Annie Ross Takes a ‘Short Cut’ Back to High Visibility : Movies: Her role in Robert Altman’s new film returns her to her roots as a jazz singer.

It’s been nearly three decades since Annie Ross last stepped on a stage as a member of the primal jazz vocal group Lambert, Hendricks & Ross. And although most jazz fans still identify her with the trio’s rapid-fire scat singing and stratospheric high notes, Ross, now 63, has spent much of the intervening years working as an actress and singer in theater, films and television.

Her role in Robert Altman’s new film, “Short Cuts,” takes her back to her roots as a jazz singer. Her interpretation of Tess Trainer resonates with dark memories of Ross’ own past, of the years when--like so many jazz artists of her generation--she lived the night-life highs and lows of uncertain employment, spontaneous partying, unhappy affairs (with, among others, Lenny Bruce and jazz drummer Kenny Clarke), and heroin addiction.

Ross and actress-cellist Lori Singer play the oppositional roles of Tess and her classical musician daughter, Zoe. Music is their only connection, with the polarity between Ross’ jazz vocals and Singer’s classical lines providing a textural counterpoint to the film’s overlapping stories.

“The cello that Lori Singer plays represents inner feelings and Annie Ross’ jazz is what we express outwardly,” Altman says. “I thought that somehow putting these things together and melding them would work.”

But Altman was careful to avoid stereotyping Ross’ role with familiar jazz repertoire.

“Bob said he didn’t want to have me do any of the familiar standards that jazz singers always do,” said Ross. “He felt there would be a different kind of dynamic if I did some things by more contemporary composers. And he sure was right about that.”

Ross got together with music producer Hal Willner, “and we went through a whole melange of stuff--by Bono & the Edge, Doc Pomus, Dr. John, Elvis Costello.”

Was it difficult for a dyed-in-the-wool jazz artist to deal with such atypical material?

“I just kind of approached everything with the thought in mind to make them swing,” she says. “And things like ‘Conversations on a Barstool’ and ‘Punishing Kiss’--which was the hardest for me--I dealt with as acting pieces. But I can’t say it didn’t take time, because I actually had to work my way through and through some of the songs before I could really get a handle on them.”

A recording of music “from and inspired by the film ‘Short Cuts’ ” was released recently by Imago Records. Not precisely a soundtrack album, it includes full-length versions of songs from the film, as well as a few items that appear in different forms. Jon Hendricks’ “Blue,” for example--originally recorded by Lambert, Hendricks & Ross in 1961--appears as an instrumental in the film, and as a Ross vocal on the recording. Similarly, “Full Moon,” by Doc Pomus and Dr. John, which is heard instrumentally in the film, is performed as a vocal duet by Ross and R.E.M’s Michael Stipe on the recording.

“This is the best work I’ve done in many, many years,” says Ross, “and certainly the best work I’ve ever done in film. And I’ve got to give Bob credit for the way it’s turned out. He’s very musical, you know--which should be obvious to anyone who’s seen any of his films.

“At one point, I said, ‘Bob, I don’t like this,’ about one of the songs. And he said, ‘If you don’t want to do it, don’t do it. If anything makes you feel uncomfortable, forget about it.’ Now that’s an amazing thing to hear from a director, believe me.”

Ross commutes between London and New York, dividing her time between appearances in films (she was in “Superman III,” “Throw Momma From the Train” and “The Player”) and London theater roles (“The Pirates of Penzance” and “The Threepenny Opera”). In the in-between moments, she squeezes in jazz gigs--including concerts in Belgium and France later this year.

At the moment, however, she is basking in the fun of a high-visibility role in one of the hot films of the fall season.

“This week I’ll be doing a reading of Raymond Carver stories with Bob and some of the cast members at a New York bookstore,” she says with a smile. “And then I’ll be working at the Bottom Line in Manhattan, singing some of these wonderful songs. It’s all very, very nice, and I’m just riding it like a lovely wave.”*