Kris Adams: Weaver of Dreams

Like Debra Holly, newcomer Kris Adams has a strong jazz sensibility. A textbook case in mechanical ability, Adams has good taste in songs and sidemen, an easy, agreeable sense of swing and an obvious appreciation for everything from Ella’s scatting to Sheila Jordan’s intonation. But evident throughout Adams’ Weaver of Dreams (Jazzbird) is an emotional tentativeness that tends to dilute an otherwise promising set. The warm pockets that define Michel Legrand’s “Watch What Happens” are left unexplored, there’s no urgent longing in her “The More I See You” and “It Could Happen to You” lacks the muted exhilaration that makes it so sumptuous. Elsewhere, Adams undersells the witty sarcasm of Norma Winstone’s wily “Ladies in Mercedes” and misses the studied shallowness of “The ‘In’ Crowd.” Like any well-disciplined jazz student, Adams has learned to use her head. Now, she simply needs to open her heart.

Originally Published November 1, 2002