There are many charms to the narrow underground jazz bar known as the Elephant Room, located at 315 Congress Ave. Other than the appropriately hazy atmosphere and dark mood lighting, there is often very good music being performed. Jeff Lofton's performance last Thursday night was a satisfying and stimulating one, but because of the program's title, "All Miles 1950s," that was not a surprising outcome.
There aren't very many people for whom Miles Davis' output during the 1950s doesn't qualify as good music, so Lofton's performance immediately had an advantage. However, Lofton didn't deliver rote performances of the Miles classics. He energized them and gave an expert example of how jazz music is always reinventing itself when performed live.
Lofton's playing obviously owes much to Miles' influence. Throughout the night, Lofton replicated Davis' trademark style very well, but still managed to bring his own personality to the music. Lofton has a more full-bodied sound than Miles did, and while he has a lot of space between his melodic ideas, those ideas have more activity than you would hear in the solos on Kind of Blue.
Lofton's backing band of Marc Devine (piano), Chris Budham (bass), Steve Schwelling (drums) and Sam Lipman (sax) kept along in stylistic lockstep. While they provided immaculate backing, the only two performers who really stood out were Lofton and Lipman's searing tenor. The contrast between the clipped Lofton and the long-winded Lipman powerfully recalled the John Coltrane-Miles Davis dynamic.
The only real complaint one was left with involved Lofton's unwillingness to speak to the audience. There were long intervals between songs; he could've at least introduced the next number. Maybe he felt that the material was so iconic he didn't have to talk about it. Some songs are instantly recognizable - "Bye Bye Blackbird," "Move" - but a little performer-to-audience interaction would've been nice.
There isn't much bar space at the Elephant Room on nights like last Thursday, which is alright because the music carries well through the entire building. When that music is Miles Davis as played by the Jeff Lofton Quintet, it makes for a good evening.
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