Bobby Short was known as a cabaret singer, but he referred to himself as a saloon singer. “I began playing piano in dance halls and saloons, which are nice words for cabaret,” said Short during an interview with this writer for the AmNews in 2001. He was one of the most engrossing saloon singers of his era, along with Tony Bennett and Frank Sinatra.
During Short’s 35+ years at the Café Carlyle, he surpassed the role of cabaret entertainer to become a New York institution—a symbol of Manhattan’s elegant culture. He attracted a chic international clientele, from royalty and celebrities to socialites and jazz enthusiasts. He played the swank club on Manhattan’s Upper East Side for six months each year, in a room where he was only a few feet from his audience.
During the interview, in Short’s luxurious apartment on Manhattan’s exclusive Sutton Place, with a picturesque view of the East River, Short invited me to attend his performance at any time. Jokingly, I said, “Suppose I want to come every night?” He just laughed, saying, “Well, at least you will be one person I won’t have to worry about showing up.” Of course, I took him up on his offer and saw him perform in his Carlyle kingdom more than a dozen times, each more engaging than the first. He was an exceptional pianist, but it was his wit and voice that captivated his audiences.
“The band and audience, to me, [are] a state of blitz. It’s certainly, at this moment, the best thing in my life,” said Short. His favorite phrase was “a big deal,” and be assured Bobby Short was A Big Deal.
October 10 will be the last evening of Bobby Short’s Centennial Celebration (September 15, 2024) at Dizzy’s Club, in honor of Manhattan’s most debonair entertainer. The 7 p.m. show will feature the Loston Harris Trio, known for his 22-year residency at the Carlyle. Like Short, Harris has an extensive repertoire that travels through the aisles of jazz, gospel, and blues. His trio features bassist James Cammack, Jr.; drummer Carmen Intorre, Jr.; and pianist and vocalist Harris.
For information and reservations, visit jazz.org.
Jazz at Lincoln Center’s Ertegun Jazz Hall of Fame (10 Columbus Circle) will celebrate the legendary Roy Haynes on October 15, at 7 p.m. The iconic drummer, who John Coltrane called his favorite drummer, will celebrate his 100th birthday on March 13; while he happily awaits his centennial, he can join in this special celebration in his honor, which will be followed by many more in the coming year.
The celebratory band on this auspicious occasion will feature former members of Haynes’s previous bands over the years: alto saxophonist Jaleel Shaw (a longtime member of Haynes’s Fountain of Youth Quartet), pianist Dave Kikoski (a member of the Haynes Quartet), bassist John Patitucci (of the Haynes Trio, with Danilo Perez), and drummer Marcus Gilmore (his grandson).
Haynes came into New York prominence when big band leader Luis Russell sent him a one-way ticket to New York to join his band, who were already performing at Harlem’s swinging Savoy Ballroom. Haynes, then still a teenager, had to get permission to leave his Roxbury, Mass home. Fortunately, his parents agreed, opening the door for him to become one of the world’s greatest jazz drummers. When Max Roach left Charlie Parker’s band, he had only three words for the iconic saxophonist: “Hire Roy Haynes.”
For more information, visit the website jazz.org.
When New York City’s borough of Queens is mentioned, it’s mainly a contextual reference to its suburbia housing, manicured lawns, backyards—and where a great number of jazz legends moved to avoid the city bustle, including Tony Bennett, the Heath brothers, Clark Terry, Louis Armstrong, Billie Holiday, and Roy Haynes.
Those legendary jazz transplants proved to be of a historical and cultural period, but what about those musicians born and raised in Queens who came into their own during the 1970s? They elaborated on their jazz elders’ music by dismantling it and disregarding genre fences to forge their own inventive paths that took them around the world to much acclaim.
Those musicians included La La (La Forrest Cope), who led her own band—Jack Sass—and penned such hits as “All of You” (Lilo Thomas), “Show Me” (Glen Jones), and “Living for Your Love” (Melba Moore); keyboardist singer/songwriter Bernard Wright (Pieces of a Dream, Marcus Miller, Miles Davis, Solar Fares); drummer and senior president of SESAC Trevor Gale (Whitney Houston, Aretha Franklin, and Vanessa Williams); guitarist Eddie Martinez (Robert Palmer, Nona Hendryx, Mother’s Finest); and four-time Grammy winner trumpeter Wayne Cobham (Michael Jackson, Stevie Wonder, Lou Reed, Sting).
Consider other Q natives like drummer JT Lewis (Henry Threadgill, Sting, Harriet Tubman Group, and Herbie Hancock’s Rockit Band), Mic Murphy, the System, etc., who helped usher in a new era of electronically based pop music, and Tony Bridges (B.B. & Q, Diana Ross).
“We played in Queens parks, and in garages,” said bass guitarist Warren McRae (Joe Cocker, Tina Turner, Lionel Richie, Chaka Khan). “We had such great musicians in Queens. We just hung out, checking out each other’s music, whether it was practicing in basements or playing in parks. But Ronny Drayton [guitarist] was inspirational in bringing us all together.”
Drayton, who transitioned in 2020, was a major force in American Black music, crossing the boundaries of jazz, rock, blues, and funk, blending it into one stimulating sound, having played with the Chambers Brothers, Defunkt, 24-7 Spyz, Edwin Birdsong, and Nona Hendryx. “Ronny had citizenship on other planets,” said McRae.
A sold-out tribute/fundraiser was recently held at Manhattan’s Sony Music Hall. “We wanted to pay homage to Ronny—someone who was so prominent in their music for Queens,” said Vernon Reid (founder of Living Colour; guitarist, and composer). The all-star Queens contingency featured Adam Falcon with Eddie Martinez, Donovan Drayton (Ronny’s son), singer Kim Lesly, V. Jeffrey Smith (Family Stand), Bernard Fowler (Rolling Stones), 24-7 Spyz, guitarist Felicia Collins (Madonna, Al Jarreau, George Clinton), Burnt Sugar Arkestra conducted by Vernon Reid, and Black rock-soul innovators Nona Hendryx and Living Colour, all hosted by LaRonda Davis, president of the Black Rock Coalition.
“Ronny came with it all the time,” said Reid. “He changed my life.”
The performances were an explosion of brash Black rock, slamming on every level, entwined in outrageous funk, jump-up jazz riffs, and bouts of blues true to grit—an inventive journey of American Black music. All the songs related to Drayton in some way. His son Donovan performed a heartfelt original song he wrote for his dad. “I wanted to be with people who made my father move mountains,” said Donovan.
Martinez, who flew in from Portland, said, “Ronny Drayton was a great guitarist and a friend from our teen years. His style of Hendrixian funk rock was unique and had [a] great impact in the global music scene, especially with Nona Hendryx and her band. I’m grateful that we were friends for all these years and will truly miss him.”
“Celebrating Ronny Drayton” was presented by McRae and Trevor Gale in association with Street Beats. Many of these same musicians also participated in a 2023 tribute to Jamaica, Queens, keyboardist and singer Bernard Wright, at Manhattan’s City Winery, which included bassist Marcus Miller (Miles Davis, Herbie Hancock, Luther Vandross)) and three-time Grammy winner drummer Lenny White, a Queens native and inspiring mentor.
Drayton, along with the Queens crew, introduced a new vibe that came from their playing and rehearsing in basements and garages. It was a Queens movement with a distinct style. Maybe it can’t be described as easily as the Detroit Motown Sound, the Sound of Philadelphia (TSOP), or Stax (Memphis soul), but it is more than relevant. These adventurers cultivated a Black Rock music scene that had roots in jazz, blues, funk, and more rock—a spectrum of the American Black Music kaleidoscope.