Diva in Bloom
t the Leverkusen Jazz Festival in 1993, Shirley Horn sang “The Shadow of Your Smile” at a drag tempo. Her hands delicately drew sensitive harmony from the piano while bassist Charles Ables and drummer Steve Williams haunted each slow, slow, and slower beat with the leader. It seemed like the whole universe was subservient to Horn’s sultry, smoky voice explaining why it was all over.
