by mapache61 on 08 Jun 2005, 03:25
I’m fairly certain this post is going to set the forum record for longest review of a short Diana concert. And I realize not everyone may be interested in reading about all the other performers. If you’re not, you’ll find the DK stuff about ¾ of the way down the page.
When this UCLA appearance first appeared on the list of tour dates, accompanied by a phone number and a note about very limited seating, I assumed it was to going be a benefit concert. I never called, figuring tickets would be way out of my price range. Fast forward to last week. My girlfriend Joni works at the jazz radio station here in Southern California (KKJZ-FM) and she came home one night with great news: “Guess what? We’re promoting this concert at UCLA on Sunday.”
On Friday morning I left on a weekend business trip to Santa Barbara, and as we headed north on the 405 freeway, Joni was making frantic last minute phone calls to arrange for tickets. Finally, the word came down: “We’re seeing Diana Sunday night!!!” Let me tell you, it was a good thing we were sitting in Friday morning traffic, because if we’d been on the open road, I would’ve driven right off it. Needless to say, we were excited beyond belief as we spent a wonderful weekend in Santa Barbara.
The tickets included invitations to the post-concert dessert reception, as well as the pre-show dinner. So it was at 5pm sharp that we made our way into one of UCLA’s faculty buildings for the festivities. The event was held to celebrate the 75th birthday of David Abell (more on him later) and benefit Friends of Jazz at UCLA. On our way into the dining room we filed past a table filled with various jazz items being sold to benefit the program. One of the items was a gorgeous black and white photo of DK in concert. No price tag, but judging from some of the other photos available, I’m guessing somewhere in the $100-$150 range. Every guest received a complimentary compilation CD featuring most of the evening’s performers. But sadly, Diana isn’t on the disc.
The dining room looked like something out of a movie – white linen table cloths, fancy floral center-pieces, a jazz trio playing on a small stage, wealthy donors dressed to the nines…a definite Hollywood vibe. The invitation hinted that the artists would be mingling at the pre-and-post-concert affairs. So I immediately began scanning the room for Diana. I’d even brought along a pen and the CD-insert from The Look of Love just in case an autograph opportunity presented itself.
We took our seats at Table #1 with some of Joni’s fellow KKJZ cohorts. The wine flowed freely and a great time was had by all. After dinner we were handed our tickets and I did a double-take when I saw our seat location: Orchestra, Center, Row B. It was too good to be true. Had to be a mistake. SECOND ROW, CENTER!!! It was at this point that Joni and I began quietly flipping out. Soon everyone made their way across the street to tiny Schoenberg Hall. The venue holds about 550 people and walking in I felt like I’d been transported back to my old high school auditorium. We spotted Jackson Browne as we headed down front in search of our seats. To my absolute horror, someone was already sitting in them.
I said something like, “Uh, excuse me, you’re in our seats…” And at that moment, Joni realized who this seat-stealer was. “Aren’t you Shelly Berg, the pianist?” she asked. He was. “I’m a big fan. I play your CDs all the time.” Pleasantries were exchanged and when the conversation returned to the seat situation, Shelly said he’d been told to sit anywhere in the first three rows. “I don’t think anyone’s sitting in these seats,” he said, motioning to the front row. That was all we needed to hear. We promptly sat down in the best seats in the house. Un-F-ing-believable!
The evening’s emcee was Tommy Hawkins, the former Laker who played with the great teams of the 1960’s. At dinner we’d been given a nice concert program, which included features on all the evening’s performers, but Joni took it to work with her, so I’m relying on my memory here for players’ names, spelling, etc. First up were the Kenny Burrell All-Stars. Kenny, a legendary axe-man and “Duke Ellington’s favorite guitarist,” got the evening off to a sweet start with his three song set. For me the highlight was Ellington’s “Transbluesency” – Kenny’s fingers flying across the fret board, his horn section blowing the crowd away with their solos, and the drummer (his name escapes me) complimenting Kenny’s subtle licks with some nice fills.
Next up was classical pianist Jeffrey Kahane. Two nicely performed pieces from him were followed by an energetic set from Steve Tyrell. I’m not familiar with Steve, but his voice is good and his set was fun, despite my first impulse to write him off as a lounge-lizard act.
At intermission I talked briefly with Kenny Burrell, who was now sitting two seats over from us. I complimented him on his set and his incredible band and told him I was looking forward to seeing him perform at the Playboy Jazz Festival next weekend. A gracious and genuinely nice man.
