W. C. Handy's "St. Louis Blues," one of the foundational compositions of American popular music, receives a vibrant treatment on Wycliffe Gordon's 2001 album Standards Only. Set to a Latin feel in F minor with a sixteen-bar form, the arrangement gives the piece a rhythmic freshness that distinguishes it from more traditional readings. Victor Goines opens the solo section with two choruses of clarinet, his woody, singing tone evoking the instrument's central role in early jazz while his improvisational language reflects a more modern sensibility. Randy Sandke follows with one chorus of trumpet, his bright, clear sound adding a different color to the ensemble. Eric Reed rounds out the solo section with two choruses of piano, his playing engaging dynamically with the Latin groove while displaying the harmonic richness that characterizes his work. The performance reflects Gordon's commitment to the earliest traditions of jazz while keeping the music vital and contemporary. Handy's composition, first published in 1914, has been recorded thousands of times across virtually every genre of American music, and this version adds the Jazz at Lincoln Center perspective to that vast legacy. The ensemble's comfort with the Latin feel demonstrates the breadth of stylistic expertise these musicians bring to the standard repertoire, moving fluidly between swing, Latin, and blues idioms within a single performance.
