Au Courant indeed! Here's Charlie Byrd playing W.C. Handy, Rodgers and Hart, Jobim, Johnny Mercer, and, for goodness' sake, Henry Mancini with nothing but an acoustic guitar, his brother Joe's upright bass, and Chuck Redd's vibraphone! Does it work? Does it work! These are highly familiar songs played in a quiet, intimate setting that illustrates with peculiar and intoxicating vividness why these guys' songs have lasted this long. The no-voltage setting turns one's attention to the melodies, revealing aspects of them that may have been obscured before by the pizzazz of the presentation: "St. Louis Blues"'s tango feel, for one. We also have Rodgers and Hart's "This Can't Be Love" played with Doc Watsonian finger-picking fervor. We have "On a Clear Day (You Can See Forever)" light and danceable. "There'll Be Some Changes Made" bouncy and ragtimy.
Charlie Byrd will be 73 in 1998, and he's pretty set in his ways. The same criticisms that have been leveled against some of his earlier albums can be set against Au Courant as well: no adventure, no chances, no unexpected choices of material, no lack of high-gloss in the production. All that may be true, but Au Courant is particularly valuable for the stripped-down presentations-it's fresh, enlightening, and entertaining.
Other tracks include Jobim's "If You Never Came to Me," R & H's "I Didn't Know What Time It Was," "Blue Room," "Have You Met Miss Jones?" and "There's a Small Hotel," "Emily" by Mercer, "Days of Wine and Roses" by Mancini, and "Avalon" and "Willow Weep for Me." With but minor changes this could have been recorded in 1967 instead of 1997, but only on a nice day.
Track Listing
This Can't Be Love; My Romance; St. Louis Blues; On A Clear Day (You Can See Forever); There'll Be Some Changes Made; If You Never Came To Me; I Didn't Know What Time It Was; Avalon; Emily; There's A Small Hotel; Blue Room; Have You Met Miss Jones?; Willow Weep For Me; Days of Wine and Roses.
All About Jazz has been a pillar of jazz since 1995, championing it as an art form and, more importantly, supporting the musicians who create 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.
You Can Help
To expand our coverage even further and develop new means to foster jazz discovery and connectivity we need your help. You can become a sustaining member for a modest $20 and in return, we'll immediately hide those pesky ads plus provide access to future articles for a full year. This winning combination will vastly improve 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.
We sent a confirmation message to . Look for it, then click the link to activate your account. If you don’t see the email in your inbox, check your spam, bulk or promotions folder.