DIANA KRALL

THE GARDE ARTS CENTER

In keeping with her newest release, Ms. Krall appeared as a quartet rather than a trio as she has in the past. There was an easy and relaxed rapport amongst the well-practiced members of this group. They clearly enjoy playing together and this was evident during the fourth song, "I’ve Got You Under My Skin". Bassist, Ben Wolfe, and drummer, Shannon Powell, frequently passed smiling glances back and forth with one another while they played and Diana Krall really got into character during this Cole Porter song. Her warm and sultry voice transported the audience to the evening hour making one unaware of the chilly and inclement afternoon weather.

The band played an assortment of classic songs including "Peel Me a Grape", "Frim Fram Sauce", "Take the A Train", and "Devil May Care". The title cut, "When I Look In Your Eyes", from her most recent release shows maturity not seen in her first couple c.d.’s. Ms. Krall demonstrated that she is both an excellent vocalist and piano player. She is not just the latest pretty face. Given her talents, she is someone that can be expected to remain on the scene for quite sometime. For those of you who like the classic 1930’s jazz trio/quartet/vocalist sound. Pick up any one of Diana Krall’s six compact discs and you won’t be disappointed. You may even bring out the crooner in yourself or a friend.

Now I know why Willie Nelson’s fans love him so much. April 14th was my first Willie Nelson concert, and as great as the show was, the real fun happened afterwards. When the show ended Willie started signing autographs for his fans at the front of the stage. He signed, he posed for pictures, he signed some more. He didn’t stop signing until everyone who wanted an autograph got one. Before he left the stage, he even took one last look around to make sure he didn’t miss anyone.

That was only the beginning. A total of sixty people had backstage passes. SIXTY! Every 25th person in attendance had a backstage pass! Willie did a meet and greet with all of them. He was shaking hands and posing for pictures until everyone got what they wanted from him. Of course with my awesome Sound Waves connections I had more than just a backstage pass. I had the chance to interview Willie after the show inside his tour bus. (And the tickets didn’t cost me anything either!)

"Playing music. I enjoy playing music," said Willie when asked what he likes best about his job. "We got the best band on the road and have had for a long time if I do say so myself. (laughs) These guys will read my mind, they’ll know what I’m gonna do before I do it and it’s a lot of fun to play. Traveling gets rough every now and then. You get tired of being out there every night everynight doing the same thing samething, but overall that two hours on the stage makes it all worthwhile."

"I haven’t really noticed a lot of changes," said Willie when asked how his music has evolved. "We don’t really have a lot of arrangements so it’s gonna change naturally every night or accidently or whatever. It’s gonna change every time we play. And I think it keeps it easier to play, keeps it fresh and we don’t get tired of playing anything because we’re not locked in any way."

"Absolutely," said Willie when asked if his fans allow him the artistic freedom to do what he wants. "I got a blues record coming out on August 29th. And I have a reggae album cut and I’ve done some gospil and straight, hard core country and the fans like it because they’re all good songs. From ‘Stardust’ to ‘My Records’s Got A Hole In It,’ it’s just good music. People come up to me and they want to hear ‘Night And Day’ and that’s very gratifying to me." ("Night And Day" is Willie’s brand new all instrumental disc.)

"The people like it," said Willie talking about the willienelson.com website. "It’s a new way for your fans to keep up with you. And it’s something they can do themselves. So I encourage people to use it whenever they can. It’s like having a world wide store. We do chats every now and then too. I enjoy doing that when I go on there."

Willie Nelson has been a busy guy in the recording studio as well. Besides the aforementioned "Night And Day," there’s also a release on Pedernales Records with Kris Kristofferson, Billy Joe Shaver, and Waylon Jennings called "Honky Tonk Heroes." Also Willie got together with Larry Butler for a Hank Williams tribute on BSW Records called "Memories Of Hank Williams Sr." It doesn’t stop there either. On his own Bootleg Records there’s "It Could Have Been Tonight," which is a live double disc of a recent show. And of course his 1998 release called "Teatro" is as fine a record as he has ever done. I can’t wait t get those pictures of me and Willie developed. I’m pretty sure I’ll be able to get them signed the next time he comes to town.

- Bill Harriman