Throughout a six-decade career, Denny Zeitlin has thrived on the cutting edge of jazz. That holds true even when he is sitting down in front of an unaccompanied piano covering old classic tunes.
Crazy Rhythm: Exploring George Gershwin (out June 30, 2023 from Sunnyside Records) continues this developing trend of his of putting out a record every four or five years where he tackles the songs of a certain prominent composer, and this time he took on the music of arguably the king of the Tin Pan Alley and Broadway composers, George Gershwin.
Gershwin songs remain such a dominant force in the repertoire of jazz classics that when scanning the song list for Denny Zeitlin’s latest album, it’s easy to assume that this is a multi-sourced ‘standards’ record until you realize that every one of these all-time classics came from one man who lived only to the age of thirty-eight.
This album is extracted from a solo piano concert Zeitlin performed in 2018, and taping live in front of an audience is another part of his covers trend. It suggests a supreme confidence in knowing these songs intimately while also desiring to live in the moment. Zeitlin reworks these songs with an entirely new vantage point – his own – sketching out these classic melodies enhanced with his improvisational flair, harmonic richness and advanced ability.
That means that for “Summertime,” Zeitlin lets himself wander but not as far as you might think: when he returns to the theme albeit with some of the chords altered, it becomes clear he was actually setting Gershwin’s ideas into a new direction. He uses a different tact for transforming “S’Wonderful” by turning it into a thoroughly modern jazz piece, replete with shifting tempos and a fluid key.
He slyly turns “I’ve Got A Crush On You” into a bossa nova, and the melody of “Fascinating Rhythm” is easily recognizable but Zeitlin invests his ingenuity into constantly modulating the tempo and time. The ballad “The Man I Love” is transformed into a rhythmically up-tempo number in Zeitlin’s hands, underpinned by a vamp that’s all his own.
It’s not just about resourcefulness for Denny Zeitlin; he can discern the complex feelings within each of these Gershwin songs. “How Long Has This Been Going On?” gets a relatively straightforward reading but also exploratory, which only enhances the appeal of the melody. The chords come tumbling out so poignantly for “Bess You Is My Woman Now,” Zeitlin projecting both hopefulness and foreboding.
Yes, Zeitlin knows how to plumb the depths of these songs, something that’s missing from most renditions. His left hand and right hand operate to separate but parallel planes on “It Ain’t Necessarily So,” coming together a few minutes later and diverging again as he moves through the sections. The tragic “My Man’s Gone Now” develops slowly, portraying the descent into sorrow over the sudden loss of a loved one that is the story of this song. That sets this version apart from the well-known renditions from Bill Evans or even the Miles Davis/Gil Evans recording that left a deep impression on Zeitlin in his youth.
As he had done with Wayne Shorter’s and Miles Davis’ music, Denny Zeitlin covers the songs of George Gershwin with imagination, passion and a deeply personal touch. Even if you somehow have had your fill of Gershwin, you will find Zeitlin’s takes fresh and genuine.
Crazy Rhythm: Exploring George Gershwin is available for pre-sale/sale from Bandcamp.
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