Jazz Winnipeg Festival
Manitoba Theatre Centre
Winnipeg, Canada
June 22, 2006
The 67-year-old McCoy Tyner will forever be known as one of the guys who played with the ground-breaking John Coltrane, a saxophone colossus, back in the 1960s.
The pianist, plus bassist Charnett Moffett and drummer Eric Kamau Gravatt, put on a straight-ahead jazz show with such dazzling virtuosity and quality that I'm sure it will be talked about by local jazz fans for years to come.
I have never seen so much applause for a jazz bass player. Moffett slapped, bowed, tapped with a stick, and spidered his way around the acoustic bass like no one I've ever seen. Drummer Gravatt had sensational miking on his kit. It thundered at times but also whispered during the quiet, delicate parts.
Tyner was a juggernaut on the grand piano. Close your eyes and you'd never guess his age or imagine that this same guy who slowly, softly sauntered onto the stage, could pummel away with such force and skill. As an improviser, he is among the best I've heard. Several of the long compositions he played wove together diverse piano styles, recalling different eras of jazz for me.
I can't find much to fault in this show. When Tyner spoke to the audience, he often did so before the applause died out, which made it tough to hear him, especially with his quiet, raspy voice.
Unfortunately, I missed the opening act, Prairieair 7, who are comprised of the cream of the crop of the local players, including guitarist Larry Roy, pianist Ron Paley, bassist Steve Kirby, trumpeter Richard Gillis, Ken Gold on sax, Jeff Presslaff on trombone and Rob Siwik on drums.
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