Saturday, October 1, 2011 St Paul Pioneer Press, Hal Davis
15 nanoseconds of fame
Semi-Legend: "Subject: Center of the universe? For a moment.
The lobby of the Saint Paul Hotel is a fine perch for people-watching and occasional celebrity-spotting.
As we listened in the lobby bar to jazz singer/pianist JoAnn Funk and her trio record a session for KBEM-FM Jazz88's 'St. Paul Live' series, also in attendance was English singer-songwriter Nick Lowe, who had just performed on Garrison Keillor's 'A Prairie Home Companion' radio show.
We watched members of at least three wedding parties go by (we stopped counting at three brides); then my wife said: 'That looks like the guy who sounds like you.'
Wallace Shawn,' I said. (Ain't marital telepathy wonderful?)
And it was. Emerging from the elevators was actor Wallace Shawn, with his longtime companion, writer Deborah Eisenberg. Shawn was in town for a program with the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra. Rob Hubbard, reviewing it for the Pioneer Press, noted his 'tone of incredulous exasperation that might be his trademark.' That's the tone some have claimed to hear from me, as in a squeaky 'Conceivably!'
Speaking of the Pioneer Press: Also at the hotel, in the St. Paul Grill's bar, was the former editor of the newspaper, Walker Lundy. But that's a more specialized sort of fame."
BULLETIN BOARD SAYS: "Specialized" is one way to put it.
JoAnn Funk Jazz Singer Pianist: Press
JoAnn Funk doesn’t sing a song as much as she whispers it in your ear. Sometimes her voice is silky and warm; sometimes it’s hot; sometimes it tickles. She’s part Blossom Dearie, part Dusty Springfield, a bit Nellie McKay, a hint of Norah Jones, a dash of Stacey Kent, a splash of Diana Krall (like a smoky Scotch on ice), yet somehow all those references to other singers with breathy voices fade the more you listen to JoAnn.
At first you can’t help wondering, “Who does she sound like?” and then you realize—she sounds like herself. It’s what we want from every singer.
Her new CD, Pick Yourself Up, is only her third, after Holidays (2000) and Solo Piano (2003). Her singing has changed since Holidays, which is mostly instrumental, though we get a hint of what’s to come with “Let It Snow!
Since 2008, she and bassist Jeff Brueske have had a regular weekend gig at the elegant Lobby Bar in the historic Saint Paul Hotel. In her liner notes, she thanks the hotel staff for “giving us a chance to incubate jazz in the Lobby Bar, where so many of these arrangements originated.” Good things can happen when artists have the chance to play together in the same place for a long period of time.
Pick Yourself Up is a mix of familiar standards (the title track, “Girl from Ipanema,” “If I Had You,” “Two Sleepy People”) and songs heard less often. The Gershwins’ “He Loves She Loves” (also covered by Stacey Kent, whose version is more straightforward) features deep, rich arco notes on Brueske’s bass and soft brushes from Nathan Norman, whose sensitive, expressive drums throughout make this a trio recording.
Leonard Cohen’s “Dance Me to the End of Love” was done a few years back by Madeleine Peyroux; JoAnn’s version is more inventive and seems truer to the spirit of Cohen’s original, while not sounding at all like it. Her musical pas de deux with trumpeter Greg Lewis (in his only appearance on the CD) is playful and unexpected.
Like many women jazz singers, JoAnn accompanies herself on the piano, and you realize as you listen to Pick Yourself Up how nice that must be for a singer, how ideal, to have a piano player who gives you exactly what you want.
“If I Had You” begins as a spare, sensuous bass-and-voice duet; when JoAnn adds piano (at around 1:15), it’s delicate and understated. She sings Jobim’s “Triste” in Portuguese, planting one foot firmly in the Brazilian tradition of spacious, relaxed singing, then lets her piano lead. Jeff and Nathan both shine. "Triste" is the CD's longest track and it’s delightful.
The arrangements are out-of-the-ordinary; all are by JoAnn. “You’re Getting to Be a Habit with Me” experiments with rhythms before settling into an easy swing. (Although, once you’ve heard it, you can detect the melody in Norman’s opening drums.) “What Is There to Say” begins with a bit of arco bass before turning into a song of pure bliss (“The dream I’ve been seeking has, practically speaking, come true… I knew in a moment contentment and home meant just you”).
