From the quietly bruised opening notes of Good Morning Heartache, the US vocalist José James – coolly distant on the Ronnie Scott’s stage behind shades, choreographed moves and a brooding demeanour – looked set on judicious polishing of a new-star image, and on a straight replica of his fine Billie Holiday tribute album, Yesterday I Had the Blues. Two songs in, and he was struggling with emotion as he described his time as an unknown in London in 2006 before he was discovered by DJ Gilles Peterson. But from then on he was smiling, joshing with what he clearly regarded as a home crowd, pulling the Holiday songs in all directions, and letting a fine trio steered by Argentine pianist Leo Genovese do likewise.
On the recording, James had applied sparing but significant personal touches to Holiday’s songs, but here he let his resourcefulness rip, touching on his wider life as an R&B, neo-soul and original jazz-pop artist, too. Clues were already present in Good Morning Heartache, as he gradually began stretching the phrasing of the lyric, and turning its keywords into loop-like repeats of queries and sighs (“Good mornin’ heart, heart, heart, mornin’, mornin’’) against Nate Smith’s jolting drumming.
James’s empathy with Holiday’s understatement and with the fragility of feelings brought a mesmerising poignancy to Tenderly at first – but the engaging Solomon Dorsey’s freewheeling singing with his own bass solo swung the song into another space. James was soon into wild melodic swerves more reminiscent of Betty Carter’s than Lady Day’s; Fine and Mellow was funky - which pianist Genovese animatedly responded to in punchy chording mixed with sleek bebop lines - and the leader’s expressive pop-ballad voice beguiled the crowd on a fast account of his own Come to My Door. In splicing respectful interpretations of iconic materials with an open-handed pleasure in jamming with kindred spirits, James pulled off an unexpected and thoroughly riveting double-header.
