For all the influences that have come to bear on Amy London, she could not have pulled off a spectacular album such as When I Look In Your Eyes, without the support and creativity of the wonderful musicians who formed the band. She loved the playing of percussionist Steve Kroon so much, she even left in his count off, which serves as the lead into the lively, and Afro Cuban flavored, “Wouldn’t You?” Roni Ben-Hur lays down an outstanding guitar solo for the tune, “Wouldn’t It Be So Nice?”

When I suggested to London that having a bass player like Rufus Reid appear on When I Look In Your Eyes, was a major coup, she was quick to both agree and expound upon the double bass player’s contributions, “Rufus is such an expert, such a master of the bass. He is so solid. The bass player should be the anchor of the band, and if Rufus is in the room, you know that you can lean on him. He is one hundred percent dependable, in whatever situation that you are in with him. On this project Rufus would be the first one to get to the studio and the last one to leave. We would be having coffee and bagels, and Rufus would be in his booth warming up. I think that when an artist can capture being in the moment (like he does), just make the music perform in the moment, and react in the moment, you can attain a very high level. On top of those gorgeous moments are his technique and his ability.”

Whether Amy London is doing a comedic re-enactment of competing with a cappuccino machine in a coffee shop, as she did at one point very early in her career, or she is talking about her husband and two daughters, it is obvious that she is having the time of her life.

London has learned a lot of lessons throughout her career, but there seems to be one that always comes to the forefront, “As an artist, when you get up on the stage, I think that it is really important to maintain the element of fun that you experienced when as a child, you fell in love with music for the first time. If you can hang onto that for your entire life, you are going to have a good time with it. It is good to be serious, it is good to try and have intellect on the bandstand, intellect with your music, to try and do something different and challenging, but you have to retain the element of fun. If you lose that, I think that it becomes a little boring for the audience.”

February 2008

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