|
.
|
| Column: Concert/Festival Review |
Toni Ballard @ Ryles
July 11, 2002
By Matthew S. Robinson
Backed by the sizzle of Bob Kaufman's drums and John Arcaro's springy keys,
Toni Ballard started her pre-birthday set with a gently swinging "You Make
Me Feel So Young." Inviting recent Berklee graduate Christine Fawson to side
her on trumpet, Ballard slipped into the Mercer/Arlen chestnut "Come Rain or
Come Shine." Though some of Ballard's vocal nuance was lost in the mics, the
groove was there. Ballard's effort to personalize the phrasing of an uptempo
"I Remember You" took it a bit off time, but the hesitations and
accelerations added body and emotion. Hoagy Carmichael's "The Nearness of
You" took the tempo down with Todd Baker's sliding bass and Ballard's
rocketing vocals. Fawson then took the mike for an impressively powerful
(and authentic) run through "Avalon" complete with scat solos. After a sweep
through Rogers and Hart's "Lover," the band clicked into the forthcoming
Anita O'Day tribute with a whispery "Early Autumn." "Old Black Magic" had to be explained to the band, but once it clicked in, it brought the set to an
end on a well-coordinated and solo-splashed up note.
|
|