Hello Week, Farewell Shirley

When I was still spinning jazz at WXCI around 1991, I had the good fortune to see Shirley Horn live for the first time. My evening at the Blue Note was a packed one. Those who know the club understand how they've flirted with the fire code, keeping the seating arrangements so tight (It's been a few years so maybe they've relaxed it a bit). Shirley was with her working trio of Charles Ables and Steve Williams, playing tracks from the current album at the time, 'Here's to Life,' uniting her with Johnny Mandel's stellar string arrangements. I have a soft spot for lush, melodic arrangements and that album always manages to hit that spot. But watching her perform with her trio, especially in close quarters, increased my respect for her love of simple, straightforward balladry. It's what she did best. I drummed up enough courage that night to try thanking her upstairs after that set, only to get lost in the crowd of other fans and some label staff. I did thank her longtime bassist, Charles Ables (who died in 2002), as he passed by to get some refreshment, so at least I made myself useful. I would see Shirley once more at the Blue Note, and once more in Saratoga. I'm sure glad I did. My heart broke when I read about her complications with breast cancer and diabetes, leading to the amputation of a foot. That didn't stop her from touring for a bit longer. I wish I could have caught her one more time. I say that about a lot of performers when I hear of their passing; but with Shirley, it's true. It's that voice, that soft but clear voice, that I'll always treasure.

Shirley Horn died October 20th at a nursing home in Cheverly, Maryland, outside her native Washington DC. She was 71.

Verve recently issued an anthology called 'But Beautiful: The Best of Shirley Horn.'