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The Nash Second Anniversary in Phoenix
The Nash/Private Home
Phoenix/Scottsdale, Arizona
October 31, November 1-2, 2014
There's something about the way
Lewis Nash
drumsb.1958
Jimmy Heath
saxophone, tenor1926 - 2020
Barry Harris
piano1929 - 2021
The legendary beboppers were brilliant stars of the second anniversary for The Nash, a jazz performance and educational facility in Phoenix, operated by Jazz in Arizona and named for the Phoenix-born drummer. Two totally improvised sets featured the duo with Nash and bassist
Peter Washington
bassb.1964
The longtime New York musicians performed with the Washington-Lewis duo, Harris first in a trio setting for "Woody 'n' You," written in 1943 by trumpeter
Dizzy Gillespie
trumpet1917 - 1993
Woody Herman
band / ensemble / orchestra1913 - 1987
Then Harris turned toward the audience to ask, "What should we play next?" Someone called out the numbers 6-7-3-55, causing the pianist to laugh, because it was a reference to the previous night's concert when Harris had requested five numerals from the audience, then improvised a chart from those notes on the keyboard. This night, he declared, "Only one chorus this time" and played just that before launching "It Could Happen to You." That melody segued into "Prelude to a Kiss," then "I'll Keep Loving You," written by Harris' early idol,
Bud Powell
piano1924 - 1966
Saxophonist Heath then joined the trio and performed his original, "Winter Sleeves," calling it his sequel to "Autumn Leaves." Heath demonstrated a rich tenor tone and amazing dexterity, Nash offering a bare-hands solo segment. Heath said he met Nash in 1982, a year after the then-21-year-old Arizona drummer moved to New York City to work for vocalist
Betty Carter
vocals1929 - 1998
Heath switched to straight soprano sax to deliver fluid lyricism on a waltz-tempo rendition of
Billy Strayhorn
piano1915 - 1967
Louis Jordan
saxophone, alto1908 - 1975
Blue Mitchell
trumpet1930 - 1979
The night's second concert for a new audience again started with the piano trio, Harris delivering an agile improvisation of "This Nearly Was Mine," sparked by his trading-fours segment with Nash. Heath then joined to inject angular tenor progressions on "All the Things You Are." He moved into the 1950s
Mal Waldron
piano1925 - 2002
Taking up the soprano again, Heath crooned "'Round Midnight" while responding to Harris' intriguing tempo changes. "Freedom Jazz Dance" was an upbeat treat as both veterans engaged in bebop riffs, Nash adding his entertaining vocal scat form that induced a roomful of smiling faces. Nash followed that with an exciting and often bombastic solo. Then it was time for a closing selection, Strayhorn's "Take the A Train" that had the veterans shifting into angular minor moves that the pair filled with melodic quotes.
The previous night, Harris performed in a trio setting with Nash and Washington for a cocktail party in the palatial Scottsdale home of Don and Yvonne Bland. This was when the pianist introduced his "number song" (the aforementioned 6-7-3-55 sequence) that he turned into a sing-along. Harris then threw a bit of a curve to his colleagues by introing his original ballad, "Sometimes Today Seems Like Yesterday." Even without charts to guide them, Washington and Nash both soon joined in to support this unknown melody. Staying in a similar mode, Harris' elegant keyboard style was further defined via a waltz-tempo foray into "Prelude to a Kiss," his quote interjections frequently saluting
Thelonious Monk
piano1917 - 1982
"All God's Chillun Got Rhythm" from 1937 was performed in super-fast tempo, Harris creating cascades of notes and bold chords that refuted his age. Featured on "All the Things You Are" was a guest performer, 14-year-old alto player Alex Yuwen, whose tone and fully developed solo were remarkable for his age. The final selection was another Harris original, "Nascimento," during which Nash added a bare-hands sequence, Harris standing up to lead the audience singing "la-la-la" and hand-clapping for a joyous end to the evening.
Longtime Canadian tenor saxophonist
Cory Weeds
saxophone, altob.1973
Jackie McLean
saxophone, alto1932 - 2006
Hank Mobley
saxophone, tenor1930 - 1986
Weeds told the audience that he would be playing only alto sax due to his "traveling" tenor sax being damaged and in for repair. Because Canadian border travel restrictions might have required him to send a more valuable tenor horn via baggage, he only brought his alto, adding that he also was preparing for an upcoming alto-sax recording session, so all sidemen were eyeing charts. (Later, some listeners said they were surprised to see Weeds reading from his own charts all night, rather than improvising within his own repertoire.)
Last year, Weeds recorded With Benefits (Cellar Live, 2013) with Washington, Nash and Canadian guitarist
Bill Coon
guitar, electric
Michael Kocour
pianob.1963
Jeff Libman
guitarThroughout, Weeds' alto style was less
Charlie Parker
saxophone, alto1920 - 1955
Art Pepper
saxophone, alto1925 - 1982
Gary Foster
woodwindsb.1936
Jim Snidero
saxophone, altob.1958
A separate concert was staged concurrently with the house-party event. It featured an Arizona-based quartet led by vocalist
Khani Cole
vocalsb.1966
Tags
Lewis Nash
Live Reviews
Patricia Myers
United States
Arizona
Phoenix
Jimmy Heath
Barry Harris
Peter Washington
Dizzy Gillespie
Woody Herman
Bud Powell
Betty Carter
Billy Strayhorn
Louis Jordan
Blue Mitchell
Mal Waldron
Thelonious Monk
Cory Weeds
Jackie McLean
Hank Mobley
Bill Coon
Michael Kocour
Jeff Libman
Charlie Parker
Art Pepper
Gary Foster
Jim Snidero
Khani Cole
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