Catherine Russell
Allen Room, Jazz at Lincoln Center – March 30 & 31
Catherine Russell’s well-publicized Allen Room appearance generated a real sense of occasion—the feeling that here was a singing artist in full musical bloom. The show featured many cuts from the singer’s recently released CD, Strictly Romancin’. But the set was also a tribute to “two Louies”: Russell’s father, the jazz pianist and bandleader Luis Russell, and the star musician with whom he was closely associated, Louis Armstrong.
With her confident, clarion voice, Russell is especially suited to early jazz numbers—songs from the 1920s, 1930s, and early 1940s. At the Allen Room, she performed several such classic songs, with gusto and grace. The effect was a bit like listening to your grandparents’ old 78rpm records, minus all the fuzz and pops. The robust yet elegant 10-piece band that accompanied her (led by music director Matt Munisteri) added to the excitement. “I love New York,” Russell said at one point. Then she gestured toward her musicians and added: “Ten reasons why I love New York.”
The quality of her voice is extremely listenable. It is alto-ish, but there are some ringing overtones at play, which help create her peculiarly warm, bell-like timbre. On the up-tempo numbers, her vocals seemed to give her musicians just the right inspiration for some gorgeous playing. And Russell threw her entire body into the effort. On Spencer Williams and Jack Palmer’s “Everybody Loves My Baby” (But My Baby Don’t Love Nobody But Me),” for instance, she flung her arms out, snapped her fingers, slapped a knee, and bounced up and down like an excited child watching a cantering pony. At one point she threw her head back and laughed a silent laugh. All the while, the orchestra bubbled around her agreeably.
She was just as effective singing in a less frantic mood. For example, her “I’m in the Mood for Love” (Jimmy McHugh, Dorothy Fields) drifted along lazily: a boat on a placid summer lake. There was a torchy throb evident in the Johnny Green and Edward Heyman ballad “I Cover the Waterfront.” And on Toots Camarata and Bob Russell’s “No More”—a song closely associated with Billie Holiday—her voice was a steady white-hot flame as it sang an unfond (yet cathartic) farewell to a good-for-nothing lover.
Seldom did Russell embellish the musical line on the vintage jazz numbers—not even on second or third choruses. She put her stamp on a song through emotive skills rather than scat singing or melodic ornamentation. But Russell noted that she likes to “mix things up” a bit. And that she did, with some earthily sung blues numbers. On these selections, she allowed herself to improvise considerably more than on the jazz turns. Most notable was “Back O’ Town Blues” (Luis Russell, Louis Armstrong), which was enhanced by a scorching saxophone solo from Dan Block that featured one impossibly sustained note. There were enjoyable solo turns by all of the musicians, but Block was a standout on several occasions. Also wonderful was Scott Robinson, whose baritone sax work was an essential ingredient in the tasty Dixieland-flavored stew that was “Sugar Foot Strut” (Billy Pierce, Henry Myers, Charles M. Schwab).
Russell invited the audience to communicate openly with her, and this provoked a few friendly-but-intrusive shouted comments that I, for one, could have lived without. Her between-song banter included some personal anecdotes concerning the Louis Armstrong/ Luis Russell collaboration. These provided interesting context for the material. But mostly, and smartly, Russell concentrated on the music itself.
I’m not sure when New York will get its next feel-good dose of Catherine Russell, but I’ll certainly be lining up for a booster shot the next time I hear she’s coming to town. I imagine there will be quite the queue.
About the Author
Mark Dundas Wood is an arts/entertainment journalist and dramaturg. He began writing reviews for BistroAwards.com in 2011. More recently he has contributed "Cabaret Setlist" articles about cabaret repertoire. Other reviews and articles have appeared in theaterscene.net and clydefitchreport.com, as well as in American Theatre and Back Stage. As a dramaturg, he has worked with New Professional Theatre and the New York Musical Theatre Festival. He is currently literary manager for Broad Horizons Theatre Company.