Music lovers enter the historic Hackensack-Meridian Health auditorium inside Red Bank, NJ’s Count Basie Center for the Arts this Wednesday, August 9, 2023 evening and admire its alluring chandelier surrounded by a painted sky and ornate walls. Taking their seats, their eyes are drawn to the red lights that illuminate the back curtain creating a rich tapestry behind a Steinway grand placed center stage. They also notice ten seashell floor lights and five overhead spotlights which shine through the onstage fog cutting a shaft of light focused on a piano bench and a single microphone.
Applause erupts as three musicians take their places on stage and cheers ensue as Canadian jazz pianist and singer Diana Krall — looking stunning in a sparkling black gown — enters and steps into the spotlight to ask the audience, “How are you doing?”
Taking a seat at the piano, Krall’s prominent left hand plays a moving bass line as her right hand tinkles the keys on “I Love Being Here With You.” Singing, “I love the East, I love the West/North and South, they’re both the best/But I only want go there as a guest/‘Cause I love being here with you,” her rich contralto voice serenades the audience making music lovers believe she truly loves being here with them.
Krall’s smoking hot trio — bassist Robert Hurst, and drummer Karriem Riggins, and guitarist Anthony Wilson — join in as Krall effortlessly solos.
Hurst is featured playing up and down the neck of his bass with speed and accuracy, and Riggins’ drum solo explodes with rolling dynamite. After changing the song’s lyrics to “I love the thrill of the Count Basie theatre and I love being here with you!” the crowd cheers for Krall, showing their admiration for her and her musical talent.
After Krall introduces the members of her ensemble, Hurst starts “All or Nothing at All,” plucking and walking on his bass, his long nimble fingers sliding and bending up and down his instrument’s neck. With her sultry voice, Krall emotes as she sings, “All or nothing at all/Half a love never appealed to me/If your heart never could yield to me/Then I’d rather have nothing at all.” Adding tinkling piano touches as she watches Wilson on guitar, Krall’s straight blonde hair falls around her face.
Krall makes her piano sing as the performance changes in mood and tempo to a funky jazz feel before the piece concludes to avid audience applause.
“Night and Day” starts off with a samba beat and Krall’s luscious breathy vocal as she croons with ease. An Anthony Wilson guitar solo brings enthusiastic applause before Krall and Co. launch into “This Can’t Be Love.” Soloing quickly as she plays arpeggios up and down the keyboard, the band is able to keep up with her — Wilson echoing elements of Krall’s piano solo on his guitar, Hurst’s fingers jumping high and low on his bass, and Riggins impressing with a tasteful drum solo.
The crowd cheers, and Krall responds, “Thank you! I’ve been looking forward to seeing you tonight.” Her sexy voice is front and center on “Abandoned Masquerade,” where Krall tells her story through smoky lights on this number which she composed with her husband, Elvis Costello. As the arrangement builds in intensity, Krall’s piano, Wilson’s guitar, and Hursts’ bass pave the way for Riggins’ drums which ricochet like shots on this performance which serves as a master class in musical dynamics. At the conclusion, concertgoers pause slightly before applauding, not wanting to disturb the precious soundscape still hanging in their ears.
Following “East of the Sun (West of the Moon),” where all four musicians watch and listen as they enhance one another’s solos, Krall changes the mood with “The Shadow of Your Smile” where she achieves a staccato effect by flicking the fingers of her right hand at the upper keys of the piano as she accompanies herself while singing.
On “Fly Me to the Moon,” Krall focuses on the timbre and tone of the Steinway grand, and on “They Can’t Take That Away from Me,” she pays homage to one of America’s most beloved artists when she changes the standard “The way you sing off key” lyric to “Tony Bennett never sang off key.” Wilson’s guitar solo incorporates a snippet of Count Basie’s “Silk Stockings” before Krall circles back around to her vocal, using her voice like a wind instrument, deftly changing its timbre and tone as she vocalizes.
Music lovers in the crowd applaud as Krall and the band sail into “‘S Wonderful,” where Krall introduces the number with only voice and piano before her trio adds a samba-like feel to the arrangement and Krall meticulously slides in and out of her vocal notes while singing.
The crowd applauds, and Krall says, “Thank you very much!” Paying tribute to her late friend, Tony Bennett, Krall admits, “I had such love for him,” before asking the crowd, “ How are you?” and acknowledging, “You sound good!” When a fan calls out, “We love you, Diana!” Krall warmly responds, “I love you, too.”
After singing “L is for the way you look at me,” Krall channels Dave Brubeck with a chordal piano solo on “L-O-V-E,” bringing enthusiastic cheers. Then, she and the band are off to the races with a lightning quick rendition of “Devil May Care” where Wilson contributes a fast and rhythmic guitar solo.
Riggins excites the crowd as he plays with brushes and then sticks on a solo filled with powerful rolls and cymbal rides.
Wrapping up tonight’s show with “I Just Found Out About Love,” after singing, “Hey you, give me a clue, what’s love doing to you/It looks like you could be liking it too,” Krall and all three of her musicians point directly at the audience and count “1, 2, 3, 4!” together. The crowd hoots and hollers, and Krall exclaims, “Thank you very much!” before taking a well-deserved bow.
The crowd stands and applauds calling, “Encore!” before Krall and Co. return to play the rock ballad, “Whispering Pines” where Krall sings, “My heart is sad like a morning dove that’s lost its mate in flight. Acknowledging today’s loss of The Band’s Robbie Robertson, Krall and her colleagues perform another Robertson composition, “Ophelia.” Wilson switches from jazz guitar to Telecaster and Hurst plays electric bass on this rocker where Krall delivers cascading runs on the piano a la Jerry Lee Lewis.
While the crowd cheers, Krall takes a bow by the piano before hugging her bandmates. The quartet bows together in the spotlight to a heartfelt standing ovation and Krall blows kisses to her fans prior to exiting the stage.
As concertgoers make their way out of the theater, several comment on Diana Krall’s performance tonight. Whereas Lisa from Bloomfield calls Krall’s program “Absolutely wonderful!” Eve from New Jersey insists, “She was simply marvelous — amazing!” and Louis from Ramsey declares, “I thought the whole concert was outstanding — just excellent — and Diana’s bass player was really great!” prior to revealing, “I’m a real fan of Diana’s and I’m so glad she ended with ‘Ophelia’ as a tribute to fellow Canadian Robbie Robertson.”
George from Long Branch acknowledges, “I loved the interplay among all of the musicians. Each artist contributed a unique style to the tunes — you could feel the connection — and I really liked her guitarist, especially on his solos.” Nancy from Ramsey contends, “Diana and all of her instrumentalists were excellent. The crowd’s response energized the band, and I especially enjoyed watching and listening to her drummer— he was a lot of fun!” Sue from Red Bank comments, “I love all of the classic jazz tunes she did. She has such an understated way about her, but her talent is anything but understated. She makes everything she does seem effortless, and her skill at turning a phrase as she sings is just off the charts.”
Patrick from Princeton Junction reveals, “Diana Krall’s voice was so sultry — I never realized just how great a singer she is,” and Phil from Long Branch exclaims, “I’ve seen Diana Krall several times and she did not disappoint tonight! I liked the whole vibe of her show — the sound was perfect and I liked how the stage lighting highlighted the musicians and their instruments,” before concluding, “Everything about Diana Krall personifies excellence. She’s a class act.”
To learn more about Diana Krall, please go to dianakrall.com. For information about upcoming performances at the Count Basie Center for the Arts — including Pat Metheny on September 17 and Buddy Guy on September 30 — please click on thebasie.org.
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