Krall has her own brand of Utah jazz

DIANA KRALL, Abravanel Hall, Wednesday.

"This is a jazz town," Diana Krall told the near-capacity crowd at Abravanel Hall Wednesday night. And she wasn't commenting on the NBA franchise across the street.

Krall delivered an all-around outstanding performance Wednesday, from her singing to her piano playing. She opened with an upbeat, yet-to-be-named instrumental. "I don't know what it's called. Maybe I'll call it 'An Evening in Salt Lake City,' " she told the audience.

The high level of musicianship continued with "All or Nothing at All," which included an extended jam session showcasing Krall's splendid piano playing and solos by her brilliant band — Anthony Wilson, guitar; Robert Hurst, bass; and Peter Erskine, drums.

Krall played a heavy selection of songs from her new release, "The Girl in the Other Room," including Tom Wait's "Temptation" and "Stop This World " by Mose Allison. Her new CD also marks Krall's first venture into writing her own material. Those deeply personal songs, which she co-wrote with new husband Elvis Costello, were among the strongest of the evening, including the beautiful "Narrow Daylight," the album's title track, and her deep, smoky vocals on "Abandoned Masquerade."

Krall also pleased the crowd with a healthy selection of old favorites, including an excellent rendition of "East of the Sun (West of the Moon)," "Let's Face the Music and Dance," the bluesy "I Don't Know Enough About You," "Devil May Care" and the sultry "I'll String Along With You."

Looking comfortable, wearing jeans and a black bell-sleeved blouse, Krall delivered delightful interaction with the crowd all night, and her dry sense of humor was genuinely funny. Stories (all to be taken with a grain of salt) about her wanting to open a piano bar in a lighthouse in her hometown of Nanimo on Vancouver Island when she retires to saving lost crabbers in the fog were particularly entertaining.

The Louis Armstrong/Ella Fitzgerald classic "Gee Baby, Ain't I Good to You" started off the first encore, followed by an outstanding version of the Costello-penned "Almost Blue." Krall returned without her band for a second encore, treating the crowd to such favorites as " 'S Wonderful," "Frim Fram Sauce" and ending with the emotional, beautiful "Departure Bay," a song about Krall's first Christmas following the death of her mother.

"I had a great time tonight," Krall said to the blaring, appreciative crowd — proving that "Utah jazz" isn't an oxymoron.

---

E-mail: preavy@desnews.com