MORE INSPIRED ABANDON! (Luigi Leaps In!)

DAN BARRETT’S NEW YORK CITY TOUR (Part Two)

In my previous posting about Dan Barrett’s October 15, 2009, gig with Ehud Asherie, I concentrated on the lovely hot sounds this duo made.  Late in the hour-long session they were joined by one of Ehud’s friends, altoist Luigi Grasso — a genuine marvel, as you’ll hear for yourself. Luigi is 23 — yes, only 23 — and he hails from Arianoirpino, Italy.  And he plays like a dream — serious allegiance to early Charlie Parker, but Luigi has his own energy and passion, rather than simply being a fledgling.  Ehud and Dan had played splendidly as a duo, but when Luigi showed up he became (without any particular motive of his own, I would guess) the kind of catalyst that my high school chemistry class never encountered.  Luigi balances sweetness and muscle, and he is an intuitive player — so the potentially unusual blend of trombone, alto, and piano, never seems ungainly.  Thanks, of course, to Dan and Ehud — two sublime players who know what it is to blend, to vary, to support.

This little session began with PLEASE DON’T TALK ABOUT ME WHEN I’M GONE:

That cheerful jogging music led to a real surprise: the moody SOME OTHER SPRING, always associated with Billie Holiday, and an emotional highlight of this or any other jazz evening:

Where to go from that peak?  A familiar romp, on WHEN I GROW TOO OLD TO DREAM:

And, finally, what used to be commonplace but is almost a rarity — a medium-tempo themeless blues, suggesting Kansas City or perhaps Wichita in 1940, more or less:

Faithful readers will notice that I’ve commented less than usual on this music: all I want to write is WOW!