Jazz/Review The Café Society - Change Partners
In the 1940s, there was one integrated jazz club in New York City where all the greats played: Café Society in the West Village. Today, The Café Society is a jazz quintet led by tenor saxophonist Justin Flynn (Nancy Wilson, Randy Brecker) and vocalist Emily Wade Adams (Cape Cod Symphony, Wake Forest Presidential Scholar for Voice). Their NYC-based ensemble collaborates with the city's finest jazz musicians to deliver swinging standards with sophistication and soul.
“Change Partners” by The Café Society is a graceful and sophisticated reimagining of the Irving Berlin jazz standard, transforming the timeless composition into an elegant bossa nova arrangement. Released to mark the song’s 88th anniversary, the recording pays tribute to its history while giving the material a fresh identity shaped by the chemistry of this veteran New York City jazz quintet.
The bossa nova treatment is particularly fitting, bringing a relaxed rhythmic character and understated sensuality to Berlin’s classic songwriting. Rather than attempting to radically reinvent the piece, The Café Society allows the familiar melody to breathe within a more intimate and sophisticated setting, highlighting the emotional subtleties that have helped “Change Partners” endure for generations.
A major strength of the arrangement is the collaboration between vocalist Emily Wade Adams and co-leader Justin Flynn on tenor saxophone. Adams’ custom-written vocal introduction and conclusion effectively double Flynn’s saxophone, creating a beautiful conversational quality reminiscent of the vocal-and-saxophone interplay associated with Astrud Gilberto. This detail gives the performance an especially distinctive character while reinforcing the ensemble’s sense of partnership.
The recording also benefits from a polished production approach, with mixing and mastering handled by four-time Grammy winner Dave Darlington, whose credits include work with artists such as Samara Joy and Herbie Hancock. His experience helps ensure that the subtle textures and instrumental details remain clear without sacrificing the warmth essential to the arrangement.
What ultimately makes “Change Partners” successful is its balance of respect and individuality. The Café Society recognizes the importance of Berlin’s original while confidently placing the song within their own musical language. The result is a performance that feels timeless rather than nostalgic—rooted in jazz history but shaped by the ensemble’s contemporary interpretation.
“Change Partners” is an elegant showcase of musicianship, arrangement, and collaboration. The Café Society demonstrates that a classic does not need to be radically transformed to feel new; sometimes, the right rhythm, the right voices, and a deep understanding of the song are enough to reveal something beautiful that was always there.