As many of you may know, I love jazz. I read with sadness that Ahmad Jamal passed away on April 16, at the age of 92. His music has inspired me for many years, and I am particularly in love with his composition called Poinciana (The Song of the Tree). On the CD I own, is a live recording of this beautiful piece of music. Whenever I close my eyes, the odd cough in the audience, and the clinking of wine glasses, dishes and cutlery makes me feel like I am right there listening to Ahmad and his trio play live at the Pershing Lounge in 1958 in Chicago, Illinois.
William Fox and his partner Patrick Reilly also enjoy jazz and they encounter Poinciana being played in a music shop in Saint-Pierre-Miquelon.
“That’s Chuck. He’s from New Orleans,” said the baseman.
“That’s a haunting piano riff,” said Patrick.
“A Latin jazz theme,” said Chuck. He stopped performing and swiveled around on the piano chair.
He was wearing a Navy Vietnam Veteran baseball cap frayed at the edges. He appeared around seventy, unshaven, bright-eyed with bony slender fingers. “It’s called Poinciana, composed by Ahmad Jamal. And debuted at the Pershing Club.”
To learn more about this remarkable musician, the following is from Wikipedia:
Ahmad Jamal was an American jazz pianist, composer, bandleader, and educator. For six decades, he was one of the most successful small-group leaders in jazz.[1] He was a National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) Jazz Master and won a Lifetime Achievement Grammy for his contributions to music history.[2][3]
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