Porgy And Bess Suite, Polka Dots And Moonbeams, Walkin' My Baby Back
Home, These Foolish Things, Honeysuckle Rose, September Song, Body And Soul,
I'll Be Seeing You.
 The Chicago press
was properly impressed when Don Shirley's London House audience cried themselves
a river. Don credits much of the uncanny emotional response to his two basses.
He claims they strike the median between physical vibration and auditory
stimulation. Briefly, he means what you
hear hits you in the right place - sometimes where it hurts, sometimes where ifs
shamefully pleasurable.
This identification is not in itself unique. It happens often at Carnegie Hall.
It even occurs at spots like Birdland from time to time. But for a pianist of
Don Shirley's ilk it is rarer than the proverbial day in June. Don is a hybrid.
His piano is neither classic nor jazz. It is, rather, the best of each. His
audience is neither longhair nor crew cut (though it includes a bevy of both):
his followers embrace the wealth of people who love great music regardless of
the origin of its species.
Where Don
Shirley's pungent piano style really began is anybody's guess. Factually, it all
started in the deep South where he walked childhood tightropes and thought of
chords as round red apples and fresh lemons. A lot of it came from the fog of
chi-chi bistros. Some of it stemmed from bawdy beer gardens. His singular
background in applied psychology is responsible for a good measure. His flawless
technique - as great or greater than that of any concert pianist today -
contributes a goodly share. From wherever his god-given genius stems, one thing
is certain: musicians from Stravinsky to Jazzbo Collins recognize and applaud
it.
Artie Shaw says
Don Shirley brings dignity where it is needed. The Christian Science Monitor
says Don is destined to revolutionize the popular forms of music. The world
agrees that in Don Shirley a major pianist has stepped into the popular field.
But, listen for yourself. Get the message Don Shirley has for you - and you
alone. |
