Shannon Butcher / Toronto, Canada / August 9th, 2009 / The Rex Hotel Jazz & Blues Bar / Jazz - Pop Vocals
Singer
/ songwriter Shannon Butcher is the most recent female jazz crossover pop
artist to emerge on the music scene who successfully and with panache is
reinterpreting music that she grew up with, some music that predated her
slightly, and in what is now rapidly becoming known as the New American
Songbook and in addition, she weaves in her own splendid compositions, to
create an outstanding concert experience for her fans, as she did on Sunday
night, August 9th at the Rex Hotel Jazz and Blues Bar in Toronto.
In a gutsy reworking of rock band Glass Tiger’s “Don’t Forget Me (When I’m
Gone),” Butcher demonstrated that with the right singer, the right band
behind her and lots of energy and passion, rock tunes can work well in a
jazz setting. Her ability to continually ‘be in the moment,’ and Butcher’s
emotive vocals made this tune work well, and sent an electric current
through the crowd, as she did throughout the evening.
Shannon Butcher was dressed in a black dress, low-cut in the front, multi-colored polka dot high heels, and had her blonde hair tied in a ponytail, that extended to the middle of her back and that bobbed back and forth, as she often danced to the songs that she was singing. Her outstanding quartet consisted of one of Canada’s finest jazz pianists Dave Restivo, drummer Ethan Ardelli and upright bass and electric bass guitar player Ross MacIntyre, who approaches Reuben Rogers like excellence.
Butcher opened her first set with a smooth, effortless rendition of “I Found The Turnaround,” a love song, which also featured a magnificent solo by Restivo on the grand piano. The ensemble then did a nice cover of The Beatles’ “Here There And Everywhere,” as MacIntyre established a walking bassline, employing a pizzicato style of playing.
Demonstrating that jazz standards are also a proficient part of her repertoire, Butcher’s beautiful phrasing on Rodgers and Hammerstein’s “It Might As Well Be Spring,” was both airy and joyful. Ardelli’s drumming, as it was most of the night, was understated, this time playing lightly on the snare, and keeping the time in a fashion that neither competed with the other musicians, nor overpowered the vocalist, but simply accompanied her.
Singing the Arthur Altman / Jack Lawrence song “All Or Nothing At All,” Butcher let loose with lots of passion, as a would be lover, contemplating what it would be like to fall under the spell of another. The band played an open section, which featured a spellbinding performance in the form of MacIntyre’s solo.
As the first set was winding down, Shannon Butcher once again demonstrated her versatility and her ability to perform well in a number of genres and sub-genres, by first singing the cabaret tune “I Ain’t In The Mood For No DJ,” as her pretty blue eyes took on a sultry look, while she cooed the playful lyrics. Butcher’s vocal performance was matched by her ensemble’s swinging mood and evoked the most vigorous applause from the audience on this evening. Butcher saucily covered naughty English pop singer Lily Allen’s “Smile,” a song in which the singer chastises the man who was her former lover, as she gets on with her life, knowing that she is far better off.
The second set opened with Patsy’ Cline’s “Walking After Midnight,” which was perhaps the only weak spot in Butcher’s performance. Whether the song is new to her or she just failed to capture the soulfulness of Cline’s vocals is difficult to tell.
The rest of Shannon Butcher’s second set was fabulous, as she splendidly performed a new interpretation of Blondie’s “Call Me,” in which she matched Deborah Harry’s passion with powerful, emotive vocals, but whereas Harry’s original was more edgy, Butcher chose to play the part of the seductress. She was red hot on the line, “Anytime, anyplace, anywhere.” This song alone made sitting in on this gig extremely worthwhile. Restivo drew lusty applause of his own, for his solo.
Butcher dipped into her past to perform the song “No Moon At All,” a number that she sang with the three-part harmony group Swing Rosie. The love ballad describes a romantic evening under the stars.
Foot tapping and bodies swaying was the order of the day as the band and Butcher performed an energetic version up the up-tempo Tears For Fears’ tune “Mad World.”
If you live in the Toronto area you would do well to turn out at the Rex on a Sunday evening as, the Shannon Butcher Quartet performs each of the three remaining Sunday evenings.
Check out Shannon Butcher's music on her website by clicking here or visiting her myspace site
August 9th, 2009
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Riveting Riffs Magazine wishes to express our gratitude to The Rex Hotel Jazz & Blues Bar for making it possible to review this performance
