This edition of Billy Taylor's Jazz at the Kennedy Center, on the road in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, highlights the mellifluous, romantic and inventive singing and piano artistry of Andy Bey. Bey performs with Dr. Taylor's trio and speaks with both Dr. Taylor and audience members about his life and career.

After a brisk, swinging interpretation of "Take The "A" Train", Dr. Taylor and Bey begin discussing Bey's career, which began as a member of the family group, the Bey Sisters' ensemble.

Bey was the youngest of nine children, and in addition to working with his siblings, he was exposed to -- and heavily influenced by -- the work of notable vocalists such as Sarah Vaughn, Dinah Washington and Billie Holiday, and the great Billy Eckstine. Equally important, relates Bley, was the influence of Duke Ellington, whom Bey met in Paris when still a member of his sister's vocal ensemble. Bey and Dr. Taylor's trio then launch into a lush interpretation of the Ellington-Strayhorn classic "Satin Doll."

In addition to artistic influences, Bey and Dr.Taylor discuss the former's training as an opera singer and the positive impact of the required breathing lessons. Bey also speaks about his criteria for choosing material for performance. "I'm attracted to a beautiful melody", he informs Dr. Taylor, "but the lyrics have to say something also."

Bey and Dr. Taylor also discuss Bey's involvement in a rock musical entitled Holy Moses in the early 1970s, and his prowess as an interpreter of classic blues material. On cue, Bey and the trio then offer an infectious reading of Big Bill Broonzy's "When I've Been Drinking." At the conclusion of the Broonzy classic, Dr. Taylor asks Bey if it's harder to play ballads or blues when accompanying himself. "You have to work at them both", Bley replies.

Not surprisingly, Bey's musical influences aren't limited to the previously mentioned greats. He also includes fellow vocalists such as Carmen Bradford and Carmen Lundy among those who have caught his very open ear.

Before concluding the evening's performance, Bey and Dr. Taylor discuss the importance of persistence when attempting to gain a foothold in the music business. "You have to study and you have to listen...you have to want to do it very much and not just for the money," Bey notes. "You have to have the passion and the patience to stick with it." Bey and the trio conclude the evening with the Dizzy Gillespie classic "A Night In Tunisia."