by S. Rotan Hale
Nicholas Payton, a Grammy Award-winning trumpeter accompanied by a trio of world-class musicians dazzled the audience at the Jefferson Center, Saturday, Nov. 23 during a mesmerizing hour and a half performance that left many attendants thrusting for more.
Accompanied by legendary pianist Gerald Clayton, Vicente Archer, bass and Bill Stewart on drums, the group collectively performed a series of improvisational instrumentals that Payton referred to as Nouveau Standards – “a focus on honoring the ancestors and elders – classic material with a little twist,” he said in a soft and unassuming tone.
Payton strolled on stage dressed in what seamed to be dark blue coveralls and a billed cap as though he was on a service call. In no way did his casual look prepare the audience for the surreal experience that ultimately ensued.
The night’s selections involved mostly medium and uptempo straight-ahead jazz as the opening number “Would You” a song by famed trumpeter Dizzy Gillespie who is clearly one of Payton’s idols.
Continuing to spice up the night, Stewart’s sharp and snappy rim-shot cadence led and carried the group through a very innovative rendition of “Bust-a-Move” composed by the great bassist Buster Williams. The song was the first of two opportunities for Archer to show his amazing ability on the upright bass. It was also one of several tunes throughout the night in which Payton infused samplings – excerpts of relatively profound ramblings that added a bizarre touch to the menagerie of intoxicating rhythms created throughout the show.
Perfectly accentuating it all was Clayton nestled behind a Grand piano and a Fender Rhodes electric piano on which he masterfully created a smorgasbord of rhythmic patterns that added considerable depth to the collective.
There’s simply no instrument that changed the sound of modern jazz more than the Fender Rhodes. Its impact throughout the industry unquestionably sparked a new era of innovative jazz leading many artists to explore a new and vibrant mode of tonality that essentially shaped many a composition. Clayton showed no mercy adding a celestial flair to the vibrance of several songs in the set.
But it was Payton’s flailing riffs that flooded the hall beautifully as he tied a medley of standards together: Juan Tizol’s “Perdido,” Joe Henderson’s “Recordame” and “Straight No Chaser” by Thelonious Monk. At one point during the medley Payton used a tactic, made famous by Dizzy Gilespie, whereby he holds a solid note (jaws bulging) for an extended length of time using an unnatural method of breath-control. The audience, cheering him on, loved it!
Among the ballads performed was Cole Porter’s “Night and Day.” Payton’s treatment of the song was an exploration through time itself as he and the group tip-toed softly, delicately seducing the audience as they hung on each single note of the lilting classic.
The group wrapped things up with “Jazz is a Four Letter Word” by the legendary drummer Max Roach that brought the group back for an encore. They closed with Herbie Hancock’s “The Sorcerer,” creating an exhilarating finale to an extraordinary musical voyage that lifted the crowd to heights unexplored – sending another great night at the Jefferson Center into history.
