jazz vocal - Marc Pompe

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Marc Pompe
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JAZZ VOCAL
www.m arcpompe.com
[email protected]
630.595.6090
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Marc Pompe
J A Z Z VO C A L
Biography
[email protected] a 630.595.6090
Marc Pompe began performing around Rush Street as a solo
piano/vocal in the mid fiftys and was influenced by the music of
Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie and Thelonious Monk. Vocal influences
include Frank Sinatra, Joe Williams, Ella Fitzgerald, Carmen Mc Crae
and Jon Hendricks.
After 40 years of performing, 1997 saw the of Marc’s first CD release,
Nobody Else But Me, on Kopaesthetics Records. Cadence Jazz
Magazine said of the album, “Marc does it the traditional way,
full-blooded belting in front of a tasty piano trio.”
Jazz Vocal
In 2004, Marc released his Lost in the Stars album on CIMP Records.
On this album, backed by a guitar trio, Marc breaths intimacy into
deeply personal lyrics. The liner notes of Lost in the Stars sum up
Marc’s performance, “Marc Pompe is a true Jazz singer who follows
the thread of his own instinct while reacting to his musical surroundings,
all the while insisting that notes sustained are never lost anywhere.”
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Marc’s new album, You Must Believe in Swing, was released in
November of 2004 on Cadence Jazz Records. This recording features
Hammond B-3 wizard Joey Defrancesco with Henry Johnson (guitar)
and Byron Landham (drums). With the backing of this powerful B-3
Hammond trio, Marc was able to soar! Chicago Jazz Magazine said of
Marc and the album: “As for Pompe, he has two things that most
singers don’t: his own style and good phrasing. His treatment of each song is
unique without losing the tradition of singers that come before him.”
JazzReview.com says, “Pompe handles the American songbook with
magnetism and assurance.”
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Marc Pompe
J A Z Z VO C A L
[email protected] a 630.595.6090
Noteable Festival and Venue Performances
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Marshall Vente JazzFest JAZZ SHOWCASE, CHICAGO 1999 & 2001
Duke Ellington Centennial Concert CHICAGO HILTON AND TOWERS
WITH GENE ESPOSITO ’ S JAZZ IDIUM ORCHESTRA
Billy Strayhorn Tribute
1999
GATEWAY THEATRE
WITH GENE ESPOSITO ’ S JAZZ IDIUM ORCHESTRA CHICAGO
2001
Jilly’s NEW YORK CITY
42nd Street Sheraton NEW YORK CITY
Fairbanks on Fairbanks (Holiday Inn) CHICAGO
Jazz Showcase CHICAGO
The Green Mill CHICAGO
Green Dolphine Street CHICAGO
Chamber’s NILES, IL
Harrah’s Showboat Casino GARY, IN
The Drake (Coq D’or) CHICAGO
The Gaslight TORONTO
Billy’s WASHINGTON , DC
Eddie’s Backstreet USVI
Tramway USVI
Cardillo’s Club Cafe PITTSBURGH
The Mother’s Lounge PITTSBURGH
Encore PITTSBURGH
Martinis’ Jefferson Hills, PA
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Marc Pompe
J A Z Z VO C A L
Press Reviews
[email protected] a 630.595.6090
OneFinalNote.com • You Must Believe In Swing / Lost In The Stars Review
by David Dupont • April 18, 2005
Singer Marc Pompe comes to national attention with a tale to tell. Born in 1936,
he's been working as a singer for half a century, based out of his native Chicago.
But aside from a few cassette releases, he's never recorded, and hence not made
much of a splash. Writer Alan Bargebuhr heard Pompe during a one-night stand
in Pennsylvania and brought him to the attention of Cadence-CIMP impresario
Bob Rusch. Now neither Bargebuhr nor Rusch are known for being easily
impressed, but they were of a like mind on Pompe. The result is not one, but two
releases: the Cadence-issued You Must Believe in Swing, a 2001 recording split
between duets and tracks with Joey DeFrancesco's trio, and Lost in the Stars, a
2004 session recorded in CIMP's Spirit Room.
Opening the Cadence release with the title tune, Pompe and friends practice what
they preach. A medium up-swinger, Pompe wastes little time moving through his
own witty lyrics into some scatting over the changes of Buddy DeFranco's tune.
The song could very well be subtitled "announcing Marc Pompe". He has a smoky
tenor: a touch nasal, a touch hoarse. He sounds his age, the way a well-aged wine
tastes its age. He has a sure sense of swing, operating very much as a member of
the ensemble, rather than a singer with rhythm background, and he never sounds
like he needs the rhythm section to show him how to swing. When he addresses
a song's lyricism, as he demonstrates on "You Must Believe in Spring", he knows
how to turn a word, lengthen it or cut it short to dramatize its meaning. He's not
a demonstrative musical actor. Rather his low-key, seemingly offhand approach
belies the way he inhabits these songs.
