PERFORMING ARTS

Jacqui Naylor

Does the notion of the Gershwin brothers collaborating with the Allman Brothers sound appealing or off-putting? That question isn't a bad litmus test for anyone tempted to hear singer Jacqui Naylor in concert.

Naylor, who performed at Blues Alley on Wednesday night, specializes in "acoustic smashes" -- offbeat arrangements that feature her singing a well-known pop, jazz or rock lyric in an unusual but oddly familiar setting. During her opening set at the Georgetown club, for example, she sang "Summertime" while her trio played the Allman Brothers' "Whipping Post." Then she "smashed" a Billie Holiday-inspired rendering of "Love for Sale" with a funk beat borrowed from the Bill Withers hit "Use Me." While both performances easily could have come across as clunky or contrived, they quickly proved disarming, thanks to Naylor's considerable interpretative gifts and keyboardist-guitarist Art Khu's clever trio arrangements.

That wasn't always the case. Offering a peek at her new CD, "Smashed for the Holidays," Naylor compressed "Santa Claus Is Coming to Town" with "Sweet Home Alabama." The result was cheery enough, but this is one "smash" that seems destined to join the crowded ranks of forgettable pop novelties.

Still, there was no mistaking Naylor's taste and talent. Her penchant for classic pop songs yielded sultry interpretations of "Lazybones" and "Blue Moon," and her tributes to singers Holiday and Shirley Horn were warmly evocative. With plenty of help from Khu, bassist Steve Zerlin and drummer Frank Russo, Naylor also infused original songs with a mixture of wistfulness and charm.

-- Mike Joyce

Marty Stuart

When a man in leather pants and a feathered mullet strides onto a stage adorned with lava lamps, it's usually a cue to bolt towards the nearest fire exit. Unless, of course, that man is Marty Stuart.

Sure, his sartorial taste is questionable, but the country vet's musical taste is anything but. Stuart charmed fans at the Birchmere on Wednesday, shimmying through a dynamic set of honky-tonk romps, feisty bluegrass standards, even a few plaintive ballads.

"Y'all make it feel like Friday during the middle of the week!" the 48-year-old singer announced after bopping through his own "The Whiskey Ain't Workin'." He's a fantastic entertainer, but shared the spotlight generously with His Fabulous Superlatives, a three-piece backing troupe worthy of its moniker. Guitarist Kenny Vaughan, drummer Harry Stinson and bassist Brian Glenn each took solo turns at the microphone and they launched into killer three-part harmony on "Workin' on a Building." Stuart's wife, the esteemed country singer Connie Smith, also made a cameo, joining hubby for the weepy "Long Black Limousine." On top of that: some Johnny Cash ballads and a stellar mandolin solo from Stuart that fused bluegrass and blues. What's next Marty, a disco tune?

Actually, yes. Glenn let the falsetto fly during a goofy bluegrass reading of the Bee Gees' "Stayin' Alive" -- a song Stuart wanted to test-drive for a forthcoming housewarming party at Barry Gibb's house. (For those saying "Huh?": Gibb purchased Johnny Cash's old home in Hendersonville, Tenn., in 2006, which now makes him Stuart's next-door neighbor).