RUSSELL MALONE QUARTET, Rose Wagner Center, Feb. 14; one performance only.
Thursday night marked the second performance this week by Russell Malone, and wow — what a difference between the two nights! Thursday's was everything last Sunday's was not — energetic, interesting and consisting of a great mix of charts on the playlist.
To be fair, Sunday's mix of performers was also a little different. On Sunday, flutist/sax player Frank Wess and trumpeter Jimmy Owens shared the spotlight with Malone and his three sidemen, whereas Thursday's concert featured only Malone and his group.
Malone's performances were a part of the Cultural Olympiad. Billy Taylor was originally scheduled but canceled due to health problems. At first, it looked as if Malone would be a disappointing substitute, but after Thursday it was easy to see not only why Malone was chosen, but also why he is considered one of the best jazz guitarists around.
The evening began with a laid-back "East of the Sun, West of the Moon," followed by Charlie Parker's up-tempo "Passport." Malone has an easy, self-assured confidence when he plays that understates his virtuosity. He easily rips through difficult passages with the same half-smile that he wears when he's pulling back to just drop a few notes "in the pocket."
Although Malone's name was on the ticket, he had the wisdom to share the spotlight with his pianist, Benny Green. Malone introduced Green as "one of the greatest piano players to ever sit down at the piano," and he was proved right.
Both Green and Malone have an incredible knowledge of jazz history, with just about every style and musical language at their fingertips, and with the technical prowess to be able to pull off pretty much anything that comes into their heads. Blues, bebop, Latin, you name it — it was all there, and it was all good.
One of the highlights of the evening was when Green and Malone had a "duel" in the middle of one of the charts. Not only did they come up with some great licks, but the clever, witty interchange was great for its own sake. Another highlight was a blues number, which began with an amazing solo by Malone.
Malone also turned over the spotlight to bass player Bob Cranshaw a couple of times. Cranshaw, the bass player for "Sesame Street" for 33 years, has a remarkable musical touch to his improvised lines. He uses his amazing ability and agility on the bass, not to pull flashy pyrotechnics out of the air, but to craft well-structured, musically coherent lines.
In fact, Malone chose Billy Taylor's composition "Secret" to spotlight Cranshaw — a chart that was also played last Sunday. Again, it's hardly fair to make a comparison between the two performances — "Secret" was so much more interesting and vibrant the second time around.
Another fun touch to the evening was a piano/guitar duet of "Sing a Song" (yes, that hit made popular by the Carpenters), which cleverly included a quote from "The Candy Man" amongst the improvisation.
The evening certainly gave concertgoers their money's worth, with a performance that lasted nearly three hours.
E-MAIL: rcline@desnews.com
