Singer Ron Kaplan keeps the flame burning brightly to illuminate jazz standards, the Great American Songbook and the classic sound of singers of the Fifties.  On his fifth album, SALOON, he boils his sound down to the intimate essence of simply his voice backed by acoustic pianist Weber Iago as they freshly arrange and stroll through a delightful set of standards.

The epitome of a "saloon singer," Kaplan has a rich, warm voice that goes down like the finest whiskey.  People have congregated in saloons for hundreds of years to relax, unwind, have a drink, find companionship and listen to entertainers, most often a piano player and a singer.  Although a studio recording, SALOON, subtitled THE RON KAPLAN * WEBER IAGO ALBUM, captures that wonderful warmth and intimacy of a classy barroom with a tiny stage that features a small group performing jazzy showtunes and standards.

Ron Kaplan's SALOON and his other CDs are available at online sites (such as cdbaby.com, towerrecords.com), digital download locations (including iTunes.com, rhapsody.com) and Kaplan's own ronkaplan.com.

In addition to his career as a concert performer and recording artist, Kaplan also is the founder and executive director of The American Songbook Preservation Society, a non-profit organization whose mission statement is: "To preserve our cultural treasure known as the Great American Songbook by performing this music at home and abroad as Ambassadors of Song."  For more information, go to greatamericansongbook.org.  "The Great American Songbook is full of what is known as popular standards -- great songs written generally between 1920 and 1960, most often for Broadway shows or Hollywood musical films, but sometimes simply in the Tin Pan Alley tradition of pianists and lyricists working together to create quality material for the big bands or the pop singers of the day."

From his toddler-days onward, Kaplan's parents indoctrinated him with the great singers of 1950s.  His earliest influences were Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald, Nat King Cole, Mel Torme, Dean Martin, Sarah Vaughn, Sammy Davis Jr., and Louis Armstrong among others.  Although Kaplan went through his folk, rock and instrumental-jazz stages, he returned about a decade ago to his first love, those songbook standards, and began his recording career with a style reminiscent of those great jazz vocalists he first heard as a child.  "When you are working within any musical genre, the most difficult thing is to find your own voice," explains Kaplan.  "I have had to purposely avoid Sinatra's phrasing, for example, to force myself to develop my own style.  The other key is that I choose material that moves me, that means something special to me, that I can relate to.  That way I can get to the heart of the song and truly inhabit it."

In the past few years Kaplan has performed in Las Vegas, London, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco and Washington DC.  He has made television appearances on "Musician's Weekly" and "BETonJazz."  He has played with musicians such as pianists Shelly Berg, Smith Dobson, Geoff Eales, Tom Garvin, Mark Levine and Jessica Williams; guitarist Larry Scala; bassists Art Davis, Stan Poplin and Tom Warrington; horn-players Paul Contos, Ted Curson, Kenny Stahl, Dmitri Matheny and Donny McCaslin Jr.; and drummers Dan Brubeck, Donald Dean, Tootie Heath, Peppe Merolla and Matt Wilson.  Critics have praised Kaplan's sophisticated phrasing, tone and diction.

Kaplan's previous albums featured him singing standards while fronting jazz bands.  HIGH STANDARDS had piano, bass and drums as well as two sax players.  On LOUNGING AROUND, Kaplan worked with a guitarist instead of a pianist and on some tracks used organ and flugelhorn.  DEDICATED again featured piano, but utilized three saxophones as well as flugelhorn, flute and some strings.  On JAZZ AMBASSADORS, Kaplan pared it down to simply piano, bass and drums.  Now on SALOON, he went a step further, back to the classic sound of one voice co-mingling with the elegance of an acoustic piano.

"My original inspiration for SALOON was THE TONY BENNETT-BILL EVANS ALBUM from 1975.  I always loved the simplicity of the concept, but also the magical interplay between the voice and the keys.  In this setting the singer is right up front, right in the listener’s ears where they can hear every lyric and every nuance."

