Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

Mark Winkler at Jazz Live

In the two and half years I've been doing concert reviews, I've seen literally hundreds of shows--and without a doubt, some of the best ones have been Jazz Live presentations at the Saville Theatre. Gigs by Theo Saunders, Joshua White, Gilbert Castellanos, Christian Scott and many more continue to resonate as favorite memories for me.

Sadly, last night's performance by Mark Winkler was not one of them.

It was hard not to notice the preponderance of empty seats in the theatre, and I got this feeling, that maybe the usually sold-out audience knew something that I didn't. But, I remembered that some of the greatest events I've ever seen have also been among the most poorly attended.

This wasn't one of those times.

I had conflicting clues about the gig. On one hand, some glowing reviews of Winkler CDs from the likes of All About Jazz, and Jazz Times, who awarded his latest disc, Sweet Spot #5 Jazz Vocal disc of the year. On the flip side, a friend with serious jazz listener credentials warned that, " his vocals sound like fingernails on a blackboard to me."

The truth, as it often does, emerged from somewhere in between those extremes.

On the plus side, Winkler brought a crack trio of LA veterans to accompany him, including the imminently tasteful pianist Stu Elster, drummer Peter Buck, who handled all the grooves nicely and a wonderful bass player, Tim Emmons, who has a huge, woody sound and very solid time. However, when you go to hear a vocalist and your favorite moment by far was a bass solo...something is amiss.

Most of the evening, Winkler's vocals suffered from a lack of projection, indistinct enunciation and occasional pitch issues.

Certain things worked better than others, and there were some highlights.

Winkler models himself after singer/songwriter Bobby Troup ("Route 66"), and his covers of those tunes were generally effective and enjoyable. "Hungry Man," was sly and swinging and "Their Hearts Were Full Of Spring," done as an encore was pitch perfect, clear as a bell and emotionally connected.

"I'm Old Fashioned," and "Our Love Is Here To Stay," done as a medley came off pretty well. Winkler brought guest vocalist Delores Scozzesi out for a duet on "Sweet Spot," which seemed to bring out the best in him, perhaps because they were singing in the same range. She also performed Bob Dylan's "Just A Cup Of Coffee," with a wicked Latin groove and proved to be the better singer, on this night at least.

Winkler's original, "I Was Wrong," was another selection that really worked. His diction was precise, he hit all of the notes, and the tune itself was lithe and connected to a larger truth. If they had all sounded like that, this would be a much different review.

The trio got one spot as an instrumental, the always delightful Fats Waller gem, "Jitterbug Waltz," which was thoroughly enjoyable, as were the several brief solos by Emmons, who I'd love to hear again.

Photo by Mikel Healy

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all

Previous article

Lang Lang in San Diego

In the two and half years I've been doing concert reviews, I've seen literally hundreds of shows--and without a doubt, some of the best ones have been Jazz Live presentations at the Saville Theatre. Gigs by Theo Saunders, Joshua White, Gilbert Castellanos, Christian Scott and many more continue to resonate as favorite memories for me.

Sadly, last night's performance by Mark Winkler was not one of them.

It was hard not to notice the preponderance of empty seats in the theatre, and I got this feeling, that maybe the usually sold-out audience knew something that I didn't. But, I remembered that some of the greatest events I've ever seen have also been among the most poorly attended.

This wasn't one of those times.

I had conflicting clues about the gig. On one hand, some glowing reviews of Winkler CDs from the likes of All About Jazz, and Jazz Times, who awarded his latest disc, Sweet Spot #5 Jazz Vocal disc of the year. On the flip side, a friend with serious jazz listener credentials warned that, " his vocals sound like fingernails on a blackboard to me."

The truth, as it often does, emerged from somewhere in between those extremes.

On the plus side, Winkler brought a crack trio of LA veterans to accompany him, including the imminently tasteful pianist Stu Elster, drummer Peter Buck, who handled all the grooves nicely and a wonderful bass player, Tim Emmons, who has a huge, woody sound and very solid time. However, when you go to hear a vocalist and your favorite moment by far was a bass solo...something is amiss.

Most of the evening, Winkler's vocals suffered from a lack of projection, indistinct enunciation and occasional pitch issues.

Certain things worked better than others, and there were some highlights.

Winkler models himself after singer/songwriter Bobby Troup ("Route 66"), and his covers of those tunes were generally effective and enjoyable. "Hungry Man," was sly and swinging and "Their Hearts Were Full Of Spring," done as an encore was pitch perfect, clear as a bell and emotionally connected.

"I'm Old Fashioned," and "Our Love Is Here To Stay," done as a medley came off pretty well. Winkler brought guest vocalist Delores Scozzesi out for a duet on "Sweet Spot," which seemed to bring out the best in him, perhaps because they were singing in the same range. She also performed Bob Dylan's "Just A Cup Of Coffee," with a wicked Latin groove and proved to be the better singer, on this night at least.

Winkler's original, "I Was Wrong," was another selection that really worked. His diction was precise, he hit all of the notes, and the tune itself was lithe and connected to a larger truth. If they had all sounded like that, this would be a much different review.

The trio got one spot as an instrumental, the always delightful Fats Waller gem, "Jitterbug Waltz," which was thoroughly enjoyable, as were the several brief solos by Emmons, who I'd love to hear again.

Photo by Mikel Healy

Sponsored
Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.