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I came away from the September 18^th performance of The Dave Stephens Band presented by the Bell Cultural Arts Center at MidAmerica Nazarene University ("MNU") with two observations: this is a very good and talented band that got off to a rough start; but that aside, they are worth one's time and money to see. Despite having received, according to its website, "rave reviews from jazz aficionados, heads of state, and two U.S. presidents" I feel compelled to call it like I heard it that evening. With that particular performance being recorded for an upcoming CD, one has to wonder if, despite being veterans, a combination of sound problems and recording jitters took time to shake off. To their credit, however, they returned for their second set much tighter and more relaxed.

The evening opened with a Gershwin tune:  "Lady Be Good." This revealed some clumsy breaks, either coincidentally or as the result of monitor problems that appeared to distract trumpeter Barry Springer and Stephens. "Perdido" showed nice intro work under the hands of pianist Walter Bryant, but was offset by an awkward bowed bass solo from James Albright, and an equally awkward ending. "Route 66" featured a classic, albeit synthesized, Hammond "B3" solo by Bryant. On "Almost Like Being In Love" Albright redeemed himself with some nice bass work. I found "Don't Get Around Much Anymore" to be slower than seemed practical, followed immediately by "Blue Skies," which felt rushed. While featuring nice piano lines from Bryant, it struggled overall with too-straight vocals from Stephens and another awkward ending. "It Had To Be You" uncovered thin vocals with only the opening piano accompaniment, and also dragged a bit.

As in "Blue Skies, "Cheek to Cheek" featured too-straight, no-swing vocals and a wimpy ending. On "Is You Is Or Is You Ain't My Baby," bassist Albright's vocal harmonies lent some depth, revealing how much that dimension was lacking in other songs. Stephens kicked off "Knock Me A Kiss" with some audience-supplied finger snapping. This set a nice mood that was unfortunately undone by some awkward scatting and yet another equally awkward ending. "Love Me Or Leave Me" produced interesting depth thanks to the band's cool "chant" accompaniment, but was distracted by Albright's cheesy attempt at a scat-accompanied, bowed bass solo. After announcing that the set was running long, Stephens, probably without realizing, unwisely cranked up "Crazy 'Bout My Baby's" tempo. Sadly, this first set ended with an awkward, calypso-inspired rendition of "Paper Moon". Among the many things that don't belong together, musically, a calypso rendition of "Paper Moon" tops this critic's short list.

After intermission, a much tighter and more relaxed band emerged, jump-started by a fine rendition of Dean Martin's signature tune "Ain't That a Kick In The Head," featuring refreshing open harmonies from the band. A classic arrangement of the region's eponymous "Kansas City" followed, with a nice groove and another fat Hammond solo by Bryant. A nice piano intro opened "Fly Me To The Moon" - one of Sinatra's many signature tunes, had nice, clean breaks and featured some slick, high-register bass work by Albright. It was the tightest performance of the night to that point.

Stephens often seemed not to know what to do with himself during solos, especially on "It Had To Be You," "Cheek To Cheek," and "Knock Me A Kiss," the latter featuring weirdly awkward gyrations and high-kicks as if Stephens was simultaneously channeling Elvis and David Lee Roth; neither worked. "Pennies From Heaven" followed with a straightforward, classic presentation. "All I Do Is Dream Of You" presented a Latin groove that worked far better than "Paper Moon's" calypso disaster. The band continued to tighten and was, by this point, clearly having fun. A tight rendition of "Around The World" followed. "Swingin' On A Star" came next, backed by a whimsical thematic homage to "Sesame Street." Stephens' melody was awkward but he redeemed himself with a very cool vocal solo sung through a mute-like device reminiscent of that tinny, "radio-show" effect, the closest instrumental equivalent being a trumpet's Harmon mute.