In a nod to Dearie (and probably Maurice Chevalier as well), JoAnn delivers a sassy, upbeat “Moonlight Saving Time.” Hoagy Carmichael’s “Two Sleepy People” is the perfect ending, especially if you listen to Pick Yourself Up late at night, which I highly recommend
When does a hotel piano bar become a jazz venue? When the talent belongs to musicians who not only soothe bar patrons with refined artistry, but at the same time can engage jazz cognescenti with their interpretive skills and serious repertoire. Pianist/vocalist JoAnn Funk effectively crosses that line every weekend in the Lobby Bar of the venerable St Paul Hotel in downtown St. Paul, usually in the company of bassist Jeff Brueske, and sometimes with the added pulse of drummer Nathan Norman. Now the trio brings their combination of sultry and sublime out of bar and into the living room, or wherever one prefers to unwind, with the release of Pick Yourself Up, to be celebrated—where else? – in the Lobby Bar of the St Paul Hotel on Saturday, April 2nd.
Long familiar to Twin Cities happy hour and weekend audiences, JoAnn Funk melds her classical training (degree from UW-Madison) and jazz studies (with David Hazeltine and Joan Wildman) to the keyboard and microphone. She toured as a staff musician on the SS Norway after college graduation, then relocated to St. Paul where she has performed in solo, duo and trio formats, with long-term gigs at Orion Room, Dakota, Radisson Hotels (St Paul and University), Wayzata Country Club, and Zander Café in addition to the St Paul Hotel’s Lobby Bar. She’s also in demand as a performer for corporate and private events, casinos, concerts and festivals. Always a pianist, JoAnn began adding vocals to her performances about ten years ago, recognizing the charms of mixing piano and voice. Drawing influences from the likes of Blossom Dearie, Diana Krall and Norah Jones, JoAnn has evolved her own vocal style, to which she adds her own arrangements and a growing repertoire of beloved and less familiar, often quirky songs from the diverse books of Dearie, Krall, Jones, Nat King Cole, Otis Redding, Bob Dorough, Tony Bennett, Patsy Cline, Leonard Cohen and Boz Scaggs.
Teacher, composer and multi-instrumentalist Jeff Brueske brings his bass chops to the Lobby Bar weekly, as well as working with Sidewalk Café, the Willie August Project and more. After completing a masters in guitar performance and pedagogy, he was inspired to take up the double bass by listening to jazz greats such as Charles Mingus and Charlie Haden. A former student of Anthony Cox, Dennis Irwin and Rodney Whitaker, Jeff has played with Connie Evingson, Laura Caviani, Tanner Taylor, the late Bobby Peterson, David Roos and Reynold Philipsek.
Washington, DC native Nathan Norman earned a Bachelor of Music from the Eastman School of Music and studied with the Percussion Group Cincinnati at the University of Cincinnati. After teaching at the Duke Ellington School of the Arts back in Washington, he relocated to the Twin Cities in 1988 where he has performed extensively with area artists, including vocalists Debbie Duncan, Connie Evingson and Charmin Michelle. He’s also played and recorded with Bill Banfield, Nancy Bierma, Robert Huntley and more.
Trumpeter Greg Lewis has played with the Cedar Avenue Big Band, Alloy Brass and many other ensembles over his 30-year career. He's recorded with Fog on trumpet and French horn, and sometimes pulls out the pocket trumpet. An active jazz educator in the Twin Cities, Greg recently performed in Antonello Hall with two of the MacPhail ensembles celebrating the works of Charles Mingus.
