While jazz music has been declining in mainstream popularity in recent years, Diana Krall remains a big name in the music world. Her stop at Fantasy Springs on Saturday proved she’s a masterful performer who knows how to entertain a crowd.
The stage setup offered a throwback to vintage radio days: There was a replica of what looked like a huge old radio from the 1930s; other items gave a big-band era feel. When Krall took the stage with her band, they opened with “We Just Couldn’t Say Goodbye,” from her 2012 album Glad Rag Doll.
At one point in between songs, a woman in the front row screamed, “I’m from Ontario, Canada!” Krall—a Canadian herself—said, “I’ve been there a few times. … I think I saw you there!”
Krall’s show offered elements of jazz from the big band era, Dixieland, and even some Latin and bossa nova sounds. A real treat came when Krall performed a cover of Tom Waits’ “Temptation.” Her guitarist, Anthony Wilson, and fiddler, Stuart Duncan, were fantastic as they kept “Temptation” going with improvised solos.
Two other covers were highlights in her set: Jim Croce’s “Operator,” and Bob Dylan’s “Simple Twist of Fate.”
Aided by a great band that also included Karriem Riggins on drums, Dennis Crouch on upright bass and Patrick Warren on keyboards, Krall put on a spectacular show.
Setlist
- We Just Couldn’t Say Goodbye
- Sweet Man
- Just Like a Butterfly
- Sunny Side of the Street
- So Nice
- You Call This Madness
- East of the Sun
- Temptation
- Simple Twist of Fate
- California Dreamin’
- Operator
- Just You, Just Me
- Deed I Do
- Boulevard of Broken Dreams
- Frim Fram Sauce
Photos by Kevin Fitzgerald
