Rath Sees Ann Hampton Callaway

[Rathnait62]

Posted: 11/7/05 at 10:23pm

Having been prodded by the ever-tasteful Garland Grrrl, I took a friend to see Ms. Callaway at Jazz Standard this evening. I had never seen her live, nor listened extensively to her recordings, so I wasn't completely sure what to expect.

It was an evening of standards, to be sure, and all performed beautifully. From Skylark to La Vie En Rose to the most passionate and rangy Blues In The Night that I have ever heard, I was enthralled from start to finish.

But Ms. Callaway is more than just a jazz singer - she does dead-on impressions of not only other singers, but INSTRUMENTS. And Baroque scat!! You heard me - Baroque scat!! She is funny, warm, charming and certainly knows how to work a crowd. For her encore, she asked the audience for words/phrases and she wrote a lovely song about Autumn in New York incorporating all of them, from the Yankees to Central Park to Diet Coke.

I was able to chat with her for a while afterward as we have a couple of mutual friends, including the delightful Garland Grrrl, with whom I had the pleasure of spending some time this evening.

I can't recommend Ms. Callaway highly enough - if you ever get a chance to see her, DO NOT hesitate.