Grover Kemble and Brynn Stanley: Getting their musical act together on Jan. 8

Grover Kemble and Brynn Stanley are not lost for words when asked to describe each other.

“Ebullience and exuberance,” Grover says of Brynn, 27.

“Grover is like a 15-year-old with an AARP card!” Brynn says of Grover, 63.

You can come up with your own descriptors on Sunday, Jan. 8, when the duo performs at Shanghai Jazz in Madison with bassist Tim Metz. Their two sets start at 6:30 pm.

The occasion marks one year since Brynn, an up-and-coming vocalist, saw Grover playing at the club and introduced herself to the guitarist/songwriter.

Eager to delve deeper into jazz, Brynn found a mentor in Grover, who has been impressing audiences since the 1970s when he toured with Sha Na Na and co-founded the swing group Za Zu Zaz. Grover headlined last summer at the first Morristown Jazz Festival, where he was joined onstage by Rob Paparozzi of Blood, Sweat & Tears fame. More recently, he played a reunion gig with popular jazz crooner John Pizzarelli.

Grover has always liked to pay it forward, and age never factors into the equation. The Morris County resident has coached the teen duo of Olivia Platt and Jordan Black since they were little girls; last year, he coaxed 86-year-old singer Naomi Sunshine out of retirement for a memorable set at the Minstrel in Morris Township.

In Brynn, Grover has found yet another musical partner who gets his creative juices flowing. He has written a composition for her, Sing My Song, which they will debut on Sunday.

“I like to collaborate, and let people rework my stuff. It’s exciting to hear someone else do my tunes,” said Grover. “I like (Brynn’s) voice a lot. She has a natural feel,  and natural phrasing. She’s eager to learn and create. She’s enthusiastic. She’s upbeat. And she likes to rehearse. A lot of people want to wing it, without putting any special work behind it.”

Brynn sings in a rock band, too. But an Ella Fitzgerald recording of Ain’t Misbehavin’ convinced her to pursue jazz as her preferred genre.

The theater also has its hooks in the onetime choir girl. Brynn switched from psychology to a drama major after landing the lead role in Hair at Fairleigh Dickinson University. She gambled that she could overcome stage fright, and won. More auditions are likely.

Grover’s example has taught Brynn about dedication and craftsmanship; she says his rehearsals are so energetic that she sometimes needs to nap afterwards. They have a few gigs under their belts, and are gearing up for a March show in the Starlight Room of the Mayo Performing Arts Center in Morristown.

The guitarist’s consummate showmanship has reminded Brynn to tap her dramatic training.

“Grover makes it fun,” says the Basking Ridge singer. “It’s a performance, it’s not just singing. It’s telling a story.”

She thinks their collaboration will be a great story.

“I see it as being a really amazing act. We’re going to go places we can’t even imagine.”

GROVER, BRYNN SING FILM THEME IN ‘SUSTAINABLE MAN’

GROVER KEMBLE STORIES, VIDEOS