Juli Wood and Kelly Brand at katerina's Chicago tribute to Billie Holiday live jazz concert photos by John Broughton (original) (raw)

Who knew? It is common knowledge that Juli Wood is a popular and talented saxophonist, but we here at JazzChicago were unaware that she could sing as well! And it turns out that Ms. Wood is an exceptional interpreter of the great Billie Holiday. While Wood channeled Lady Day last week at Katerina's, she was accompanied by the exemplary pianist Kelly Brand. This masterful duo provided exceptional entertainment for the crowd at this north side hot spot. Catching either of these two musicians in action is always a treat, but adding in classic songs from Holiday's beloved songbook really took things into the stratosphere. Let's hope this pairing continues in the future - and we hope you will make a point of catching Wood and Brand in action for an evening of great songs, playing and singing.