No Music, No Concert Togs? No Problem for Cleo Laine

When the heat is on, expect professionals to come through. And the heat was definitely on for the Cleo Laine and John Dankworth ensemble Friday night at Pepperdine University’s Smothers Theater. Flying in earlier in the day with the three other players in their group, they were stunned to discover that their luggage was nowhere to be found. Luggage that included Seward McCain’s string bass, Jim Zimmerman’s drum kit and Dankworth’s saxophones and clarinet, as well as their clothing and Laine’s gowns.

Yet there they were on stage, on time, ready to go. True, the players were garbed in their travel casuals. But Dame Cleo (who received an Order of the British Empire from Queen Elizabeth in 1979), wearing a borrowed gown and shoes, looked as elegant as ever. And Dankworth, McCain, Zimmerman and pianist Larry Dunlap, working with instruments from the Pepperdine music department, only occasionally revealed the rough edges of having to perform with tools that were not their own.

Perhaps because of the travails that preceded it, the concert had an especially spirited quality, with Laine singing with extraordinary vigor. Her stunning voice, with its wide range, rich tone and remarkable flexibility, has been one of the wonders of jazz for decades. Although Dankworth’s original plan to feature some new music in an Duke Ellington-themed program fell prey to the disappearance of the group’s music with the balance of their gear, the replacement program provided plenty of opportunities for Laine to display her marvelous musical wares.

She sang superbly in a medley of Vincent Youmans songs, transforming “Tea for Two” into a sensuous, rhythmic seduction. Her theatrical versatility took center stage with a pair of songs based on Shakespeare (with music by Dankworth)--especially a gossamer rendering of the sonnet “Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?” Then, with complete ease, she shifted into the classic soprano line on Ellington’s “Creole Love Call,” followed by a jaunty rhythmic romp through “It Don’t Mean a Thing.”

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And that was only the first half of the program. The second half was every bit as good, with a moody, late-night interpretation of “I Don’t Know Why,” a gutsy “St. Louis Woman” and a briskly swinging “Ac-cent-tchu-ate the Positive,” all of it supported beautifully by Dankworth and his players.

But the highlight of the set was a gorgeous reading of “When the World Was Young,” in which Laine’s sumptuous voice was the perfect vehicle for the song’s touching but bitter-tinged blend of nostalgia and ennui. Like the balance of the program, it was the product of talent rich enough to transcend even the most severe irritants confronting touring artists. Dame Cleo could have shown up in jeans to sing the telephone directory and it still would have made for a great evening.