Thursday, June 24, 2015
TWO SHOWS: 8 PM & 10 PM
Kitano 66 Park Avenue (at E 38th St)
New York City, NY 10016
http://www.kitano.com/Jazz-
212.885.7000
$15 cover, $20 minimum drink and food per person, per set
Plucky Strum
The joy of acoustic music by Harvie S and Sheryl Bailey
Steeped in jazz but blended with a myriad of styles, Whaling City Sound’s latest release makes a unique and delicious feast for the ears.
Plucky Strum may sound a bit comical, but is not. The instrumentation
is simple: acoustic bass and acoustic guitar. A basic approach on an
acoustic bass is to pluck it and on the guitar it is to strum, (pluck
and strum); thus the name Plucky Strum. The concept is prima, the
music fresh and contemporary. The sound is unique and rhythmic, and
contains the element of surprise, which is the cornerstone of jazz and
creative music.
This CD is filled with dedications that have affected the lives of
Sheryl and Harvie. "To Bea" was written for his mother who passed away
years ago and "Charlie Haden" was written for the great bassist who
also passed recently. Sheryl wrote "For Jimmy" as a dedication to the
great Jimmy Wyble and wrote "St. Nick" for Nikki Parrot. She also
wrote "S and S" and "Woods Talk" as dedications to their own duo.
What stands out about this duo is the uncanny way that Sheryl and
Harvie play together. They seem to read each others minds and it's
almost like a deep conversation we are privy to.
Harvie S was the founding member of the legendary band Double Image,
which he was a co-leader. He later joined the famous Steve Kuhn
Quartet which featured vocalist Sheila Jordan. Sheila and Harvie
formed a bass and voice duo which lasted 14 years and toured the
world. They made numerous highly acclaimed CDs together. Harvie is
known for his duo work also with pianist Kenny Barron and has recorded
duets with John Scofield, Paquito D' Rivera,Gene Bertoncini, Art
Farmer and Mike Stern.
It is logical that he would continue his duet playing and now with the
extraordinary guitarist Sheryl Bailey. He can also be heard on over
400 CDs with 15 as a leader, 12 as a co-leader. Harvie has been the
bass and ensemble instructor at the prestigious Manhattan School of
Music since 1984.
Sheryl Bailey has been praised as one of the freshest and most
technical guitar players on the jazz scene. She has chops as well as
taste, and has been referred to by Guitar Player magazine as one of
the most compelling tones of her generation. She leads a trio, the
Sheryl Bailey 3, a modernized version of a swingin’ organ combo. She
tours the world as a member of David Krakauer’s Klezmer Madness
Ensemble, she rocks alongside fellow guitar virtuoso Vic Juris, in the
Electric Ladyland Project, and has accompanied or recorded with
Richard Bona, Howard Alden, and many others. Like Harvie, Bailey is an
educator. She serves as a professor at Berklee College of Music and
teaches at The Collective School of Music in New York.
The music from Plucky Strum is special. It will take you somewhere you
have never been and somewhere you will hurry back to--pure music and
pure joy.
