I could tell this is one of Malone’s favourites, as the solo lines flowed freely and comfortably. The easy medium swing melody switched effortlessly between a two beat and straight four. “Close Enough To Love,” a Johnny Mandel tune, was next. So I’ll call it “The Title Is The Hardest Thing To Get.” Shields has written a gentle and sensitive ballad here. Next was a yet-unnamed melody by Bob Shields. Kudos to Johnston for a lovely tune, which I thoroughly enjoyed. Shields opened up with a tasteful solo, then Malone took the melody. The mid-tempo bossa is loosely based on Bach’s Goldberg Variations. The trio warmed up with “On The Beach,” composed by bassist Clark Johnston. The setting was very intimate, and the vibe was great. Perhaps his chops were tired he struggled on a couple of occasions to nail obvious melody notes, but as they (facetiously) say, “Once is a mistake, twice is jazz.” No harm done. Malone was doing double gigs tonight, having opened the Steel City Jazz Fest with the Jazz Connection Big Band at the Waterfront Stage. My last visit here was to see the Jazz Connection Big Band, and I’ve not forgotten how great the room’s acoustics are. We were in our seats by 10:20 pm, joined by about a dozen others in the well-lit and superbly sounding upstairs room at The Pearl. The Pearl Company Upstairs Room: The Best Acoustics We were happy to wait in the beautiful warm summer evening with a cup of coffee. We got started a little late, due to the earlier theatre event “Stephen Harper: The Musical.” As the clock ticked, some of the waiting jazz fans considered asking for a prorogation of the play. Joining Malone and Shields was bassist/composer Clark Johnston subbing in for jazz tuba master Jay Burr. Trumpeter/composer Mike Malone and guitarist/composer Bob Shields opened the Steel City Jazz Festival Pearl Company shows tonight.
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