For SALOON, Ron chose songs near-and-dear to his heart.  He begins with Duke Ellington's "I'm Just a Lucky So and So."  "This is my theme song.  I live in Santa Cruz, California, a medium-sized town where I see many people I know when I walk down the street.  This tune reminds me to always appreciate what I have."  Sinatra's "It Was a Very Good Year" follows those same sentiments.  "I've always liked this song, but I didn't want to record it until I was mature enough.  It's best to have some strong life experiences under your belt when you sing certain songs so you can project the deep feelings they call up."  Kaplan covers three classic George Gershwin tunes, the first a medley of "'S Wonderful/I Got Rhythm" followed by "Nice Work If You Can Get It."  "I picked two Antonio Jobim numbers, 'Desafinado' and 'Agua de Beber,' because Weber Iago is from Brazil.  A lot of singers have done 'Willow Weep For Me' through the years, but I always especially liked Louis Armstrong's version with the Oscar Peterson Trio.  I also slipped in 'Alfie,' the theme from the original film in the mid-Sixties, because I have had an affinity for this song since high school."  The recording ends on a nod back to Tony Bennett with the tune "Who Can I Turn To," which is about "being true to yourself, and taking a leap of faith."

Ron collaborated with Brazilian pianist Weber Iago (pronounced ee-ah-go) because "I thought it would be an unusual pairing since Weber plays with a Latin-influenced style.  His sense of rhythm is very creative."  According to Iago, "I truly believe that artists should always worry less about what their music will be called and more about what it really is.  The big picture is true expression."  After moving to the United States, Iago formed the jazz group Zen Blend which opened for Herbie Hancock and Dianne Reeves.  Iago served as the musical director for the Tamba Trio and recorded with guitarist Romero Lubambo.  Weber also has performed with Brazilian singers Marcia Maria and Claudia Villela, and with Keith Underwood, Jeff Linsky, Kenny Stahl, George Young, Celia Malheiros and Ali Ryerson.

Kaplan was born in Hollywood and was immediately surrounded by music.  His father played trumpet in jazz-bands in the Fifties and his mother had the radio or record player on constantly.  Ron played drums and percussion at school.  In junior and senior high schools he sang in musical stage productions, did standup comedy at talent shows and his uncle's bar, and competed in speech tournaments ("sometimes it was extemporaneous speaking which is sort of like jazz soloing").  Ron studied in an actor's workshop in Hollywood, and then went to Los Angeles' Valley College where he got his Associate in Arts degree.  He taught himself to play guitar and piano, and started writing songs influenced by Bob Dylan, The Beatles and Cat Stevens.  Ron also performed original material professionally accompanied by a viola player.  In addition, Kaplan learned to play congas at Venice Beach and later played in drum circles every Sunday for a number of years in Griffith Park.  Kaplan moved north to attend the University of California at Santa Cruz where he majored in psychology and received his Bachelor of Arts degree.

From 1985 to 1995, Kaplan decided to immerse himself in instrumental jazz and began listening to classic material from 1950 to 1964 – Miles Davis John Coltrane, Lee Morgan, Hank Mobley, Wayne Shorter and countless others.  "One of my psychology classes delved into life's regrets, ambitions and possibilities.  It struck me that what I wanted to do most in life was to sing.  So when I was 41-years-old I started singing professionally again."  Kaplan was mentored by pianist Smith Dobson and performed every Tuesday night for several years with him.  Kaplan also has frequently sung for the past eight years with Don McCaslin, Sr. and his two groups, Warmth and The Jazz Geezers.

As to the future, Kaplan says, "I am deeply committed to performing these great standards and doing what I can to keep this music alive and viable for new generations of listeners." 

To find out more about Ron Kaplan and to order his new release, please visit his website: http://www.ronkaplan.com.  If you would like to send him an email, his address is: KAPLANDISC@aol.com.

PUBLICITY AGENCY: THE CREATIVE SERVICE COMPANY (CreatServ9@aol.com)

4360 Emerald Dr., Colorado Springs, CO 80918 * 719-548-9872 * fax 719-599-9607

**To read other Musician Interviews, please visit our Archives