Lily Sazz – What Just Happened
Self-release
10 songs – 45 minutes
What Just Happened is the debut album from Canadian pianist/singer/songwriter, Lily Sazz, a musician with a long resumé as a sidewoman and bandleader (including ten years as musical director of the Women’s Blues Revue Band) and, frankly, it’s an absolute delight. With a core band of Robin Pirson on drums and Carrie Clark on bass and special guests on nearly every track, this is sophisticated, modern piano-driven blues, which spans a wide range of blues and blues-infused styles while never losing its emotional depth.
The opening track, “Goodnight, Sweetheart”, is a slow, heartfelt, melancholic tribute to Sazz’s mother, whose final words to her daughter provided the title, and features some stunning slide guitar from Colin Linden, before “In A Hurry” comes roaring out of the speakers, kicking off with Jack Pedler’s cowbell (a nod to “Mississippi Queen”?) before Sazz’s jaunty, jazz-inflected piano perfectly complements lyrics that wryly address the frantic pace of modern life. Charlotte McAfee-Brunner’s bonkers trombone playing is a delight. The pace barely lets up with “This Train Is Rollin'”, a bluesy duet with Harry Manx, who also contributes a fine slide guitar solo while Scotty Bakalar adds subtle shaker.
Underpinning everything is Sazz’s superb, joyful piano playing and her resonant voice. She also wrote seven of the songs and produced the album, which was recorded and engineered by Mike Czech at Word Of Mouth Studio in Dundas, Ontario, mixed by Alfio Annibalini and mastered by Ron Searles. The tongue-in-cheek 60s’ soul homage, “Knack For That”, benefits from glorious backing vocals from Boreal (Katherine Wheatley, Tannis Slimmon and Andie Nussey) in addition to Bakalar’s güiro and cabasa.
The three covers fit perfectly into what is perhaps a surprisingly cohesive collection of songs. Jesse Winchester’s “Isn’t That So” highlights Suzie Vinnick’s vocals as well as her acoustic and electric guitar prowess. Vinnick’s solo blending into Sazz’s own piano solo is one of highlights of the album. Alan Parsons’ “Don’t Let It Show” might appear to be a curious choice but, accompanied only by her piano, Sazz digs deep to find the emotional resonance at the heart of the song. Steve Mariner’s harmonica soaks Sue Foley’s “Gaslight” in deep blues.
Sazz’s own “Better Stop” features the rhythm section of Scott Apted (drums), Wayne DeAdder (bass) and Mike Branton (guitar), with apposite lyrics that address climate change before the album ends with the totally mad and thoroughly wonderful “I Can’t Jam”, a song that was written just before it was recorded in which Sazz hilariously claims that she cannot jam because “my tunes are far from standard… I know the chords meander”.
Lily Sazz knocks it out of the park with “What Just Happened”. Superb songs, clever lyrics, crystalline production, joyful performances. Very impressive.
