Benny Green Trio treats audience to magical show

BENNY GREEN TRIO, Sheraton City Center, Sept. 14

Jazz and rainy days are the perfect match. And when the days turn to nights, it is magical.

In fact, there was a lot of magic when the Benny Green Trio came to town. Not only was pianist Green at the top of his game, but also his drummer, Clayton Cameron, and acoustic bassist, Paul Keller, cast their spell on the audience in the Sheraton City Center ballroom.

The songs came in the free-form takes on Howard Greenfield and Jack Keller's "Theme from 'Bewitched,' " Johnny Mandel's "Shadow of Your Smile" from the movie "The Sandpiper" and Lorenzo Hart and Richard Rogers' "I Didn't Know What Time It Was."

Green's nimble fingers and laid-back approach to his music only intensified the situation as the other two kept time and erupted into ear-massaging solos.

John Coltrane's "Lazy Bird" and Milt Jackson's "Reunion Blues," which featured the low end intro of Ray Charles' "What I Say" got the adrenaline pumping as did each of the band members' many solos.

Cameron's hands became blurs as he used his brushes and sticks in precision-pounding dynamics.

Then there was Keller, who on a regular basis kept his fingers flying up and down the bass neck. He was able to show more of his musical know-how during his quick and melodic lead during "I May be Wrong."

Green played mellow prelude before most of the selections in the set. The reverence of each intro was highlighted and perhaps inspired by the wet city streets that were not more than 200 yards outside the ballroom walls.

Another bit of magic occurred during one of these preludes. Someone's mobile phone chimed and Green, with a wry look and smile, mimicked the chime — in perfect notes no less — and incorporated it, to the joy of the rest of the audience, into the prelude.

Each of the piano solos gave the other two a chance to rest their limbs and fingers, but they were always aware of where Green's musical soundscapes were leading, because on cue, Keller and Cameron would be there when Green needed them.

Green has performed in Utah before with the likes of guitarist Russell Malone and drummer Lewis Nash, to name a couple, however Monday marked the first time he appeared at the Sheraton as a band leader.

And as far as band leaders go, Green was both inspiring, inspired, unselfish and humble.

While he did address the crowd in his shy, boyish way, Green let the music lead the show. And with each note his fingers played, there was a rich brew of arrangement and improvisation that followed.

The Benny Green Trio set the bar high as the kick off to the 2009-10 Jazz SLC at the Sheraton City Center season.

e-mail: scott@desnews.com