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Karrin Allyson Wows Topeka Jazz Workshop
By Chuck Berg
September 19, 2010

Karrin Allyson is one of the world's great singers. Although best known to those who follow jazz, the Great Bend native is sui generis, a uniquely gifted talent whose artistry is beyond category.

On Sunday, on her way to a stint next week at Dizzy's at Lincoln Center in New York, Allyson revisited the scene of past triumphs, the Ramada Hotel and Convention Center, 420 S.E. 6th.

Taking the full measure of standards such as her arresting opener, a deeply drilled re-exploration of Irving Berlin's "How Deep Is the Ocean," Allyson immediately brought us into her world. A mesmerizing storyteller as well as musician, her compelling voice with its smoky edge and come-hither allure conjured an aura of palpable intimacy.

Allyson, a stunning performer with glamour galore, is clearly comfortable in her own skin. Her delight in making music and with the inspired work of her collaborators (guitarist Rod Fleeman. bassist Gerald Spaits and drummer Eric Montzka), and then sharing that music with her audience was a pleasure to behold.

A global citizen, Allyson's music dances to accents from around the world. Limning the lyrics of Jobim's "Desafinado" in Portuguese, the tune swayed with an understated yet intense samba beat that turned up the heat. Another kind of heat, rich in the bluesy loam of the Mississippi Delta, was tapped for bluesman Mose Allison's sardonic "Nothin's Goin' to Be Alright," an ironically upbeat paean to pessimism.

Allyson's two sets could not have been more adroitly programmed or paced. At one point, an elegiac meditation on Paul Simon's "April Come She Will" was followed by jazzman Hank Mobley's funky toe-tapper, "The Turnaround," where Allyson let her blues-woman out to stretch and prowl.

Throughout the afternoon, Allyson received hand-in-glove support from her accomplished trio. Kansas Citian Rod Fleeman was especially effective in his pivotal role as Allyson's foil, taking off with blistering boppish solos here, and funky strolls there. Churning at the bottom was the rock-solid bass of Gerald Spaits, another Kansas Citian of distinction, while Chicagoan Eric Montzka painted with percussive elan.

In a glorious afternoon of parading show-stoppers, Allyson's poignant reframing of Charlie Chaplin's "Smile" in which she accompanied herself on piano was impressive. At the heart of her artistry, whether singing or playing, is an unerring sense of knowing when to let the music breathe. In a word, she epitomizes "taste."

The crowd, estimated by organizers to be the largest ever in TJW's long history, expressed its love for the New York City-based Allyson with standing ovations, hearty applause and, in delicate renderings, such as her diaphanous "I'm Always Chasing Rainbows," hushed attentiveness.