Pianist
Terry Waldo
has been an important figure on the metro Columbus, OH jazz scene since the burgeoning collegiate city sprawled out into the suburbs to nearly a million citizens. His brand of vintage jazz has retained an older audience, while turning on willing younger listeners of his baby boomer age group to the swinging music that started it all. This performance at the Columbus based-
Ohio Theater
in 1974 was to have included
Eubie Blake
, who fell ill and did not appear, but veteran vocalist
Edith Wilson
was on hand to accompany
Waldo
's
Gutbucket Syncopators
, a band with musicians hailing from across the U.S. Their repertoire is all standard fare, from ragtime, New Orleans, and Dixieland jazz to stride piano, or out-and-out swing, the CD featuring nine bonus tracks added to the initial vinyl LP issue. The marvelous band includes the effervescent
Frank Powers
on saxes and clarinet, trumpeter
Roy Tate
, trombonist
Jim Snyder
, banjo player
Bill Moorhead
, tuba player
Mike Walbridge
, and the irrepressible drummer
Wayne Jones
.
Wilson
is delightful, and though a bit worn vocally, is still very enjoyable. Of her seven features, she's most convincing in a lower range during the cuddle and coo of
"I'm a Great Big Baby,"
the over-being-bored, old folks' blues
"To Keep from Twiddling Their Thumbs,"
the signature
Bessie Smith
evergreen
"Black & Blue,"
and what she introduces as "something on the lighter side," but actually is an upbeat
"St. Louis Blues."
's handful of solo piano pieces in lieu of
Blake
's absence are as pleasing as
's numbers, including a quick, utterly precise read of
"Maple Leaf Rag,"
the two-fisted
"Pastime Rag #1,"
a super slow, campy
"12th Street Rag,"
and comedic stride with the pianist singing for
"How Could Red Riding Hood?"
As the group collectively wends its way through tunes like the easy swinging
"Some of These Days,"
the hot
"I Would Do Anything for You"
with
Jones
singing,
"At The Jazz Band Ball,"
a great version of
"The Mooche"
and the all-out jam
"The Letter,"
you realize how cohesive the band is with assumedly little pre-rehearsal, and how much fun they have playing together. An appearance by then-U.S. Attorney General
William B. Saxbe
might seem a gracious cameo for a fan, when in fact
Saxbe
sings quite well, soulfully rendering the self-deprecating
"Ace in the Hole."
With plenty of diverse sounds to tap on within traditional jazz, and the concert being well preserved as transferred to digital format,
hits homer after homer, rounding the bases many times over with this excellent program of music that anyone old soul can appreciate and enjoy. ~ Michael G. Nastos