Marian McPartland - Twilight World

Concord

Pianist Marian McPartland has been an understated but indispensable member of the jazz community for much of her 70+ years career. A nonagenarian at the time of this new album’s release (her 21st for Concord!), her abilities at the keys still ring steady alongside a near encyclopedic command of standards repertory. An intact mental acuity exonerates any slowing of attack. Her tune choices here are hardly radical, but still cover an inclusive gamut of classics starting with her own title composition, a piece first Ornette’s “Turnaround” and “Lonely Woman” initially seem the outliers, but even they have been in circulation for nearly half a century. McPartland’s never been that interested in pushing the creative envelope herself. She’s more a chronicler of piano jazz, most prominently on her program of the same name that’s been broadcasting on public radio for three decades. Hundreds of interviews with luminaries of the instrument both major and minor Bassist Gary Mazzaroppi and drummer Glenn Davis abet the action from secondary positions that leave the spotlight comfortably on the leader’s uniformly elegant statements. Their animated interplay on the aforementioned Coleman tunes demonstrates that it was far from an autopilot gig. McPartland’s calmly declarative liberties on the tunes suggest a readiness to upend expectations as well, but as always, she does it from a perspective of modesty and relative restraint. Some might safely call this music “cocktail jazz” and it certainly has the outward feel of a relaxed bourbon and cigars club set. Such a loaded qualifier misses the quiet magnitude of McPartland’s achievements. It might seem a trite observation, but we should all be so lucky to be doing what we love and doing it so well.

~ Derek Taylor