Swingin’ in the Lounge, part 1

I’m still sick. The weather is doing something that is the combination of the worst parts of spring and winter thrown together – snow and ice and mud and endless grey. It might be good weather in which to drink myself into a stupor, if it weren’t for some lovely music I received by mail last week. The first arrival was a copy of Lyle Lovett’s 1992 album, Joshua Judges Ruth. I had downloaded a couple of the songs individually (“I’ve been to Memphis” and “She’s Already Made Up Her Mind”), but hadn’t ever heard the whole album until Cranky sent me a copy. A definite oversight on my part and I’m glad to have it corrected. This is a coherent album, one of those rare assemblages of tunes that is even more than the sum of its parts. I’m not sure why it took me so long to come around to Lyle Lovett’s charms — he has that nice jazz-folk mix that I love and his voice sounds straight from the heart. This album has some incredible toe-tappers and showcases Lovett’s stylistic flexibility.

Also arriving last week was a loungy jazz mix from Dr. Geek. I haven’t yet listened to the whole thing because none of my CD players, including the drive on my computer, seemed to like the CD for some reason. They all faded into static and kicked off into an endless whirring about halfway through. I’m not sure what the problem is. Perhaps the disk was a little too steeped in the balmier weather of his part of the world for my frozen Midwestern audio equipment to handle. But I thought I’d write about the tunes I’ve heard so far, because they’ve been lifting my mood immensely.

The mix, which Dr. Geek as titled “Swingin’ in the Lounge” (the disk is emblazoned with a black and white photo of the Rat Pack clustered around mikes in tuxedos) is a perfect one for the Spy household. We listen to a lot of jazz around here and we’ve been kind of stuck in a rut, albeit a nice rut, that includes mostly Miles Davis and Erroll Garner on the instrumental side and Mel Tormé, Kevin Mahogany, Freddie Cole, Nina Simone, Ella Fitzgerald and Abbey Lincoln on the vocal side. Dr. Geek’s given us some great new stuff.

1. Clifford Brown: “Stardust.” As I told Dr. Geek, Clifford Brown is one of those artists that I’ve been meaning to add to our collection, but I haven’t gotten around to it. I hear him a lot on the radio of my favorite local radio station, WDCB out of the College of Dupage in Glen Ellyn, Illinois (click the link if you want to learn more about their programming or listen online). Brown’s got a smoother, more elegant, less edgy style than early Miles. He was a brilliant trumpet player who died tragically young (just 25, in a car crash) in 1956, but managed to make some amazing records in his very short career. He’s perhaps best known for his work with drummer Max Roach. This is his rendition of the classic Hoagie Carmichael tune and it will make you melt.

2. Pink Martini: “The Gardens of Sampson and Beasley.” Like most songs by Pink Martini, the literate lounge orchestra founded by a couple of polyglot Harvard grads, this song cracks me up. Pink Martini projects a certain kind of earnestness of style and meticulously retro arrangements and performances, but with a twist. The twist in this one is hinted at in the title. It’s a classic romantic ballad (with a Latin beat in the piano comping and a lot of harp glissandi) about a tryst in a garden. But the garden, in this case, as referred to in the title, is Bella Madrona in Portland, Oregon owned by a gay couple, Jim Sampson and Geof Beasley. Not too many references to same sex relationships in fifties/sixties era lounge music, at least not that I know of. But the part I find the funniest is an instrumental break in the middle where the piano plays a gentle tune over harp riffs. Stylistically, this is totally appropriate; but the tune is “O My Darling, Clementine” and it’s not just a quick reference – they play an entire verse. This is part of what makes it funny, sort of like what makes jokes in Family Guy work – it goes on way longer than you would expect.

3. Harry Connick, Jr.: “My Blue Heaven.” I’m always a sucker for an arrangement that starts with a bongo solo. This song, another classic in a moody arrangement for strings, piano, sax and percussion, is a perfect fit with the previous tune. The arrangement is similarly backward looking, with a few harmonic twists that add some dissonance and a lack of resolution that suggest maybe all it not as perfect as the lyrics would suggest. This keeps it interesting, as does Connick’s voice. I haven’t listened to much Harry Connick Jr. since the Harry Met Sally soundtrack eons ago. I’m not sure why, because he has the kind of gravelly voice I like.

4. Clifford Brown & Max Roach: “Delilah.” More Clifford Brown, probably my favorite track he recorded. I believe this tune was drawn from music written by Victor Young for a Cecil B. DeMille film, Sampson and Delilah. I’ve been meaning to watch that film for years, but have still not gotten around to it. In any case, this recording begins with a bit of the atmosphere of Ellington’s Caravan, but takes it in a different direction. Listen to Brown’s incredible tone control, smooth and perfect. Harold Land’s no slouch on tenor sax, either.

5. Harry “Sweets” Edison: “Pussy Willow.” Another tune headed by a muted trumpet. I’m not very familiar with Edison, although I know he comes more out of the big band tradition, something you can hear in the style of the solo. This recording is, however, a small combo – trumpet, tenor, piano, bass, drums. I don’t know much about this tune either, but I’ve heard it before. I’m not sure who else has recorded it. The miking on this is interesting. The tenor sounds like he’s playing in the street outside the studio. It’s a neat effect.

6. Lyle Lovett: “The Blues Walk.” I’m used to thinking of Lovett as being all about the voice, but this is a lovely swing-style instrumental. This tune takes the big band style of the last tune into an actual large ensemble. You can hear the difference between older jazz recordings and newer ones so clearly here – this sounds so much more polished and contemporary and a lot of it has to do with recording technique. The electric guitar helps too. This has a nice boppy groove. I would never have guessed it to be Lyle Lovett.

7. Michael Bublé: “Moondance.” I know that jazz aficionados are not supposed to like Bublé – he’s kind of viewed as the jazz equivalent of a boy band, too much pop, not enough soul. But this guy can definitely sing. I’ve always loved this Van Morrison tune and it suits Bublé’s expert crooning to a T. Sure, the arrangement is a little clichéd, but that’s what we love about it.

Stay tuned for my thoughts on the rest of the disk — Dr. Geek says he’s sending me another copy so I can hear the rest of the songs.