Don Byron@Largo07.10.08
By George W. Harris

It’s been a few years since iconoclast reedist Don Byron played in LA. The last time he was here, he was the torch carrier for new directions of the unwieldy clarinet. This time around, after having put out a disc in tribute to Junior Walker, Byron not only brought his tenor to stage, but added the extra partner of bass clarinet in a wide ranging show that highlighted the diversity if ideas that can emanate from this searching artist.

The band itself, which simply consisted of Byron with LA stars Marvin “Smitty” Smith (drums) and Billy Childs (piano) seemed, without a bassist, a bit of a stretch, until Byron opened up with “Somebody Loves Me”, creating a mood similar to the classic Benny Goodman bass-less trio. On tenor, his deep sub-tones on the a cappella intro to “Body and Soul” emphasized substance over style. Childs’ upright piano, with it’s bright tone, and elk shaped overhead light, completed the atmosphere, as he took great strides (pun intended) to capture the mood. Byron was able to take a bop classic light “Giant Steps”, start it out as a Honky Tonk, and veer it off into outer-galactica before retuning it to the planet terra. Even more rewarding was when guitarist/vocalist Joe Henry joined the stage, which had him linking his Tom Waits/Curtis Stigers street sounds to Byron’s bass clarinet on a gorgeous reading of “I Can’t Get Started.” With Byron on clarinet, the bluesy “Already Said” was delivered by Henry with perfect wit and drive. Closing on tenor with a Latinized “You Don’t Know What Love Is”, Byron showed that no moss gathers under his feet; he’s always moving forward.