A Jazzy Night with Stanley Jordan at Blues Alley
About 15 years ago, a friend played me a recording of "Eleanor Rigby" done on guitar and I really enjoyed it. Then, he said, "That's one guy." Not possible, I thought. So the next time Stanley Jordan was in town, at Blues Alley, I had to go and see it with my own eyes. The amazing thing is, when you're watching him, live and in person, you still can't believe what you're seeing. The guy plays melody and bassline, and sometimes even harmony, with just his two hands. It's the craftiest guitar work you'll ever see. It'd been quite a while since I'd seen him last so I hit his Blues Alley show last night. I sat in the front row and still had trouble believing what I was seeing. His fingers just flew across the frets and sent me into a wonderful trance. He turned classical into jazzy, as he slipped "I Got You Babe" into a Mozart concerto. And, with wit and candor, he narrated an improvisational piece, saying how it sounded to him like roaches eating cheese.
Jordan has a new album coming out in April. His recently release 13 Suite Improvisations is wonderful Sunday morning music.
How does he do it?!!!!
posted by Dana @ 12:26 PM
2 Comments:
At 6:28 PM,
shiny said…
This may sound a tad presumptuous, but was that "one guy" 15 years ago... well, um... me? Just curious. :)
It's great that you've seen him multiple times! I still have yet to see him live -- and missed out on a great opportunity for a very informal show when I worked at Princeton.
I'm glad you've made it Blues Alley -- I think I still owe you a real night out to a jazz club...
-- S
At 8:25 PM,
Dana said…
Indeed it was, Mike. Thanks for finding my blog. Jordan's version of Eleanor Rigby blew me away and I had to see it with my own eyes. It's mind-boggling how he can play all those parts with just his two hands!
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