Photos/Writer: Rudy Lu
This concert was greatly anticipated. A dual vibraphonist Quartet under the joint leadership of Warren Wolf and Joe Locke performed at A Place For Jazz (APFJ) @ SUNY Schenectady. Drummer Eric Kennedy and bassist Blake Meister were the rhythm section.
Both Wolf and Locke have played at APFJ before, both have appeared at other venues in the 518 in the past. This was their first appearance together. They had appeared together with 2 other world class vibraphonists in Detroit, 2 weeks before.
The audience got their performance on vibes plus more. The opening tune was the bebop classic “Hot House”. They quickly transitioned into “Up Jump Spring” another classic from that era. Wolf surprised the audience by jumping to the piano, playing with great style to a waltz rhythm. A more laid Carla Bley tune “Lawns” followed. Locke performed solo on Billy Strayhorn’s “Lush Life”, speaking reverentially about Duke Ellington who was Strayhorn’s benefactor and how he protected him from the bigotry and homophobia of the time. Blake Meister’s bass was the featured solo on Cedar Walton’s “Firm Roots”. The spotlight was on Eric Kennedy for his surprise vocal on “Skylark”. Joe Locke mentioned post concert that he had never heard Eric sing before. After all, are there many singing drummers, other than the late Levon Helm?
Herbie Hancock’s “Maiden Voyage” was performed by Locke and Wolf each taking turns on vibes and piano through the piece, with “So What” quoted. This was followed by more musical chairs with a medley of Strayhorn’s “Chelsea Bridge and Coltrane’s “Naima”. This time Meister played the piano and Wolf played the bass. Even though all of that sounds gimmicky it wasn’t. It was a quartet of musicians exploring and listening to each other and having fun.
Milt Jackson’s “Bags Groove” was played sort of straight, but with the feeling of fun not the reverence this piece is usually played in. The big encore was Chick Corea’s “Bud Powell”. They did this Powell justice with a high spirit interpretation.
What also made this evening special was the Jazz Journalists Association Jazz Hero award given to percussionist/jazz historian Hal Miller given by Susan Brink.
The next concert in the series is on October 4 featuring the all star, all female quintet Artemis at 7:30. Fans of modern straight ahead/abstract jazz should plan to attend. For more information go to the website https://aplaceforjazz.org/.
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