Stanley Jordan @ Jazz Alley

Last night on a whim I decided to go see Stanley Jordan play at Jazz Alley. Although I have been a fan of his for years, I had never seen him perform live. The show was great. 7:30 & 9:30PM shows Friday, Saturday & Sunday. I caught the later show. From the first note he played with a passionate, magical touch; the audience was mesmerized. Stanley Jordan pioneered a style of playing that uses what is called a double hammer technique. By lightly tapping the strings on his guitar he can play the chorus with one hand and the medley with the other. At times it really sounded like two or three guitars all playing at once in harmony. He started out as a street performer in New York in the early eighties. A music industry guy heard him play and a month later he was playing at the Montreaux Jazz Festival. How about that!

I have several of his CD's and he played a bunch of songs that I recognized. I love his rendition of the Beatles' Eleanor Rigby. Beautifully played and followed up by the Theme from Mozart Piano Concerto Number 21. A very relaxing 100 minutes of musical entertainment. He brought up a special guest to accompany him. Roxanne Butterfly accompanied Stanley Jordan with some improvisational tap dancing. Evidently they know each other from New York where she used to participate during jam sessions.

It was good to do something different. I had a great time.