Why this tune?
We had a joyful evening at Blues Alley in Washington, DC on August 26, presenting a
program of my songs to an appreciative audience. The show featured the three singers who performed on my album “Making Up For Lost Time,” Barbara Papendorp, Tony Gudell, and Aaron Myers. I was at the piano alongside Percy White on bass and Tyler Leak at the drums.
I took the opportunity to perform the trio version of “An August Day In April,” which we recorded with all three singers for the album. The song was inspired by a hot day in April in Ithaca, NY. Our friend remarked on the weather, saying that it was like “an August day in April.” That sounded like a great song title to me, so I wrote this musical story exploring different reactions to the unexpected heat.
I’ve performed it occasionally since the recording, but I think this may be only the second or third time we’ve tried the three-singer arrangement live. You can hear the recording on the album and in the recent lyrics video.
Oren Levine, jazz pianist and songwriter 