Pick Yourself Up
While the 11 tracks of Pick Yourself Up come right out of the Lobby Bar set list, JoAnn reshaped each arrangement for her third recording. “Some songs are just marvelously enhanced by adding Nathan,” notes JoAnn, “and some, like ‘Dance Me to The End of Love’ [with guest trumpeter Greg Lewis] became something quite new, which was great to see. It's kind of cool because I really like the sound of the piano and bass on ‘If I Had You’ that would be what Jeff and I usually sound like. And then Nathan fits in so beautifully on the other tunes.” Source material runs the gamut from stage and radio classics from Gershwin, Kern and Carmichael, to Brazilian standards from Jobim to the songbooks of Nat King Cole, Diana Krall, Blossom Dearie and Leonard Cohen. And yes, you have probably heard many of these in the Lobby Bar, but the added percussion, and some new twists in arrangement, give the set a new feel, maybe more cabaret, and in some cases, definitely more daring.
The title track provides an enticing opening, one of several Nat King Cole hits included in the CD. JoAnn’s choice of somewhat dissonant voicings provides keyboard character, and the assertive percussion accentuates the stutter-stop rhythm, giving it plenty of “pop.” It’s also a perfect introduction to JoAnn Funk, vocalist, who brings a sultry girlish charm to the lyrics. Her light-as-air interpretation breezes through another Cole favorite, “When I Grow Too Old to Dream,” although the instrumental component really shines here, particularly Jeff Brueske’s swinging bass. And it’s Brueske’s solo intro and accompaniment that gild the duet track, “If I Had You,” with JoAnn vocally at her most coquettish, instrumentally at her most delicate.
The two Jobim tracks offer engaging interpretations, with “The Girl From Ipanema” reminding me most of Mina Agossi in JoAnn’s reimagining of phrasing that risks an X-rating; “Triste” (sung in Portuguese) is a soft envelope that wraps the listener in a tropical sunset. Bass and percussion work well together to ensure authenticity of Brazilian rhythm.
Leonard Cohen’s “Dance Me to the End of Love” is a centerpiece, featuring a marvelous duel between JoAnn and Jeff, dark and sinewy accents from Greg Lewis’s swampy trumpet, and the rhythmic, clicky sways of Nathan Norman. It’s definitely not a piano bar arrangement! (A hit for Madeleine Peyroux a few years back, this version has a lot more bite. )
It would not be JoAnn Funk gig without some Blossom Dearie, and the choice here is surely one of the most delightful—“There Ought to Be a Moonlight Savings Time,” full of swing all around, some particularly catchy breaks from Norman, and JoAnn’s sweet and playful vocals. It’s a voice that easily slides into sultry reverie to close the set with Hoagy Carmichael’s “Two Sleepy People.”
It’s a fine “good night.”
JoAnn Funk and Jeff Brueske are in the Lobby Bar of the St. Paul Hotel (350 Market Street in downtown St. Paul) most weekends, and with Nathan Norman celebrate the release of Pick Yourself Up on April 2nd, 7-9 pm (no cover). The CD will be available at the gig, locally at the Electric Fetus, online at CD Baby and I-Tunes.
On her latest album "Pick yourself up", she brings her soft, sultry pipes to the music...emphasizing the notes and lyrics beautifully. The song "Dance me to the end of love", dances her words with well arranged instrumentals from Jeff Brueske, Nathan Norman, and Greg Lewis. A romantic feel is felt all over the album...songs like "When I grow too old to dream", "If I had you", and "Moonlight saving time" all make you feel like it's 11 pm and sitting in the front row at the jazz club she's playing that night.
Hotel lobby pianist/singers don’t need to be aural wallpaper. Case in point is “Pick Yourself Up” by JoAnn Funk, ensconced at the St. Paul Hotel on most Friday and Saturday nights. At times, her breathy, girlish voice can be almost cartoonishly dramatic (think Blossom Dearie). Her voice sounds more natural when she swings on “When I Grow Too Old to Dream” or yearns on “If I Had You.” As a pianist, the Twin Cities veteran plays with style and verve, ably supported by bassist Jeff Brueske and drummer Nathan Norman. That rhythm section will join her for an album-release party. Jon Bream
...JoAnn's style is Diana Krall meets Julie London meets Blossom Dearie...a great selection of jazz treasures and fine songs. You'll dig her!
One of the most elegant spots in the city, the St Paul Hotel's Lobby Bar's gig belongs to equally elegant and classy pianist/vocalist JoAnn Funk and her usual partner, bassist Jeff Brueske. Sip wine, order from an extensive bar menu, and just sit back and enjoy music far more sophisticated than what one generally finds in similar settings--Blosssom Dearie is a favorite.
