Mal Waldron & Danila Satragno - Magic Night In Borgio Verezzi (1994)

Mal Waldron proved repeatedly during his long career to be a superb accompanist for singers, in addition to his formidable talents as a composer and arranger. The 1994 concert recorded in Italy for Magic Night in Borgio Verezzi is a bit of a mixed bag because of the presence of Italian singer Danila Satragno. Though she obviously has potential from the sound of her voice, her difficulty in consistently enunciating the lyrics to "Rhythm-a-Ning" and "'Round Midnight," coupled with the excessive reverb from the setting of this live recording, makes it hard to enjoy her vocals. Waldron's playing is never in question, as he consistently proves himself throughout the concert, though the best overall number is easily his solo treatment of "A Night in Tunisia." The songs are also slightly out of order as "Here's That Rainy Day" and "Don't Explain" are both mislabeled with each other's title. Fans of Waldron who want better examples of his recordings with singers would be better advised to seek CDs by Judy Niemack and Jeanne Lee first. © Ken Dryden