LIVE: Spider Saloff @ the Van Dyck, 10/10/09

Vocalist and sublime interpreter of the Great American Songbook, Spider Saloff performed a special memorial concert for her late husband Bob “Drake” Dudrakey at the Van Dyck in Schenectady last Saturday night. Accompanying her were regional jazz veterans Sam Farkas on guitar, acoustic bassist Otto Gardner and Leo Russo on saxophone.

Saloff has graced the stages of Lincoln Center, Birdland and the Agonquin, among many other prestigious national venues. Over the years Dick Hyman, Tom Harrell and Les Paul have been her collaborators in the recording studio or on the bandstand.

On Saturday, the evening swung sweetly with a variety of cabaret tunes, jazz standards and popular melodies deliciously crafted by Saloff and her band. That late-night musical intimacy was further enhanced that evening because of the absence of drums and even piano.

Review and photographs by Andrzej Pilarczyk