The
scene is Stampen (The Pawnshop), the famous jazz pub in the heart
of Stockholm, on a Monday night in March 1976.
Perhaps not the best day in the
week for jazz listening, but the place is crowded. A couple
of hundred people squeezed into the small space. Everybody is
concentrated on the music and especially on that little lady, whose singing
and presence on the stage never fails to keep an audience spellbound.
At the age of 81, Eva
is probably a better jazz singer than in the '20s. Her voice is now lower
pitched than in her youth, it is still strong and clear, and she swings
more than ever before. Like most singers of her generation, she
is also a real actress, without the pretentiousness of many “big stars”.
She has a great' sense of humour and a refreshingly unsophisticated approach
to everything she does.
This
recording can of course not give a complete picture of Eva Taylor's
artistry, with her dancing on the stage and her communication with
the musicians and the audience, but it captures as well as possible
the music and the atmosphere on one of her most inspired nights
in Stockholm.
We were
fortunate in having this great woman with us for a few memorable
days.
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