With glimpses of brilliance, "If I Had You" proved to be the tightest song of the evening, featuring solid stride-piano work from Bryant, tight vocals, and a nuanced, unmuted trumpet solo from Springer. The best song of the evening, this was an aptly subtle, subdued arrangement. Another tight arrangement followed with the Duke Ellington classic "It Don't Mean A Thing If It Ain't Got That Swing," which featured nice bass lines, another cool "Harmon" mute solo from Stephens, and an innovative "pressurized" drum solo from Jürgen Velga which had him blowing air into his floor tom to create an orchestral kettle drum effect. Despite Albright's aforementioned bass lines, he attempted another "scat-bowed" bass solo that he should have left well enough alone after "Love Me Or Leave Me." The evening closed more languid than I would have preferred, with the gospel-inspired "I'll Fly Away" - a selection from the band's "Jazz Hymn Project". Albright made a solid attempt to lend vocal harmonies, but was thwarted by inconsistent microphone performance.

The evening provided a walk down memory lane for Mr. Stephens, an Olathe native. Many influential people from his past were introduced throughout the course of the 90-minute program, all by the night's emcee, Steve Matlock, whose speaking voice deserves the quintessential vocal compliment:  the guy has great pipes; think James Earl Jones, only lower.

Despite some drawbacks that I am convinced were isolated to this performance, musicianship-wise these guys have some serious chops. Stephens (with the exception of his dancing) brings an energetic stage presence and a unique vocal style that is, at times, favorably reminiscent of Harry Connick, Jr. and Michael Bublé. Pianist Walter Bryant displayed solid keyboard chops throughout. The evening's clear showstopper was drummer Jürgen Velga, who practically jumped off the stage with enthusiasm and granite-solid maneuverings around the set. Aspiring jazz drummers would do well to seek out an upcoming performance and treat themselves to a mini master class in the process.

While the show in its entirety would have been vastly improved by a better-balanced first set, it was evident throughout that The Dave Stephens Band deserves its place in the Kansas City jazz scene. Don't miss an opportunity to judge for yourself...

REVIEW:
The Dave Stephens Band
Friday, September 18, 2009
Bell Cultural Events Center 
MidAmerica Nazarene University ("MNU")
2030 East College Way, Olathe, KS
For upcoming MNU performances visit www.mnu.edu/bellcenter.
For upcoming Dave Stephens Band performances visit http://kansascityband.com/davestephensband/ or http://www.myspace.com/thedavestephensband.

By Christopher Guerin

Traditional and New Classical music, and Theatre Contributor (Past writer)
Christopher Guerin holds degrees in Music Education, Music Business, and Music Theory & Composition, the latter from the University of Massachusetts (Lowell) College of Music where he co-founded the college's Composers' Guild, and, in 1985, won the Artin Arslanian Composition Award. During college, he also obtained some musical theatre experience as a member of pit orchestras for Threepenny Opera and My Fair Lady. Since 1989, Christopher has been in the very non-artistic corporate sector, where his creative energies have been put to more mundane endeavors 

Christopher credits his musical motivations to his late father, who was concertmaster of the Springfield (MA) Community (pre-cursor to the city's current Symphony) Orchestra and performed popular music on radio in the 1930s. Christopher began his classical training in 1972 at age 10, began teaching at 16 (continuing to take private students throughout college), and traveled extensively with a youth orchestra - including to New Zealand in 1980. After college, and until 1989, Christopher focused on the business end of music as a successful sales manager for one of New England's largest music chains.

Over the past 20 years, Christopher's expertise has focused on medicine as a life risk underwriting officer for a large Midwest insurance group. His past duties included responsibility for risk underwriting in Pacific Rim markets where he traveled extensively to Indonesia, Singapore, Malaysia, the Philippines, Hong Kong, Thailand and Burma. Time permitting, he has continued to compose intermittently throughout this period. Christopher is married to Paula, a fellow musician he met during college, and together they have "composed" their magnum opera in three very creative children - an architecture student (go K-State!), an aspiring classical pianist, and a budding writer/journalist. He and his wife relocated from Massachusetts to the Kansas City area in 1997.