By Nick Catalano
If you can manage only one music stop on your March visit to Gotham get to the Algonquin to catch Dave Frishberg. For the first time in almost ten years Portland Oregon's E.E. Cummings of jazz is in town for an extended stay and his performance is sensational. For decades Frishberg has been curtly referenced as a cult figure known mainly for classics like "My Attorney Bernie," "Van Lingle Mungo," "Peel Me a Grape," "Blizzard of Lies" and "You Are There." Often he has been dutifully praised for his hip lyrics and unique pianism. But, after four Grammy nominations, over 125 compositions and recordings of his tunes by top vocalists (Mel Torme, Diana Krall, Michael Feinstein, John Pizzarelli, Rosemary Clooney, Bette Midler) it is time for protracted inquiry into Frishberg's aesthetic.
These days when he performs his songs the hilarity, the hipness and the lyrical poignancy can actually shade into the background under the power of his revolutionary phrasing and astonishing piano accompaniment. At the Algonquin I found myself chuckling at the thought of someone trying to notate his weird modulations, stop time glissandos and bold style shifts. His comping can contain a stride quote, a bebop syncopation and a Baroque trill all within a two bar phrase. The singularity of his performance makes us realize that all the aforementioned jazz talent in the world could not possibly capture the total experience of one of his tunes. Only Frishberg singing and playing can give you that. It is as if he has turned the long-standing tradition of a composer performing his own work into an entirely new musical form. The form has evolved from a sonnet into an epic poem because in one set Frishberg runs the gamut of emotions from buffo laughter to lachrymose reverie.
What is special about the Algonquin gig is the genesis of experiments and new forms. A sort of mini-musical play evolved a while back in Milwaukee when Frishberg launched "Quality Time." A three-character affair, the work includes compositions such as "You Would Rather Have the Blues," "My Swan Song," and the side-splitting title tune. Another extended work "Catbird Seat" is a retrospective of the infamous 1919 World Series. Frishberg's summary of the photo and descriptions of the characters hold the audience interest enabling them to peer deeply into his peerless creative process.
The set ended with the prescient "I want to be a Sideman," a new song written with Johnny Mandel dubbed "Little Did I Dream" and the "standard" "Blizzard of Lies." The encore included "The Hopi Way" a weird but compelling work in progress.
Dave Frishberg will be at the Algonquin through March 10th.
