Shirley Horn chose to leave her jazz career during a good part of the '60s and '70s to raise her family, returning to record an album for Steeplechase in 1978. But 1981 marked a significant increase in her output, recording over several days at the Northsea Jazz Festival and producing two CDs from these performances, some of which are heard on
All Night Long. Backed by electric bassist
Charles Ables (who would remain with her until his death in 2001) and drummer
Billy Hart,
Horn captivates her audience with her intimate piano playing and understated yet infectious vocals. She works slowly into sparse arrangements of "Someone Like That in Your Life" and "Good for Nothing Joe," hushing the crowd. She makes the most of the bluesy, whimsical "Git Rid of Monday," an overlooked gem by
Jimmy Van Heusen and
Johnny Burke. Of course, there are plenty of delightful performances of standards like "If I Had You" and "You'd Be So Nice to Come Home To," in addition to thoughtful interpretations of a pair of bossa novas by
Antonio Carlos Jobim.