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The program is well selected to show off the leader's skills. The songs come from
the jazz standards book with some evergreens like "You Must Believe in Spring",
"Chelsea Bridge", and "Masquerade", each of which he makes his own. But he also
makes his mark with the Marian McPartland-Johnny Mercer collaboration
"Twilight World", a song he invests with a hard won emotionalism. He and
Roberts treat The Beatles' "Eleanor Rigby" as a rollicking boogie, an interpretation
that proves unexpectedly fetching. It provides an interesting contrast to the
straight-ahead swing of the DeFrancesco Trio.
Drummer Byron Landham powers the ensemble. The band swings so hard, I shifted my attention to Landham to hear what he was doing and he was doing... noth
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Marc Pompe
J A Z Z VO C A L
Press Reviews
[email protected] a 630.595.6090
OneFinalNote.com Continued
ing, or at least nothing spectacular. He relies on the basics and a solid beat. At one
point under Henry Johnson's solo on "Gee Baby Ain't I Good to You", he pushes
along the guitar with a double roll: Brrrr-bhap! Brrrr-bhap! The organist and guitarist provide soulful solos that complement the vocals and never lapse into organ
trio cliché. Roberts provides support on "Twilight" as well as the Beatles tune and
guitarist Curt Warren duets with him on Strayhorn's "Chelsea Bridge".
Warren is a member of the trio that found its way with the singer to upstate New
York to record Lost in the Stars. Given CIMP's uncompromising approach to recording and producing, a singer needs to be confident to venture into the Spirit Room.
Vocalists are recorded just like instrumentalists. The two microphones are positioned to get the best overall impression of the entire ensemble, not a vocalist
with instrumental backup. Without a mike to call his own or the safety net of
post-production doctoring, Pompe, like the other singers who have dared to take
the CIMP challenge, finds his voice exposed, naked in both its glory and fragility.
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The recording achieves a bracing intimacy. I sense this is how Pompe hears the
music in his head and he delivers it unadulterated, forswearing any effort to play it
safe. The repertoire covers an even greater range including classics from the Basie
("Corner Pocket") and Ellington ("I Didn't Know About You" and "Do Nothing Till You
Hear from Me") books and standards ranging from classic swingers like "Lucky to Be
Me" to Kurt Weill's aria "Lost in the Stars". And he tackles a fistful of jazz tunes,
including Monk's "Well You Needn't" and Joe Zawinul's metric puzzle
"Rumplestiltskin". He spins all these into musical gold, both in reading the lyrics and
providing some capable scat. On "Do Nothing Till You Hear from Me" he delivers a
sweeping, cogent statement—transcription worthy, even—that sounds like it's referencing trombonist Lawrence Brown's set piece solo as much as the tune itself.
The "Lost" rhythm section of Warren, bassist Nick Tountas, and drummer Rusty
Jones offers a looser, more open sense of swing than the tight variety provided by
the DeFrancesco group. Warren offers up laconic guitar statements that fit with
the relaxed, four-guys-in-a-living-room mood of the session. Pompe sounds not so
much as a performer as someone who's just doing what he loves.
Regardless of his age, Marc Pompe is hip in the deepest, most profound way. He doesn't need the trappings of style and youthfulness. Pompe stays true to the music he loves,
performing it with the deepest love for its tradition and possibilities. That's timeless.
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Marc Pompe
J A Z Z VO C A L
Press Reviews
[email protected] a 630.595.6090
JazzReview.com • You Must Believe In Swing Album Review
Vocalist Marc Pompe is primarily known within his hometown Chicago and hasn’t recorded a whole lot. Regardless, if you dig Jon Hendricks or Mark Murphy,
then Pompe’s hip and thoroughly swinging persona should bring a sparkle to your
mind’s eye. With backing by Hammond B-3 ace, Joey DeFrancesco and his revved
up trio, Pompe handles a portion of the American songbook with magnetism and
assurance. As DeFrancesco, along with guitarist Henry Johnson and guest soloists
dish out some irrefutably groovin’ solos during the preponderance of these nicely
enacted studio dates.
Chicago Jazz Magazine • You Must Believe in Swing Album Review
January 2005 • by Michael Barton
You Must Believe in Swing is a CD that from start to finish shows the polish of
years of experience and soul searching. Joining Pompe on this project are Joey
DeFrancesco (B3), Henry Johnson (guitar), Byron Landham (drums), Curt Warren
(guitar), and Judy Roberts (piano).
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I have long been a fan of Henry Johnson and the Organ Express. If you haven’t
checked them out, it’s worth the night out anytime. Teamed with DeFrancesco
and Landham, Johnson really brings it home. His soloing and comping throughout
the CD show high levels of virtuosity and taste. His playing perfectly compliments
DeFrancesco, who has been shaping the way we hear the organ for years. On a
short list of B3 players that are staples in jazz vocabulary, he’s right there. To top
it off, he’s a better bass player than most guys working in Chicago, myself included, that don’t have to comp or solo on top of themselves. Judy Roberts: her playing on “Eleanor Rigby” and “Twilight World” complete this project, the latter being
my favorite cut on the CD.
