Podcast 954: A Conversation with Joe Alterman about Les McCann

Straight No Chaser - A Jazz Show

Pianists Joe Alterman and Les McCann make something of an odd couple. The pair are separated in age by more than half a century; McCann is confined to a medical rehab facility in Los Angeles, while Alterman left New York City to return to his native Atlanta, Georgia six years ago. But since their paths first crossed back in 2012, according to Alterman, “barely a day has passed that we haven't chatted.”

So it's only natural that Alterman's trio would evenually tackle the McCann songbook, and now we have Joe Alterman Plays Les McCann: Big Mo & Little Joe. Bassist Kevin Smith and drummer Justin Chesarek add the necessary swing as Alterman reimagines and erharmonizes his friend's tunes, some of them more than sixty years old.

From the gospel roar of the opening "Gone On and Get That Church" through tender ballads like Dorene Don;t Cry" and the moving conclusion (co-written by McCann and Alterman) "Don't Forget to Love Yourself," Alterman leads us through tunes that perhaps should have gotten more notice over the years. If nothing else, Big Mo & Little Joe.gives the listener a peak into the compositions and craft of an underrated jazz master, Les McCann. Musical selections include "Gone On and Get That Church" and Don't Forget to Love Yourself."