Chuchito Valdés at the Jazz Showcase, Chicago, Illinois, 30 June 2017
Photos and commentary by Bill Tilford, all rights reserved 

It would take a good videographer (which I am not) to do full justice to a Chuchito Valdés concert; although his piano still does most of the talking for him, he is in every other aspect a showman. The piano is not just a piano, but also a full percussion instrument and at times even a dance partner.  He is using the same set list that he has used in recent trio performances, but he had different sidemen this time (Freddy Quintero on bass and Luis Prieto on drums), and his interpretations of the material seem a little deeper each time with a corresponding amount of emotion.  As long as he puts that much depth and emotion into the interpretations, he is still more than worth the price of admission. 


He began the set wearing a brown jacket but doffed it later to reveal what may be an artifact from the Irakere era underneath.   Since the Jazz Showcase is a temple to Charlie Parker, one of the highlights of the evening was a completely straight-ahead version of Billie's Bounce.  If he chose, Chuchito could credibly spend his time playing BeBop.   Incidentally, if you ever listen to Chekere Son by Irakere (credited to Paquito D'Rivera), go back and listen to Billie's Bounce afterwards. You'll notice something interesting if you listened carefully both times.  
Kudos to the Jazz Showcase for presenting Chuchito Valdés and also Jane Bunnett and Maqueque recently