From left: Kurt Elling, Dale Alderson, Bob Mintzer, Russell Ferrante, Will Kennedy

It seems such a logical fit for Yellowjackets (purveyors of quality fusion since 1979 who once counted Felix Pastorius – Jaco’s son – amongst their ranks) to celebrate the music of Weather Report.

But throw Kurt Elling into the mix too?

Then you remember that he has become legendary for vocalising seemingly impossible tunes in the past, and accordingly this was a wholehearted project with no half-measures, Elling adding all-new lyrics to some of the most fascinating melodies of the ‘70s and ‘80s – hardly surprising when they were chiefly written by Jaco, Wayne Shorter and Joe Zawinul.

And of course Manhattan Transfer were famous for their work on ‘Birdland’ and ‘Where The Moon Goes’, so vocals were never an alien concept in WR’s output.

This sold-out gig at the lovely Cadogan Hall then promised a lot and, in the main, delivered, helped by a really noisy, engaged audience, the loudest this writer has ever sat with at the venue.

Yellowjackets sans Elling kicked off with Shorter’s sprightly ‘Elegant People’, the vocalist making a perfect entrance in time for the sax introduction and then embarking on a remarkable tour de force, vocalising every nuance of Shorter’s original improvisation with lyrics that neatly encapsulated the heroic ‘human revolution’ aspect of the writer’s original concept.

In fact, the obstacles faced by Shorter, Zawinul and Jaco in their personal lives and their application to the wider human condition was a theme Elling returned to again and again throughout the evening.

Next up was Jaco’s ‘Continuum’, and again this was a complete transcription from his classic live album Invitation, Elling brilliantly navigating all of Pastorius’s twists and turns, including some striking low notes. Ferrante’s choral accompaniment seemed a nod to Allan Holdsworth’s ‘Fred’. The 6/8 Afro-Cuban feel to the solo section was also a nice surprise.

The first of Elling’s many between-song announcements came with a tribute to the audience for ‘braving what must be braved…ever more so,’ and praising Weather Report’s music as including ‘the revelation of yourself to yourself.’

Jaco’s ‘Three Views Of A Secret’ was next up, Ferrante getting some acoustic piano solo space and Elling again brilliantly vocalising Shorter’s complete original tenor improvisation (from the album Night Passage). The singer also impressed on the lesser known Zawinul ballad ‘Current Affairs’, again offloading some ‘heroic’ lyrics over a very obtuse melody line, while Mintzer fired off a telling solo.

Drummer Will Kennedy illustrated his deft sense of dynamics on Shorter’s ‘Palladium’, dropping the volume down to a whisper during Ferrante’s Rhodes solo, then building to a furious, almost Cobham-esque tumult when trading fours with Elling’s scat. Bassist Dane Alderson tapped into Jaco’s spirit on a very moving ‘A Remark You Made’, Elling again inserting little bits of Shorter’s original asides.

It was fascinating observing the group interplay – Elling watched each soloist, particularly Mintzer, like a hawk, and you can bet he was storing up melodic ideas to be rehashed later, while Ferrante could barely keep a smile from his face throughout.

Minor gripes? A bit more uptempo music wouldn’t have gone amiss. And where was Shorter’s ‘Face On The Barroom Floor’ which Elling claimed he’d been working on a few years ago? And it has to be said that the Cadogan’s acoustics didn’t cope well with the louder moments, Ferrante’s piano often lost in translation and Kennedy’s cymbals a little overbearing.

But overall this was a worthwhile, arresting, uplifting evening of music. Here’s hoping that a studio album follows soon.