The second act began and I think it’s safe to say everyone in the room was blown away by the up-and-coming phenomenon that is Gerald Clayton (son of John). Wow! This kid can play piano. Even Diana herself would go on to praise him during her set. Gerald isn’t a vocalist, but his heartfelt playing speaks volumes. His young sidemen were no slouches either: Dan Lutz on bass and Kevin Kanner on drums. Wild applause followed his second tune, which he introduced as one of his own (title: “Sunny Day, Go”), but it was his final number that brought everyone to their feet. After the show, the buzz was definitely about Gerald.
Next up was Mike Melvoin, the pianist from Burrell’s band. Also excellent, but the show was running really late by now and I must admit I was beginning to feel like I would jump right out of my skin if DK didn’t hit the stage soon. After an amusing intro, birthday-boy David Abell came out to thank the donors and performers. According to the program David has been a HUGE supporter of the SoCal jazz scene (and the program at UCLA) for years. For decades he owned a music store on Beverly Boulevard here in L.A. and was known as the “piano dealer to the stars.” He sold pianos to Sinatra, Stevie Wonder, Quincy Jones and everyone in between. I’m guessing Diana was a customer as well. I’m slightly embarrassed to say I’d never heard of David. During his speech he thanked Jim Krall, Diana’s dad, and asked if he could please stand up, which he did.
Tommy Hawkins came out again and told a few stories to stall for time while Jeff Hamilton and his drum-tech set up Jeff’s kit. The time had come for the main event and I prayed DK’s set would go longer than three songs, which was the rumor. At 9:40pm, Diana, Jeff, Anthony and John Clayton strolled on stage, greeted by huge applause. Wearing jeans, a beige jacket and pale green scarf, Diana pulled up the piano bench and the band launched into “I Love Being Here With You.” As always, she looked great, and the view from the front row was fantastic. ILBHWY is always a terrific opener, and this smokin’ version was no different. Diana loves to play around with the lyrics on this one and of course tonight’s version featured the line, “I love a David Abell show.”
Diana paused before the next number to talk to the crowd a bit, observing that “The biggest thing in the room tonight is the love in here.” I know it may sound corny to say this, but you really could feel a good warm vibe in the house – the kind you get from being around people with a deep love of music and respect for each other. DK was definitely in awe of her fellow performers and commented, “I’m still thinking about Gerald Clayton…inspiring,” as she tickled the ivories a bit before playing “I Was Doing Alright,” the Gershwin tune made famous by Ella Fitzgerald. Diana—head tilted back, eyes closed—sang this one beautifully.
Next up was the highlight of the evening for me: “Little Girl Blue.” Everyone from Sinatra to Nina Simone to Janis Joplin has recorded this one, and now (hopefully on the next album) it’s Diana’s turn. The song began with an amazing intro from John Clayton, playing his stand-up bass with a bow. More wonderful vocals and piano from Diana here, plus plenty of solos from the band. At one point, Clayton took an extended solo, and was later joined by Jeff Hamilton. With John playing bass and Jeff playing cymbals with his hands (!), they climbed to a beautiful crescendo before Diana’s vocal came back to drive this number home. Impressive.
A swingin’ “Deed I Do” was next and I was sure it would be the last tune (it wasn’t), so I watched Diana closely. She clearly loves the musicians on stage with her and as she turned to watch Jeff play an out-of-this-world drum solo, or John do his thing, or Anthony work his magic, I could hear her yelling “Yeah!” and “Go!” to them off-mic. At first I thought the final song was some kind of suped-up version of “CRS Craft,” but it turned out to be an instrumental version of “Love Me Like a Man.” Diana and the band were in full crowd-pleasing-swing here and a big standing-o followed. As Diana and company soaked up the applause, she pointed to Kenny Burrell, and with a big smile and totally surprised look on her face, said, “Look! There’s Kenny Burrell in the front row!”
The set was a short but sweet 40-45 minutes. We left the hall on a major high and went to mingle at the dessert/coffee reception. Almost all of the performers were there and I was still hoping Diana would drop by to meet and greet. But after an hour, the crowd was thinning out and DK was noticeably absent. Who knows, she may have stopped by later. But we didn’t stick around. It had been a long day—one that started in Santa Barbara at 7am that morning—and Joni had to be up for work at 4am, so we split.
Thanks to Shelly Berg for trading seats, and an extra special thanks to those who pulled the necessary strings so we could attend this “Evening of Great Music.” The event lived up to its billing…and then some.
Cheers, Eli (mapache61)