Willie “The Lion” Smith & Don Ewell - Stride Piano Duets

Delmark

Photoshopped as a face-off, the merger of visages on the cover of this new Delmark disc hints at a potential caveat to the project. The danger inherent with tandem piano settings comes in the tendency on the part of the principals to devolve into combative duels. In other words, a few drops of donnybrook tend to go a long way. The Lion was known for his aggressive touch and rambunctious wit. He wasn’t one to suffer fools and pretenders lightly. While those facets of his mien are present and even prominent here, Ewell’s presence and even-keel demeanor work as a reliable tempering agent. Ewell idolized Smith and when the elder sought to engage in ivory fisticuffs the younger man usually demurred. That’s not to suggest a negation of sparks or playful collisions in the interplay -plenty of each abound- but it’s definitely Smith in the driver’s seat much of the time, a differential Ewell seems to accept as a given.

The program, taped at Toronto tavern in front of a receptive crowd in ’66, corrals a decent cross-section of hoary stride-ready tunes. Smith and Ewell converge and diverge in amicable fashion, only rarely stepping on the other’s toes and pausing periodically to banter with the audience and each other. Chases are a regular part of the aural scenery as well, as during the breakneck digital sprints of “I Found a New Baby” where the two run jocular rhythmic circles from the safety of their respective stools. To their mutual credit, numbers are kept relatively free of ballast and the set trundles right along. Smith even finds inspiration for a pair of passable vocals on the medley “Linger Awhile/Shine” and “If I Could Be with You”, neither of which lacks in either humor or enthusiasm. The sound throughout is surprisingly sharp and faithful with both pianos cleanly preserved along with the vocal incidentals. Stride as a musical tradition is closing in on the century mark. As minted and disseminated by these two resourceful doyens it hardly shows any inkling of such advanced age.

~ Derek Taylor