By Marilyn Lester***Perfect storms in the meteorologic sense come rarely. Perfect storms in a broader and good way are probably rarer still. When Marion Cowings and AC Lincoln brought their talents to Dizzy’s Club on Father’s Day in Like Father Like Son, that storm was intensified by the virtuosic band that supported them: pianist Danny Mixon, bassist Melissa Slocu
m, tenor saxophonist Andy Farber, and a legend of drumming, Winard Harper. The result was one of those concerts that emblazon themselves in artistic memory.
Both men are crooners, smooth of voice, skilled at lyric interpretation. Cowings brings to the table an extra: an amazing ability at scat and the performance of vocaleze—he sat at the feet of the late Jon Hendricks, who was a master at that artform, and who famously wrote lyrics to Duke Ellington’s uptempo “Cottontail” (a real tongue twister) and who was part of the famed Lambert, Hendricks and Ross vocalese trio. Lincoln brings to the table dance artistry; he’s essentially a rhythm tapper, descended from the school of John Bubbles. All of these capabilities shot to the fore with opener, “The Way You Look Tonight” (Jerome Kern, Dorothy Fields). In glorious harmony and trade-offs, dance breaks and spotlight solos, there was no doubt that w
hat lay ahead for the evening was going to be fantastic.
Cowings also possesses a quick, sometimes ironic wit, present in a sweet Q&A riff that introduced “What Is This Thing Called Love?” (Cole Porter), which evolved into an uptempo swing. Here was the first indication of Harper’s power drumming; he’s a whirlwind on the kit, moving faster than the eye can track, with creative ideas that elevate his artistry beyond mere baps and cracks. Slocum’s bass intro to “You and the Night and the Music” (Howard Dietz, Arthur Schwartz) especially and Mixon’s frequent features, with his partiality to glissandi, brought bright moments to each vocal interpretation.
But it was Farber who was truly a third voice in the creation of each song’s sonic palette. Expertly backing or in a solo moment, his playing and smooth tone on the tenor added depth and texture. Considering: each element of four instruments, two voices and a set of tapping feet, the resultant soundscape was alive and vibrant through the entirety of the show. 
Cowings added a fifth instrumental element, taking up his guitar and executing a solo on the 1936 Robert Johnson blues, “When You Got a Good Friend”—and in the style of Johnson, who’s acknowledged as one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century, blues and beyond.
Cowing as a lyricist appeared in adding words to Thelonious Monk’s “Straight, No Chaser”—a bop vocalese, of course. Closer was Juan Tizol’s “Caravan,” a staple of the Duke Ellington band book, with Harper sparing nothing on his introduction and the entire company getting into the groove with intense uptempo swing. A tighter unit of performers would be hard to find anywhere. These cats were in the pocket from star to finish.
