JAZZ REVIEWS : JIMMY WITHERSPOON DISHES UP BLUES

The everlasting blues drifted into town on Friday and landed at Marla’s Memory Lane in the person of Jimmy Witherspoon. One could not have hoped for a more eloquent messenger of the blues muse.

Except for his opening ballad, “Gee, Baby, Ain’t I Good to You?” Witherspoon simply delivered every blues variation known to humankind. His demeanor variously saturnine and mischievous, Witherspoon can bring fresh conviction to hoary verses. You hear in his gutty timbre all the dues accumulated from his birth 63 years ago in Arkansas, through the hard times, the good years with Jay McShann and Count Basie, and the trauma of throat cancer that almost killed him six years ago.

Remarkably, the illness served only to expand his range; several songs Friday ended on a powerfully held low note. The blues are not merely second nature to him, they are the breath of life.

Still, no Witherspoon performance can be accused of perfunctoriness. His every gesture was meaningful; at one point he simply pursed his lips for eight bars, as if about to start singing, then burst into “Cherry Red” as organist Roy Alexander energized the groove.

Guitarist Gene Edwards and drummer Maurice Simon Jr. completed the backup trio.