After Kenny Burrell ended his first number at Catalina Bar and Grill on a recent Saturday night he asked the audience if they knew the name of the song he just got through playing. Many did and perhaps one third of the audience shouted back to the stage, “Moten Swing”. They were right of course and the old professor was beaming. He has taught his children well. The song is older than most in attendance at this Hollywood institution. It appeared on
Burrell’s first Blue Note album way back in 1956, Introducing Kenny Burrell. Since those heady days for jazz, Kenny Burrell has been introducing several generations of “students” to the joys of his incredibly versatile jazz guitar sounds. He has been Director of the jazz studies program and professor of Ethnomusicology at nearby UCLA since 1996. Some of his pupils from the great seat of learning were in attendance this night.

Before the night was over we all would be schooled by perhaps the most recorded, and certainly one of the greatest, jazz guitarists of all time. At the age of 80, Burrell still has formidable chops.

During the break the musical icon visited with members of the audience and discussed old recordings with a near photographic memory. As far as his playing is concerned, he is still in a class by himself even though he has now been a senior for many years. On this particular evening Burrell played material from many different stages of his career. He also spent parts of both sets exploring the vast landscape in the world of Ellingtonia. He began his excursion into the Ellington songbook by playing Duke’s plaintive ballad “In a Sentimental Mood” and closed the set with a rousing reading of Strayhorn’s “A Train”.

The Kenny Burrell Quintet is Tevon Pennicott (tenor sax), Tom Rainer (piano), Roberto Miranda (bass) and Clayton Cameron (drums). They provided superb support for their leader and thrilled the audience with scintillating solos.

Burrell ended his six show, three night run at Catalina’s with one of his better known compositions, Chitlin’s con Carne’. This blues is the opening track on perhaps Burrell’s best known album, 1963’s Midnight Blue. This song has been covered by artists as diverse as Horace Silver, Otis Rush, Jimmy Dawkins, Junior Wells and Stevie Ray Vaughan. These five artists as well as countless others never took one of professor Burrell’s classes at UCLA for course credit but they still learned from the best.

-David Mac