syllable to the next to redirect emphasis. “So Easy to Love” offers a sultry, smoky beginning that makes the Porter masterpiece sound like a new discovery. Alger’s guitar adds a tropical layer as does the minimalist piano solo. Alger continues the bossa feel on “I Get a Kick Out of You”, but Barber is tartly sardonic rather than sultry, a bit of blues, a bit of swamp, and the first encounter with tenorist Chris Potter, whose solo echoes the singer’s mood. Barber has been singing “You’re the Top” on recent tour, taking serious (and hilarious) liberties with the lyrics (“You’re a Love Supreme, the American dream, a Democrat”) -– you have to believe Cole Porter would thoroughly approve. It’s easy to forget that Patricia Barber is an accomplished pianist, her exquisite lines here mocking the sarcasm of her words. 

Patricia Barber©Andrea Canter

To the “Porter Mix” Barber adds three original compositions:  Her lyrics for “I Wait for Late Afternoon and You” are miniature masterpieces of modern poetry, having much in common with Porter in their cleverly scathing honesty. Similarly, it is the lyrics of “Snow” that make you shudder—“Do you think of me like snow, cool slippery white”... “like jazz, hip and black as night?”   “The New Year Eve’s Song” is a sorrow-tinged ballad that brings back Chris Potter’s wily tenor with just enough brassiness to buoy the fragility of Barber’s voice. 

Reworking Cole Porter or generating her own pathos, Patricia Barber is indeed “hip and black as night.” 
 

Cassandra Wilson will appear at the Monterey Jazz Festival on September 19; visit www.cassandrawilson.com. Patricia Barber and her quartet celebrate the release of The Cole Porter Mix at the Ravinia Festival in Chicago (September 7) and in New York at Jazz Standard, September 18-21; visit www.patriciabarber.com 
 

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