As both a pianist and vocalist, Kelly Green has attained an individual sound — a signature accomplishment for a jazz artist. But what’s more impressive is that she’s forged a group identity with her quartet, reimagining standards with smart arrangements and delivering her emotionally revelatory originals with careful but unfussy calibration.
She concluded a brief run of Bay Area gigs with two shows Sunday, Feb. 22 at Mr. Tipple’s Jazz Club, and the latter set displayed the many musical virtues practiced by the ensemble. Her group plays Sam First, on Century Boulevard in L.A., this Thursday, Feb. 26.
Opening with an up-tempo romp through the Jerome Kern and Oscar Hammerstein II gem “Nobody Else But Me,” she bent the tune to her will, blending words together and pulling syllables apart, adding a whole new series of twists and turns to the flow of the melody.
Green’s quartet is built on her well-traveled trio with drummer Evan Hyde and bassist Luca Soul Rosenfeld, which she introduced on her second album in 2018. Joined by flutist Elijah J. Thomas, the ensemble maintained an open, translucent sound. The effect was particularly effective on Green’s original compositions, like the alluring sing-song title track of her new album “Corner of My Dreams.” Her range may not be big, but her vocal palette contains a wide spectrum of shades and hues.
With no music stands onstage, the players kept their eyes on each other. Having internalized the music, they were free to make sudden shifts. While her bandmates don’t take many solos, Green gives them plenty of room to shine as composers.
Rosenfeld’s lustrous piece “Circadian” sounded like an answer to Billy Strayhorn’s “Chelsea Bridge” (which is to say, sublime). With Thomas on alto flute, a canny arrangement of “The Very Thought of You” levitated on the oft-deployed groove introduced on the Ahmad Jamal Trio’s classic version of “Poinciana” (which segued seamlessly into “Unforgettable”).
While Green accompanies herself expertly on most pieces, she occasionally gets up from the piano bench and tackles a tune as a stand-up vocalist. Her almost giddy rendition of the Judy Garland song “If You Feel Like Singing, Sing,” concluded with an operatic flourish. Back at the piano, she followed with her lyric setting for pianist Mulgrew Miller’s “Tongue Twister,” leaping gracefully from playfully campy to deeply hip.
Closing the set with a fleet take on “I Should Care,” she flung each line with righteous disdain as her staccato right-hand piano work accentuated each verbal punch. Tender and tough, zany and earnest, Green contains multitudes, and every one delivers the essence of jazz as an art form shaped by spontaneous decisions.
