Apparently, it is rare for Discus Music to suggest the musical content of a new release, but label owner Martin Archer enjoyed a live gig by this duo so much, which had included one Mary Lou piece, that he suggested to Adam and Johnny they put together an entire programme of her music. Here is the result, and it has been for me a wonderful education, as for my sins I had not previously come across this icon before now. One of only three women included in the famous Harlem photograph of jazz greats, she wrote and arranged for Duke Ellington and Benny Goodman, and was friend, mentor, and teacher to Thelonious Monk, Charlie Parker, Miles Davis, Tadd Dameron, Bud Powell, and Dizzy Gillespie, which is an incredible list in anyone’s book.
In the digipak there is a wonderful essay on Mary Lou by Adam, and why they chose the pieces they did, which were all recorded in a single day in November last year. Adam is on an upright piano, Johnny on snare drum, and together they are capturing the magic of a time gone by. I first listened to this in an airport, and the world seemed a much better place for this going through my ears as I was transported away from the hubbub to a different time altogether. Here we have a homage to a woman who was supporting her 10 brothers and sisters by playing piano at parties by the age of six, playing with Duke Ellington when just 13, and there is no doubt that Adam and Johnny have immersed themselves in her music.
Adam writes in his sleeve notes: “This album draws upon the range of Williams’ compositional work, from early boogie woogie hits (“Roll ‘Em”) and seminal early examples of Swing piano (“Night Life”) to barely known bop-era small-group heads (“Mary Lou Blues”) and her appraisal of free playing (“A Fungus Amungus”)… We also include (with one altered note) Williams’ contrafact on “Lady Be Good”, which was subsequently recorded as “Rifftide” by Coleman Hawkins and “Hackensack” by Thelonious Monk.” Adam and Johnny have produced a work which is simply incredible, a time machine which allows us to hear the inspiration behind so many jazz greats. This is already an album to which I find myself often returning, and while I can see me seeking out original music by Mary Lou in the future, I can only hope that Adam and Johnny will see fit to revisit her music and release another album in this series and their love of her style, their own connection to each other, and their musicianship, has made this an absolute delight. 9/10 by Kev Rowland