As for Pompe, he has two things that most singers don’t: his own style and good
phrasing. His treatment of each song is unique without losing the tradition of
singers that come before him. I also must commend Pompe for his choice of repertoire. There is a fresh blend of songs that work very well together. As for the
recording, I say that a bad mix is like a fat man that stands up in the front row of
a club and talks politics at the top of his lungs. For this project, the fat man has
definitely let the building. This CD is right on the money with the blend each
musician brings, ant the blend the engineer put onto the disc. All this together
makes You Must Believe in Swing easy to take for even the most Ritalin-with
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Marc Pompe
J A Z Z VO C A L
Press Reviews
[email protected] a 630.595.6090
Chicago Jazz Magazine Continued
drawn, Nintendo-junkie, jazz fanatic-and you know who you are. It is simply a
shame that more people don’t know of Marc Pompe. So the word is: buy this CD.
LOST IN THE STARS Album Review, Cadence Magazine
by Alan Bargebuhr • January 2005
In the interest of full disclosure, I'll come clean without any coaxing. Yes, I am personally acquainted with Marc Pompe and, in fact, had something to do with introducing him to the Cadence conglomerate. I wrote the liner notes for his Cadence
Jazz CD (not yet reviewed) and find myself mentioned in passing in the notes for
this one. Does that mean my objectivity is compromised? Well, what makes you
think I'm objective, anyway? Reviewing has mostly to do with expressing opinions, particularly in matters as abstract as music. So, now you know.
I don't think I've ever been present at a Pompe gig, when he didn't slice through
the smoke and barroom clatter with a pointed reading of Randy Weston's "Hi-Fly"
(words by Jon Hendricks). And here it is, without any indecorous distractions.
And, what a reading it is, with its wail of bereavement in his urgent opening
phrase - 'Old ways seem to have passed us by' - and the exquisite bitterness in the
way he all but sneers the phrase 'acting silly while they fly..... high.' Add some
cookery by the trio between his opening chorus and the culminating close and
you have a 21st century dialectic, with bracingly strophic guitar from Curt Warren,
angular accents from Rusty Jones' drum kit, nicely placed notes from Nick Tountas'
bass, and an existentially suspended ending.
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All through the session, Marc sings as well as I've ever heard him, with the strain
of quizzical melancholia and amiable bop blowziness so seemingly integral to his
Jazz personna. He seems to have developed a way of reaching into the anatomical
innards of a song, using his voice as ballast to the lyric, reshaping phrases as his
grasp on spontaneity flexes. This is never more evident than in his speech inflected "Didn't Know," which he opens with the brief verse, after which the naturalness
of his exposition imbues the words with just enough pain to confirm his honesty,
but not enough to tip the tale over into self-pity. Curt Warren plays some lovely
notes along the way.
"Thrill" allows ample room for fervent soloing from Warren and Tountas and
involves Jones in some sprightly concluding trades. 'Nothing' opens on the
strength of the Tountas bass and allows the bassist additional solo space, between
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Marc Pompe
J A Z Z VO C A L
Press Reviews
[email protected] a 630.595.6090
Cadence Magazine Continued
vocal choruses. The entire trio plays resourcefully throughout the session, whether
in the lee calm of Marc's vocals or out in front, skimming the rhythmic breakers.
These are men who have worked together over the years and know whereof they
fit in the collective scheme of things.
Marc scats on Monk's "Needn't," biting off Mike Ferro's words with relish. Carmen
sang the same words on her Monk album (5/02, pg. 30), which lists the song under
the title, "It's Over Now." Ferro also contributed the words to Wayne Shorter's
"Footprints," turning it into something Darwinian, if not surreal. Marc added the
antic lyrics to Joe Zawinul's "Rumplestiltskin," and additional Pompe lyrics are
present on the Latin flavored "Dança," which features a melody by Carol Coleman
Novak. "Pocket" is by Freddie Green, was in the Basie book for many years. With
Don Wolf 's lyrics added, as they are here, it's often listed as "Until I Met You."
The Pompe ballad style emerges on his aching readings of Loonis McGlohon's
"Wine" and Kurt Weill's (words by Maxwell Anderson) haunting 'Lost.' Marc's reading of the latter is guaranteed to make the candles flicker as the shutters creak in
the wind outside. Something indefinable is happening as he sings, with some
lovely Curt Warren chording behind him. He must be imagining himself alone in
the cosmos, far from home, trailing the dust of his very own existence. Only once
through. I was truly moved.
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Marc Pompe is a true Jazz singer, in thought and deed, in the way he follows the
thread of his own instinct while reacting to his musical surroundings, all the
while insisting that notes sustained are never lost anywhere...... not even in the
stars.
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J A Z Z VO C A L
Discography
[email protected] a 630.595.6090
You Must Believe in Swing
featuring The Joey DeFrancesco Trio
with: Henry Johnson (guitar)
and Byron Landham (drums)
also: Curt Warren (guitar)
and Judy Roberts (paino)
2005 Cadence Jazz Records
Lost in the Stars
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Marc pompe Trio
with: Rusty Jones (drums)
Nick Tountas (bass)
and Curt Warren (guitar)
2004 C.I.M.P. Records
Nobody Else But Me
with: Larry Novak (piano)
Nick Tountas (bass)
and Rusty Jones (dums)
1997 Kopaesthetics Records
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