Robert "Baabe" Irving III

Velvet Lounge
Chicago, IL
Monday, May 26, 2008

Robert Irving Group

Story and Photos by James Walker, Jr.
Who else to commemorate the late great Miles Davis's birthday but none other than pianist virturoso Robert "Baabe" Irving 111. You see, Baabe intimately knew Miles as he for several years in the 80's was not only Miles's pianist, but also his musical director. During the course of the evening of May 26th, Baabe adeptly gave homage to one of America's true musical genius' while at the same time, enlightening the audience with anecdotes about this very complex trumpeter.

He was joined on this evening by a group of exceptional musicians. Charles "Rick" Heath, touring drummer for the Broadway production of "Color Purple" held down the beat on the drums, Junius Paul, budding superstar produced the bass line, Walter Henderson, longtime colleague of Baabe, was the trumpeter, young Scott Williamson produced the Sax line with his smooth guitar and Dede Sampaio, who once performed with Miles in Chicago, was the extraordinaire percussionist with his array of instruments.

Before a standing room only crowd at Fred Anderson's legendary Velvet Lounge,this Miles birthday celebration opened with "Dear Old Stockholm," a Swedish folk song. On this number, all ensemble members had an opportunity to "warm up" with extended solos. It was quite evident from the start that all would share in the spotlight during the evening.

"Seven Steps to Heaven" was the the second selection and bassist Junius Paul stood out without an extended solo. It's a beautiful sight to see Junius work as he produces such a distinctive bass sound that's easily recognized above the sounds of soloists. His congruent bass seems to always complement the others without stepping on their notes. It was also during this number that Rick Heath stood out with his rapid fire drumming. Rick, one of the finest drummers in Chicago has been soley missed , but on this evening, he brought back fond memories of his past exceptional play. Other ensemble members even turned around to get a glimpse of what he was producing.

Before the band played Herbie Hancock's "Riot," Baabe told the story about being called into Miles's dressing room in order for Miles to see what Baabe was wearing for the night, for it wasn't until then that he would select his outfit. He used Baabe as his standard and never wanted to be "outdressed" by Baabe. Irving also indicated that "Riot" was one of the few Hancock songs that Miles ever played. He didn't elaborate on the issue Miles had with Herbie. On this number, Dede Sampaio stood out with his very unique percussion instrument, the tamborica. This instrument is tantamount to conjoining "tom toms" being played like a machine. It was truly a sight to see Dede on this instrument. This was just one of an array of "bells and whistles" that Dede brought with him this evening. Baabe and Paul both had nice extended solos during this selection.

One of the final selections of the first set was "It;s About Time".It was on this number that trumpeter Walter Henderson appeared to be experiencing difficulties with his lips. Nevertheless, he didn't allow a little discomfort inhibit his task at hand. He and Dede participated in a friendly segment of "call and response." Also, Heath continued to display powerful drumming on this number using all pieces of his drum kit with sticks, hands, elbows etc. He's amazing and always seems to stay within the melody during his extended solo.

As previously mentioned,Baabe is a wealth of information about the life of Miles. He shared the story about how Miles began painting as therapy after suffering from a stroke in the eighties. It was during one of his visits to New York that Miles urged him to undertake the same challenge and eventually, Baabe did just that. One of his paintings ,a portrait of Fred Anderson, hangs in the foyer of the Velvet. Baabe presented it to Fred when they opened the New Velvet several years ago. It was also during this period that at the age of 26, Baabe began working with Miles as an arranger and composer. Miles hadn't returned to playing as of yet but developed a bond with Baabe which eventually resulted in Baabe becoming his pianist and musical director. Miles didn't like to rehearse and wanted Baabe to be the liason between the band and himself.

They began the 2nd set with a few pieces that Baabe assisted on including "Man With the Horn." Guitarist Scott Williamson, new to the Chicago area, was highlighted on the later number. This was his first gig with Baabe and it was quite evident that he was being very cautious with his phrasing and never actually unleashed on his guitar in a manner that this listener believes he's capable of. He constantly looked toward Baabe for guidance and never seemed very comfortable playing with these seasoned veterans.

"Code MD", written by Baabe for Miles, gave trumpeter Walter Henderson another opportunity to showcase his "Miles like" skills with nice short, sharp bursts. This was perhaps his finest moment of the evening dispite the problem he continued to have with his lip. It was also during this number that virtuoso Corey Wilkes sat in with the band in typical spirited Corey style.As usual, he was right on point.

One of the final selections of the night, "Decoy", gave all an opportunity to really stretch on solos in addition to playing in unison. It began with a stirring duo between, pecussionist Sampaio, and drummer Heath. These two worked so well together all night and this number was well received by this appreciative audience.

What an experience that Baabe and his ace bandmates gave the Velvet audience during Miles Davis's birthday comemoration. Baabe's patience and flexibility was quite apparent in this environment as he took his time to share stories about Miles as well as taking the audience on a historical journey in the life of this very complex and misunderstood giant of a musician, Although this band had never performed together, they were a very tight unit on this evening and those present can attest to having a better awareness of Miles and his continued effort to keep his music fresh and on the cutting edge. Again, HAPPY BIRTHDAY MILES.!!!!!!!!!