Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Marian McPartland/Willie Pickens: Ain't Misbehavin': Liv...

123

Marian McPartland/Willie Pickens: Ain't Misbehavin': Live at the Jazz Showcase

By

View read count
Marian McPartland/Willie Pickens: Ain't Misbehavin': Live at the Jazz Showcase
One usually hears Marian McPartland working in tandem with another pianist on her long running NPR show. But here she matches up with venerable Chicago piano stylist Willie Pickens during a week long run at Joe Segal's Jazz Showcase in the Windy City in December of 2000. What a happy Christmas present for Chicago jazz fans. This album compiles the highlight from that endeavor. There's no fooling with original or unfamiliar material on this gig. These two sublime pianists do their unique thing with a program of standards giving each one an animated work over. Of the nine items on the agenda, each takes two solos with the rest duets. They are in top form, as if they are ever any other way. The back and forth exchange during the middle of "Ain't Misbehavin" is a joy to hear. It's not a cutting contest at all, which would be out of McPartland's British character. Instead it's a mutually respectful building upon an idea the other has thrown out. The duet creme de la creme is an unusual approach to "It Don't Mean a Thing (If It Ain't Got that Swing)", where McPartland offers a slow opening before Pickens joins for a slower than usual rendition of Ellington's classic tune.

As for the solos, Pickens' dance over the keys on a highly syncopated "It's only a Paper Moon". While his left hand sets down the bass line, his right simply whizzes up and down the melody side of the keyboard. It's hard to accept that there is just one person at the keyboard. In contrast is McPartland's flowing rhapsodic treatment of "Autumn Nocturne" where she puts her well-honed sensitivity to this music on full display. One can only listen in awe as these two consummate masters offer a minute's shy of an hour's worth of highly polished, relaxed jazz piano. Run, don't walk., to the nearest record emporium, real or virtual, for this one.

Track Listing

Ain't Misbehavin'; Along Came Betty; Close Your Eyes; It Don't Mean a Thing (If It Ain't Got That Swing); Spring Is Here; Night and Day; (It's only a ) Paper Moon; Autumn Nocturne; Just One of Those Things

Personnel

Marian McPartland/Willie Pickens - Piano

Album information

Title: Ain't Misbehavin': Live at the Jazz Showcase | Year Released: 2001 | Record Label: Concord Music Group

Tags

Comments


PREVIOUS / NEXT




Support All About Jazz

Get the Jazz Near You newsletter All About Jazz has been a pillar of jazz since 1995, championing it as an art form and, more importantly, supporting the musicians who make it. Our enduring commitment has made "AAJ" one of the most culturally important websites of its kind, read by hundreds of thousands of fans, musicians and industry figures every month.

Go Ad Free!

To maintain our platform while developing new means to foster jazz discovery and connectivity, we need your help. You can become a sustaining member for as little as $20 and in return, we'll immediately hide those pesky ads plus provide access to future articles for a full year. This winning combination vastly improves your AAJ experience and allow us to vigorously build on the pioneering work we first started in 1995. So enjoy an ad-free AAJ experience and help us remain a positive beacon for jazz by making a donation today.

More

Tramonto
John Taylor
Ki
Natsuki Tamura / Satoko Fujii
Duality Pt: 02
Dom Franks' Strayhorn
The Sound of Raspberry
Tatsuya Yoshida / Martín Escalante

Popular

Old Home/New Home
The Brian Martin Big Band
My Ideal
Sam Dillon
Ecliptic
Shifa شفاء - Rachel Musson, Pat Thomas, Mark Sanders
Lado B Brazilian Project 2
Catina DeLuna & Otmaro Ruíz

Get more of a good thing!

Our weekly newsletter highlights our top stories, our special offers, and upcoming jazz events near you.

Install All About Jazz

iOS Instructions:

To install this app, follow these steps:

All About Jazz would like to send you notifications

Notifications include timely alerts to content of interest, such as articles, reviews, new features, and more. These can be configured in Settings.