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Jazz
Is a Creature
in Japanese
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 Dolly Baker(1922-2014) |
Dolly Baker hates
"rehearsing." She doesn't like to plan something in detail
before a stage with an accompanist. She is a real Jazz singer and
she regards that "improvisation " is the most important
thing to play Jazz.
In another word, "Jazz is a Creature." She can't sing in her own way without the musicians who can keep up with her. In Japan, I believe there are many instrumental players to be accepted even in the United States. But how about vocalists? I think almost Japanese Jazz vocalists can be accepted only in Japan. Dead songs never taste good like cold pizza. I'd like to listen to living songs such as Dolly's songs. "Hello Dolly" is the opening song for Dolly's lives. She always starts her live like this; "Hello is my first name, the second name is Dolly." "Hello Dolly" performed by Satchmo had a great hit. |
| Dolly has been in Japan for more than thirty years, but she hasn't progressed to speak Japanese. Perhaps it's because of persons around her contact with her in English. Norio Maeda, a leading person as a pianist and an arranger at the same time. He likes to play with Dolly, because he can swing himself on the stage when Dolly sings along. Dolly released a great CD "We 3 + Dolly Baker" (Denon) with Norio Maeda(p), Yasuo Arakawa(b) and Takeshi Inomata(d) in 1998. The former CD "All Waves" (Sony Record) had a hit to sell more than 45,000. It's amazing to sell chic jazz CDs more than 40 thousand in Japan. However Sony Record had already stopped to produce this big hit CD. She is still singing even though she had a seventy-seventh birthday party in 1999; a special age in Japan called "kijyu." Dolly's new album "King of Jazz" (Columbia) has been released in May, 1999. She performed with Norio Maeda again. |
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Singer's Mental Attitude |
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Dolly told me that she never has any foods or alcohol within three hours before stages. Of course she never smokes. Maybe these are the reasons why she can continue to be a wonderful singer even though she has been wounded all over her body and also she had an operation to put a heart pacemaker in May, 1998. After that she said to us like this:
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