Ask any true jazz fan to draw up a list of the greatest vocalists of the modern era and the name Dee Dee Bridgewater will inevitably appear at the top. Repeat the exercise for contemporary pianists and you’ll just as assuredly see Bill Charlap on the short list.
Draw a line between the two however, and the most dedicated aficionado would have no chance of predicting the outcome. The prospect of a collaboration proved daunting even to Bridgewater and Charlap themselves, who had never worked together prior to their first meeting live on stage in 2019.
“Chemistry happens or it doesn't happen,” Charlap insists. “And when it happens, it happens – boom! – instantaneously.”
That it happened and continues to happen for this inspired pairing of GRAMMY®-winning jazz masters is reflected in the title of their debut release as a duo. Elemental hints at the profound virtually subatomic level on which these two brilliant artists connect. In a relatively short but fruitful period of time – interrupted but not derailed by the pandemic – they have forged a camaraderie that soars past the chemical to the alchemical.
“The two of us have discovered a kind of musical melding that is completely inexplicable to the untrained ear,” says Bridgewater. “We’ve become a gentle force of nature, and people are astounded when they encounter it.”
Dee Dee Bridgewater’s broad-ranging successes speak for themselves: three GRAMMY® Awards, a Tony Award for her role as Glinda in 1975’s The Wiz, NEA Jazz Master honors, a Doris Duke Performing Artist Award, and the 2024 Bruce Lundvall Visionary Award, just to name a few of her myriad accolades.
“I have always been and continue to be a huge fan of Dee Dee Bridgewater,” the pianist says. “I was delighted at the prospect of us working together, but I assumed she would be guesting with my trio. When I was told no, Dee Dee wants to do this as a duo, all of a sudden a bunch of lights went on.”
Charlap of course is no stranger to working with incredible singers. He won a GRAMMY® Award in 2016 for The Silver Lining: The Songs of Jerome Kern, his acclaimed album with one of the all-time greats, Tony Bennett. He’s also recorded with Barbra Streisand, Diana Krall, Ann Hampton Callaway, Freddy Cole, Carol Sloane, and two beloved albums with his mother, cabaret and jazz singer Sandy Stewart.
As singular as both musicians are known to be as individuals their pairing is wholly unique, calling to mind nonpareil duos of the past from Ella and Louis to Billie and Prez.
“There's such a joy that emanates from what we're doing,” adds Bridgewater. “Every time we perform together is a kind of spiritual release for me. I always know that it's going to be something special and unique and tremendous and momentous. I'm really happy that we both said yes to this adventure.”
Photo credit: Evelyn Freja
