'Short Stories' by Don Macdonald
Is it a personal challenge to himself or the overdue exposure of a hidden talent when Don Macdonald records a vocal jazz album? It shouldn't be unexpected that a man already so accomplished at composing for choral groups, opera companies, movie soundtracks and more would try his hand at the kind of crooning he engages in on Short Stories.
On the album, the Canadian singer Macdonald brings a cagey, yet sincere delivery to three remakes and seven originals that can remind a listener of a less fraught Chet Baker in his lower register. Reaffirming his status as a polymath within his own project, Macdonald not only snigs his Stories, but accompanies himself between vocalizations on violin and saxophone; his contributions on those instruments accentuate an already limber accompaniment on piano, guitar, upright bass and drums. The addition of Macdonald’s wife, Allison Girvan, adds a sweet romanticism by way of her lithe soprano when she duets with her spouse on a couple of numbers.
Macdonald has so wide a breadth of interests that there's probably no telling how often he will commit to his fledgling role as jazz singer. But if Short Stories is any indication, he has it in him to excel in it as he has in other fields.
