Erroll Garner - Nightconcert

The Guardian 100

(Mack Avenue)

Looks like this is the season for discovering lost jazz masterpieces. Last month it was a 1963 studio session by John Coltrane; this time it’s a 1964 live concert by Erroll Garner. Of the two, Garner was the more popular during his lifetime, tirelessly touring the world’s major concert halls. This was recorded at the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam. A completely self-taught pianist, Garner had evolved a unique style which managed to combine over-the-top romanticism with the most ferocious swing. A favourite way of deploying these was to set up a great perfumed cloud of sound, covering the entire keyboard, out of which would suddenly emerge, tripping merrily along, a well-known tune. There’s a beauty here, introducing Cheek to Cheek, greeted by the invariable round of applause. That rare thing, genuine musical wit, it never failed. His accompanists, bassist Eddie Calhoun and drummer Kelly Martin, rarely knew quite what Garner was going to do next. Apart from his purely musical talents, he was ambidextrous, which meant that he could happily keep two rhythms going at once. There are some bewildering examples of that here, too. Oh, yes, and he also composed Misty.