It's often true in
jazz
that many talented musicians are under the radar of the average fan because they choose not to travel much outside their home cities or record only sporadically, usually for locally based labels. Pianist
Earma Thompson
, who evidently belatedly made her debut (after performing for over half a century) with this 2004 release for
The Sirens
, has chops to spare throughout this rewarding CD, mostly duets with bassist
John Whitfield
. Her playfulness comes through in the swinging take of
"Just in Time,"
while
Thompson
's spunky side comes through in the
bop
favorite
"Billie's Bounce."
She adds a
bossa nova
beat to her hip interpretation of
"You Stepped Out of a Dream,"
then adds a dark undercurrent to a swinging take of
"Softly, As in a Morning Sunrise."
It is also hard to ignore the gutsy,
blues
-drenched interpretation of
"After Hours"
and a driving, soulful take of
"Back at the Chicken Shack."
Tenor saxophonist
John Brumbach
is added for
Miles Davis
'
"Vierd Blues"
and
Gene Ammons
"Ge-ru."
Hopefully a follow-up CD is already in the works. Highly recommended. ~ Ken Dryden