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How many octogenarians are there who can
still be at the top of their game, especially in jazz. Marian
McPartland-the grand dame of jazz piano-is part of that very
elite group. Those familiar with her work knows her as host of
her NPR show in which she interviews and performs with jazz musicians
in the studio. So to some casual listeners and even purist jazz
cats probably wondered why pop band Steely Dan appeared on the
program a few years ago. It's not that unusual since Steely Dan's
music have always touched on jazz-especially on the popular Aja
album- and their use of accomplished players such as Wayne Shorter,
Larry Carlton, Lee Ritenour, and Steve Gadd. On the program now
captured on this CD the duo of Donald Fagen and Walter Becker
entertained the affable McPartland with three Dan songs ("Josie,"
"Chain Lightning," and the swinging "Black Friday")
and renditions of Ellington's "Mood Indigo" (their
Ellington connection dates back to their cover of "East
St. Louis Toodle-oo" on 1974's Pretzel Logic) and
W.C. Handy's "Hesitation Blues." It's quite a turnaround
from those Elliott Randall and Jeff 'Skunk' Baxter guitar solo
days. As part of the old vanguard of traditional jazz, McPartland
treats her guests with a genuine respect and informed appreciation,
not like if Sinatra was interviewing the Beatles; Fagen's and
Becker's comments are quite illuminating and a little sardonic.
In this intimate setting can one hear good conversation about
the craft of jazz music.
The aforementioned CD shows McPartland
has not lost any of her mental faculties and definitely not her
musical ones. This was more evident at her 85th birthday celebration
at New York's Birdland, now documented on this 2-CD set. A cavalcade
of jazz luminaries past and present-Bill Charlap, Jason Moran,
Ravi Coltrane, Phil Woods, Regina Carter, Karrin Allyson, and
many others- pay tribute to McPartland on a couple of familiar
jazz standards "All Blues, "Lester Leaps In" "Old
Friend," and "Summertime." One of the highlights
has to be the lovely duet between the pianist and Norah Jones
on "The Nearness of You." The performances are classy
as the birthday girl herself who performed behind the keys nearly
all of the tunes in the repertoire; her dazzling and impressionistic
playing still sparkles.
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