Once bassist Rufus Reid and his newest trio turned up the energy, there was some fine music-making to be heard Thursday night at the Jazz Showcase. In fact, at least one listener wished Reid had started his set half as exuberantly as he had ended it.
Playing Eddie Harris’ “The Crying Blues” after an hour’s worth of music-making, Reid and his colleagues managed an impressive feat: expressing a hard-core blues sensibility while retaining the high tonal sheen that defines this ensemble. Theirs was not a rough-and-tumble approach to blues but something more carefully polished and meticulously voiced.
In effect, an urgent blues spirit and an ultra-sophisticated sound converged in this performance. The combined eloquence of Reid’s imperturbable bass lines, Steve Allee’s harmonically advanced pianism and Duduka Da Fonseca’s multi-layered rhythms on drums made this the high point of the evening.
Moreover, the musicians cohered as a trio best in this work, functioning as a single unit rather than as three distinct sources of sound. Perhaps the times Reid spent playing with saxophonist-composer Harris — decades ago, when both lived in Chicago — helped explain Reid’s affinity for this music.
“The Crying Blues” appears on Reid’s recently released CD “Out Front” (Motema Music), which provided most of the repertoire for the evening. Yet the other pinnacle of the night owed to an earlier Reid CD, “Live at the Kennedy Center,” from which Reid’s trio offered “Come Out and Play.”
As its title suggests, the piece conveys a buoyant attitude, the tune bristling with puckish syncopations. Reid, Allee and Da Fonseca rode its twists and turns with apparent ease.
Among ballads, Reid holds particular affection for Tadd Dameron’s “If You Could See Me Now,” an ineffably poetic tune that serves as a centerpiece of the “Out Front” CD and anchored this set, as well. Here Reid gave the song its due simply by playing it straight, with scant embellishment. Yet the luster of his tone and the delicacy of his phrasing brought the room to a hush, with the sparest of accompaniment from pianist Allee and drummer Da Fonseca.
Earlier in the evening, Reid and friends warmed up to the proceedings slowly. Their take-it-easy manner suggested the work of a strong piano trio playng background music in a chic eatery rather than an ensemble trying to make a statement in Chicago’s most prominent jazz room. The apparent nonchalance proved these musicians work well together but did not produce gripping music-making.
Even so, Reid stands as one of the most versatile bassists in mainstream jazz, and every note he plays conveys an obvious professionalism. A little more grit would go a long way toward enhancing his promising trio.
Rufus Reid Trio
When
: 8 p.m. and 10 p.m. Saturday; 4 p.m., 8 p.m. and 10 p.m. Sunday
Where
: Jazz Showcase, 806 S. Plymouth Ct.
Price
: $20; 312-360-0234
