Show proves Bacharach’s music still packs punch

The Bacharach Years, New Zealand International Jazz & Blues Festival, Charles Luney Auditorium, May 24

This was no tentative toe dabble or timid paddle through musical history, but a full body immersion in the warm seas of nostalgia; a voyage through the songs which continue to label an era.

‘‘This’’ was the unmistakable sound of Burt Bacharach which, alongside the lyrics of Hal David, launched Christchurch’s 2017 International Jazz and Blues Festival on Wednesday night.

The event, created by Tom Rainey, took a 2004 Christchurch Symphony Orchestra concert of the same name, reassembled the original cast, re-arranged the music for a smaller ensemble and, presto, gave a capacity audience in the Charles Luney Auditorium a truly Proustian evening.

For the Bacharach fans – and judging from the gasps and chuckles of recognition throughout the performance, a legion had filled the auditorium – it was an evening which simply couldn’t put a foot wrong. Like the songs themselves, it insinuated itself into the collective affections.

A quintet of accomplished singers (Jennine Bailey, Trish Rainey, Naomi Ferguson, Juliet Reynolds-Midgley and Nick Hollamby) treated the extensive catalogue of compositions with a deft touch and versatility supported by an equally accomplished group of musicians.

Beginning with the emergence of Bacharach and David in the late 1950s, the programme traced the irresistible rise to stardom of a partnership whose songs and music somehow perfectly balanced the confused and conflicted moods of the 1960s.

It was all there. The Look of Love, Always Something There (To Remind Me) and Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head.

Compared to the popular music which followed, 24 Hours From Tulsa’s tale of illicit passion and marital betrayal and the ever-soslightly risque What’s New Pussycat? is by today’s standards, coy stuff.

But as this week’s survey performance showed, they have endured where much else has fallen by the wayside.

If you dismiss Bacharach’s compositions as pure musical valium and an odd fit in a jazz and blues festival, pause to reflect that many famous jazz names, including Stan Getz and Wes Montgomery, were impressed and even inspired by compositions which can still pack a sizeable punch. – Christopher Moore

❚ The Cavell Leitch New Zealand International Jazz & Blues Festival continues at venues around the city until Sunday. For more information, see jazzbluesfestival.co.nz

Jennine Bailey and Tom Rainey were among the impressive performers at Wednesday night’s The Bacharach Years concert.