George Duke and Al Jarreau have been friends for many years since Jarreau began singing in a little club in San Francisco where Duke’s Trio played. Now they join forces for a tour that brings them to Wolf Trap for an evening to savor and remember.
“Our careers have gone in different directions, but now that we’re old fellows it seemed a good time to get together again,” Duke said. “We first rehearsed this show in February to perform it in Seattle before I left for Europe. Since then we’ve tweaked it a little, but it’s basically the same with just four guys on stage. He’s doing his own thing with his band and I with mine. I love the guy and admire his staying power, so it will be fun touring with him to the end of the year. With the music business being what it is, we’ve gone back to doing what we were doing in the beginning by playing for live audiences everywhere.”
Eight days before they reach Wolf Trap, Duke’s latest CD, “Deja Vu,” is released. The title number is the clue it’s a retrospective of the music he has done in the past. Most of it is instrumental, a veritable treat for the ears that incorporates old synthesizers he took out of his locker and dusted off. Although we think of Duke as one of the greatest keyboardists ever, he plays drums on “What Goes Around Comes Around.” He is quick to clarify that they are computer drums, although they are difficult to distinguish from real drums.
“I worked on that to make certain it came out exactly as I wanted,” he said. “All the numbers are styles I’ve loved from the past, and since I was kind of in a hurry to finish it before we took off on our six-week tour, that gave me all the more impetus to get it out. The old analog sounds give a different feeling. Along with the old, I also use new devices which are a little more on the left side musically with daring moments that are stretched beyond what we hear today when so many musicians have grown conservative.”
Throughout the years, Duke has worked with the likes of Frank Zappa, Cannonball Adderly, Stanley Clarke and Miles Davis. Ray Charles was equally instrumental in his development. While Charles was initially influenced by church music, he turned it into secular styles. The beauty of music created by these diverse artists has enriched Duke’s own output. In keeping with his outgoing personality and desire to help young musicians along the way, he returns to Washington in October for the Thelonius Monk competition.
Duke cannot suppress his outgoing personality even over the telephone. He loves to laugh, loves what he does for people, and regards the smiles on all the faces before him as a blessing.
“I like to draw the audience into an experience we can share,” he said. “It’s not just me performing for them. I want their involvement and for them to have a good time. When we come to Wolf Trap, Al and I will go to different musical planets, he to his own galaxy, and the Trio to ours.”