Pianist and singer JoAnn Funk is the kind of musician that venues like to see stick around. She has held down prestigious long-term residencies at top spots including The Dakota Jazz Club and the historic St. Paul Hotel. Trained in classical music and jazz, she's as comfortable with a Blossom Dearie number as a Ry Cooder tune.
Jazz Funk Pianist/vocalist gives historic hotel big-city vibe By Andrew Zoellner azoellner@pioneerpress.com Updated: 12/04/2008 05:47:19 PM CST Looking for a big-city vibe in downtown St. Paul? Check the Lobby Bar at the St. Paul Hotel. JoAnn Funk says it's a special place to perform. "Whenever I say I am playing there, people say, 'Oh, I love the St. Paul Hotel!' I don't think anyone would ever say that about another hotel," Funk said. "Oh, I love the Hilton? Hmm ... not." Funk played at the St. Paul Hotel early in her career. After the hotel completed renovations in 2005, she jumped at the chance to come back and play. Funk plays piano and sings; bassist Jeff Brueske adds support and a bit of swing. They play each Friday and Saturday evening through the rest of the year and continue their gig through January on Saturday nights, with extra performances scheduled during Winter Carnival. Funk says she's always loved the hotel. Built in 1910 by the same architects who designed Grand Central Station in New York City, it's often compared to its brethren in the Big Apple. During the holiday season, the decorations and lights of Rice Park twinkle through the main entrance. Funk's piano and Brueske's bass echo off the marble floor and elegant fixtures. Funk is a master of lounge swing. The classically trained pianist is just as likely to play something by Nat King Cole as she is to play Hank Williams or James Taylor. "There is really no one in the Twin Cities who is doing what we are doing on a regular basis. The jazz pianist/vocalist musician is not real common," Funk says. "I am certainly not a cabaret singer. I don't have a big voice, but people have mentioned that word to me because of the wide variety of songs we do."
"It's Beginning To Sound Alot Like Christmas and Here's the Music"
(reviews of 2000 holiday albums)
JoAnn Funk
This Twin Cities jazz pianist swings. She occasionally sings too, in a funky style. WIth her combo she keeps this mostly instrumental session lively
Press Release 9/12/08:
A bit of New York City in St Paul? Yes, if you are in The Lobby Bar of The Saint Paul Hotel, when JoAnn Funk and performs. The Lobby Bar is an intimate, elegant and hip bar recently (in 2005) tucked into the Lobby of the Saint Paul Hotel, where the people watching is always marvelous and everyone (including you) is worth watching. Where else can you find King Boreas rubbing elbows with Kristi Yamiguchi and Scott Hamilton, or Bill Murray one week and Neil Diamond the next?
Amongst the movers and shakers, lovely brides, downtown St Paul hipsters, Ordway patrons and famous people winds the perfect accompaniment, the sublime and swinging jazz duo of jazz singer pianist JoAnn Funk and bassist Jeff Brueske. Although she has her own unique style, JoAnn Funk’s voice will remind you of Blossom Dearie, Diana Krall or Norah Jones. She has an unerring sense of great song choices ...from Blossom Dearie’s “Rhode Island” to old chestnuts like “Two Sleepy People” to Hank Williams....to James Taylor. After years of playing she knows all the tunes you will want to hear but we like it best when she does songs we have rarely heard. Her subtle and tasteful piano playing is always perfectly supported by Jeff Brueske’s impeccable bass and swing.
The Saint Paul Hotel, built in 1910 by the same architects who designed Grand Central Station, is gorgeous all year and particularly stunning during the holidays. It calmly exudes elegance and grace without ever trying. Grab one of the sumptous couches (we recommend the much sought after spot in front of the fireplace). There’s nothing like it in the Twin Cities.
The Saint Paul Hotel’s Lobby Bar features excellent wine, beer, cocktails and spirits (do ask for the martini), as well as a menu of lighter fare. The Saint Paul Hotel - 651-292-9292..or JoAnnFunk.com.