 Dana and me in Ekaterinburg at soundcheck I'm back from Russia. Oh! My! God! It was FREEZING. I don’t know how they cope! We traveled all over the place (see map up top -- although 11 & 12 should be 10 & 11) and everywhere we went ... it was relentless! At one point it was 38 degrees below zero. Cold like you couldn't actually breathe IN cold! They're so used to it there, they refer to these temperatures without even bothering with the zero bit. |
 I mean, pretty or what. It was super pretty, though. Everything was silver – silver birch trees, snow as far as the eye could see, frosted trees. If we walked outside, even Daniel’s moustache turned silver. And every morning the dawn cast pink shadows on the endless snowscapes as we rolled through the actual tundra. Meanwhile, we were praying that the train didn’t break down, because if it did you were dead. And when Dana and I went shopping for a hat for him in Vologda, I honestly think my eyeballs actually froze. But, weather aside, I had a wonderful time. I especially enjoyed being with Dana Leong, who I have been playing with for eight years but who I now realize I didn’t really know before. Billy (who, BTW, went to Russia almost as soon as I returned) told me that you really get to know who people are on the road, which (I realize from past experience) is so true. In Dana’s case, I found out that not only is he a fantastic and simpatico musician, but a beautiful, deep, soulful person. And John Stowell joined us all the way from Portland, Oregon. I also really enjoyed being with Даниил Крамер, the wonderful pianist who invited me. I think this is our fourth tour and probably the most FUN. |
 Dana and I were bunk mates. He had the top bunk. It reminded me of growing up with my "Goodness, Gracious Me!" brother -- we also had lots of adventures Even the train rides were less awful than I remembered – especially in comparison to the few times we drove for upwards of seven hours on icy bumpy roads in a tour bus (forget sleeping!) with bathroom stops that when you saw the actual bathroom killed any desire and need to use them. After a few of those road trips we were yearning for the relative “luxury” (and stainless steel but at least clean bathrooms) of the sleeper trains. But the views are better on the roads because you go through towns and villages of teeny houses with pointy roofs and chimneys with smoke coming out of them. We did wonder what people were doing living in villages of teeny houses with pointy roofs and chimneys with smoke coming out of them, in the wilds of Siberia, buried by snow half the year. But we didn't meet anyone we could ask. It is entirely possible that they were literally snowed into their homes. |
The audiences were amazing. The very first concert at the Omsk Philharmonic (all the venues were Philharmonic Halls) ended with a huge standing ovation from the entire place – even the seats behind the stage. We got lots of those as the tour progressed (ovations not seats! This (below) is the one we got in Kazan). And all the concerts were either sold out (including the Ekaterinburg Philharmonic which was sold out six weeks in advance) or nearly sold out. As for CDs, I sold 64 on my first gig, and then eked them out over the next two gigs, which was silly of me, because I wouldn’t have had to carry them if I’d just put them all out at once. |
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 The silver sequin dress It was wonderful to go back to places I'd played before. I saw my young singer friend Katerina in Ekaterinburg – who advised me to change to my silver sequin dress for my second set, which turned out to be excellent advice (and which I followed for the rest of the tour). And people remembered me and brought presents. I got so many flowers, a beautiful lilac evening scarf, chocolates, a genuine Soviet era women’s army hat, a water-soaked apple (apparently a great delicacy). Dana was given … er … a dried fish. Another delicacy, we were told. And sometimes audience members would lie in wait for your best song and rush up and present you with a flower or a bunch of them mid-set. A lot of women do this. I love this tradition. Feel free to copy. No fish, though, please. Oh, and no chocolates. I ate way too many on this trip as you will note if you look at the Minsk pictures on the euroradio site (below). |
 Click this image to go to link with all the pictures Traveling between cities and gigging most nights was very hectic and exhausting. We were taking 15-hour train rides sometimes. And at the same time I was having to proof the liner notes for the US Motema release of my new CD, Beyond the Blue (release date, May 8th). I hope you like it! By the way, Motema label-mate Gregory Porter’s new CD Be Good just dropped and is getting even better reviews than last year’s (Grammy-nominated!) Water. He is absolutely amazing, if you haven’t already discovered him. I am crazy about his voice, his song writing, his authenticity, his singing, his lyrics! Check him out. Meanwhile, I was so wiped out when I got back. I felt like a stone! We did nine concerts in Russia and then I left my band of comrades and went to Belarus on my own to do two more concerts (also at Philharmonic halls) with the great Minsk-based Apple Tea Jazz Band, which was phenomenal. More standing ovations. Maybe they weren't standing ovations, maybe they were people leaping up and clapping their hands and stamping their feet for warmth! For pictures of the first of those gigs – at the Minsk Philharmonic (and a review in Belarussian) CLICK HERE. There was even smoke and colored lighting on the stage! This was my 10th gig in two weeks. I was like one of those dolls that when you push the bottom they collapse in a heap and when you let them go they spring to life again. Backstage I was a crumpled, usually shivering (big places are hard to heat), heap. Somehow, when you go out on stage the crowd gives you energy. It's kind of magic. See how important you are! Without you ... crumpled heap-dom! |
Scroll down for more pictures of the whole tour, including my How to Order Food in Pictionary drawings, to get eggs in the train’s restaurant car. Dana filmed it, but hasn’t put it up on YouTube yet. I’ll let you know as soon as he does. And speaking of Dana, he will be joining me at the 55 on Friday, March 9, as a special treat for us all! Meanwhile, the search for a suitable venue for my CD release in New York continues. But if you know anyone in Philadelphia I’ll be playing Chris’ Jazz House on May 5 with TBA. And Scullers in Boston on May 16 with some of my amazing Beyond the Blue band (Steve Kuhn, Billy Drummond, Joel Frahm and Gary Versace). Send people!. Come! |
 But first … Long Island Winterjazzfest on Saturday with Tom Guarna, Sean Smith and Marcello Pellitteri. See you there, I hope! Saturday, February 25 Long Island Winterfest 2012 Baiting Hollow Farm Vineyard with Tom Guarna (guitar), Sean Smith (bass) and Marcello Pellitteri (drums) 2114 Sound Avenue Baiting Hollow, NY 11933 Phone: 631-369-0100 baitinghollowfarmvinyard.com 1.30 to 5.30PM $15.00 cover, includes 1 glass of wine and VIP discounts By the way, , the picture of me shaking hands with President Obama came the other day, but it will not be on my blog because a big sticker on the back expressly forbids emailing or disseminating it in any way. I'll have to organize a viewing party at my place. Meanwhile, it is a great picture, granted, it's not me hugging Mrs Obama, but it's a very close second because he looks so engaged and interested (I hadn't noticed that at the time), and Billy is smiling beside me like he ate the White (Chocolate) House cake. And speaking of eating .... |
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