San Jose Mercury: Bandleader's inspiration, times nine

[Bud]

Source: http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercuryn ... 687221.htm

Bandleader's inspiration, times nine

AFTER YEAR ABROAD, WILSON PICKS UP WHERE HE LEFT OFF

By Andrew Gilbert

Special to the Mercury News

There are many ways for a musician to disappear, but Anthony Wilson has discovered one of the more conspicuous for dropping out of circulation as a bandleader.

Over the past year, the superb jazz guitarist and composer has been traveling around the world with Diana Krall on her ``Girl in the Other Room'' tour, performing in concert halls and theaters before thousands of people.

He loves the job. Not only does he get to play with superlative bassist Bob Hurst and dynamic young drummer Karriem Riggins, but also Wilson has helped smooth Krall's transition from a crooner of standards and blues to an interpreter of psychologically complex material by contemporary songwriters such as Tom Waits, Joni Mitchell and her husband, Elvis Costello.

Because of the tour, Wilson's celebrated nine-piece band has mostly been on hiatus. Now the band comes back together to perform several Northern California shows next week, including dates Wednesday in Oakland and Thursday in Santa Cruz.

``Being away for a year is a little crazy,'' says Wilson, 37, by phone from New Zealand. ``It almost gets to feel like I left everything behind, including the momentum of my bands, but it's not true. People are still aware of what I'm doing and what I've done. The gig with Diana is definitely leading to more activity with my own groups. There's been more interest as far as gigs and records.''

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[jazzanddianafan]

I had the pleasure of seeing Anthony and his nonet just last night at my local club (Steamers) here in town. As anyone can tell by listening to Diana's music, Anthony is extremely talented and has put together an outstanding group. Thier first set last night was about 2 hours long !.... if you ever get the chance, don't hesitate to go see them live !!