Nancy Kelly phrases like no other singer. Her range is amazing and her interpretive powers are legendary among the jazz cognoscenti. She scatted, she balladized and she ran the gamut from sweetly defining the ballads to power punching the up tunes. Cameras flashed and the audience roared their approval as Kelly sang her way into the heart and soul of everyone in attendance. Ella Fitzgerald had absolute pitch, Anita O'Day bopped magically and Nancy Kelly was blessed with all these attributes and more.
Llew Matthews at the piano comps with the best and this night was no exception. Chris Colangelo is probably the most sought after bassist in the business and Roy McCurdy is a drummer's drummer.
The Crowne Plaza's reputation as a fine jazz venue was enforced in no uncertain terms with this singing dynamo and her trio. It gets no better than this.
