What turns a cabaret act into jazz? Swinging
arrangements, improvised solos and a great selection
of songs, for starters. Scot Albertson has delivered
on all three counts in his second CD (following Got
a Date With Fate in 2005). The sparkling arrangements
are credited to Albertson, his pianist and
musical director Daryl Kojak and Broadway music
director Robert Felstein. The charts allow plenty of
space for solos, mostly by Kojak or Scott Wendholt
on trumpet. Though it runs short for a CD (42:53), it
is a perfectly paced nightclub set, with the feeling of
a live performance. Starting unaccompanied on the
verse of a lesser-known Frank Loesser vehicle “Love
Isn’t Born (It’s Made)”, Albertson alternates between
swing tunes and ballads, reaching an emotional peak
on the longest cut, Cy Coleman’s “With Every Breath
I Take,” featuring a muted trumpet solo and feel.
Then, he wisely follows this magic moment with two
tightly-arranged medleys, followed by a final toast to
the audience, like an encore, “On My Way to You”.
The unseen stars of this show are
the composers of these great songs. Written primarily for Broadway
or Hollywood, most of these three-minute stories
in song have the musical merit and poetic depth of
operatic arias of the 19th century. Yes, there are also
some light-weight song choices here, but they pan out
surprisingly well. At first, I was suspicious of Vaughn
Monroe’s theme song, “Racing with the Moon”, but
the chart highlights its clever chord sequence, which
should appeal to jazz instrumentalists. A similar ballad,
“Everything I Have is Yours”, written by the under-
appreciated Harold Adamson and Burton Lane,
was made famous by Billy Eckstine. However, I like
this softer reading, with less vibrato and spare, piano
trio backing. As an added treat, in both of these
ancient ballads, we hear the short but seldom-heard
verses.
The second half features three medleys,
all effectively arranged. The first medley pairs “You and I”
(by Leslie Bricusse, for the film Goodbye Mr. Chips)
and a gorgeous 1967 Mancini movie theme, “Two for
the Road” (words by Bricusse). The next combination,
Cy Coleman’s “The Best is Yet to Come” and Cole
Porter’s “From This Moment On”, was inspired, as it
comes after the album’s high point, featuring Cy Coleman
tunes from 30 years apart, in effect saying, “You
think that was good? You ain’t heard nothin’ yet.”
The oldest warhorse on the set list
is Rodgers &
Hart’s 1928 “You Took Advantage of Me”. It’s a hip
song, tightly arranged, with rollicking solos by all.
Scot let the band have its say here, and they said a lot in
their abbreviated time slots. The band even got to call
the singer a “sap” in the coda. Isn’t that every band’s
secret dream? And the dream of every boy singer who
goes on to other careers (police work in this case) is
to chase that childhood dream of singing great songs
when you’ve traveled enough roads in life that the
words and music make deeper sense to you and your
audience. That’s what Scot Albertson has done in his
very welcome second CD. He shows great range—tender
in the tenor’s head voice, in full-throated roar on
the swingers, and deep into the baritone’s basement,
when needed. This CD was released at Danny’s Skylight
Cabaret Room on December 30, 2006. Last
year, he performed at the Iridium and the Metropolitan
Room in Manhattan. Catch him when you can.
— Gary Alexander - Jazz Improv Magazine March
2007
What turns a cabaret act into jazz? Swinging
arrangements, improvised solos and a great selection
of songs, for starters. Scot Albertson has delivered
on all three counts in his second CD (following Got
a Date With Fate in 2005). The sparkling arrangements
are credited to Albertson, his pianist and
musical director Daryl Kojak and Broadway music
director Robert Felstein. The charts allow plenty of
space for solos, mostly by Kojak or Scott Wendholt
on trumpet. Though it runs short for a CD (42:53), it
is a perfectly paced nightclub set, with the feeling of
a live performance. Starting unaccompanied on the
verse of a lesser-known Frank Loesser vehicle “Love
Isn’t Born (It’s Made)”, Albertson alternates between
swing tunes and ballads, reaching an emotional peak
on the longest cut, Cy Coleman’s “With Every Breath
I Take,” featuring a muted trumpet solo and feel.
Then, he wisely follows this magic moment with two
tightly-arranged medleys, followed by a final toast to
the audience, like an encore, “On My Way to You”.
The unseen stars of this show are
the composers of these great songs. Written primarily for Broadway
or Hollywood, most of these three-minute stories
in song have the musical merit and poetic depth of
operatic arias of the 19th century. Yes, there are also
some light-weight song choices here, but they pan out
surprisingly well. At first, I was suspicious of Vaughn
Monroe’s theme song, “Racing with the Moon”, but
the chart highlights its clever chord sequence, which
should appeal to jazz instrumentalists. A similar ballad,
“Everything I Have is Yours”, written by the under-
appreciated Harold Adamson and Burton Lane,
was made famous by Billy Eckstine. However, I like
this softer reading, with less vibrato and spare, piano
trio backing. As an added treat, in both of these
ancient ballads, we hear the short but seldom-heard
verses.
The second half features three medleys,
all effectively arranged. The first medley pairs “You and I”
(by Leslie Bricusse, for the film Goodbye Mr. Chips)
and a gorgeous 1967 Mancini movie theme, “Two for
the Road” (words by Bricusse). The next combination,
Cy Coleman’s “The Best is Yet to Come” and Cole
Porter’s “From This Moment On”, was inspired, as it
comes after the album’s high point, featuring Cy Coleman
tunes from 30 years apart, in effect saying, “You
think that was good? You ain’t heard nothin’ yet.”
The oldest warhorse on the set list
is Rodgers &
Hart’s 1928 “You Took Advantage of Me”. It’s a hip
song, tightly arranged, with rollicking solos by all.
Scot let the band have its say here, and they said a lot in
their abbreviated time slots. The band even got to call
the singer a “sap” in the coda. Isn’t that every band’s
secret dream? And the dream of every boy singer who
goes on to other careers (police work in this case) is
to chase that childhood dream of singing great songs
when you’ve traveled enough roads in life that the
words and music make deeper sense to you and your
audience. That’s what Scot Albertson has done in his
very welcome second CD. He shows great range—tender
in the tenor’s head voice, in full-throated roar on
the swingers, and deep into the baritone’s basement,
when needed. This CD was released at Danny’s Skylight
Cabaret Room on December 30, 2006. Last
year, he performed at the Iridium and the Metropolitan
Room in Manhattan. Catch him when you can.
— Gary Alexander - Jazz Improv Magazine March
2007
Click on "Listen" to hear a song sample.
