New York City’s 7th Avenue was buzzing with excitement on Saturday night, September 26, when Barbra Streisand performed a free concert at the historic Village Vanguard to an audience of 100 of her luckiest fans from around the world, who'd been chosen from tens of thousands of entrants in a variety of contests launched on the artist's website, BarbraStreisand.com.
Crowds and onlookers of all-ages thronged the streets and sidewalks around the venue hoping for glimpses of the legendary performer who'd last performed in Greenwich Village in 1961, and for notables, including former President Bill Clinton and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Chelsea Clinton, Sarah Jessica Parker and Nicole Kidman attending the once-in-a-lifetime event.
Streisand decided to return to the Village Vanguard to perform the songs from Love Is The Answer -- her new album of jazz standards and classics -- in the most intimate setting possible. With its astounding acoustics and deeply comfortable vibe, The Village Vanguard -- an epicenter of the New York jazz scene since an all-jazz policy was implemented in 1957 -- was, and is one of the most renowned musical venues in the world.
During her Vanguard concert, Streisand performed songs from her new album, as well as personal favorites and some surprises, in an extraordinarily warm and powerful set, as the artist and her audience shared an evening filled with music, magic and memories.
Several people with connection to Barbra’s early Greenwich Village days appeared to present Barbra to thunderous applause including Lorraine Gordon, widow of the Village Vanguard’s owner, Max Gordon; Rick Edelstein, a waiter at the Village Vanguard who arranged for a then-teen-aged Streisand's first audition at the venue, and lastly, Marty Erlichman, Barbra Streisand’s longtime manager, who was introduced to Barbra in 1961. Backed by a small, tightly-honed band, Streisand delivered passionate and unforgettable performances. The full set-list included, in order of performance, “Here’s To Life”, “In The Wee Small Hours Of The Morning”, “Gentle Rain”, “Spring Can Really Hang You Up The Most”, “If You Go Away”, “Where Do You Start”, “Make Someone Happy”, “My Funny Valentine”, “Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered”, “Evergreen”, “Some Other Time” and “The Way We Were”.
Performance footage from The Village Vanguard show will be available on AOL.com beginning on Sunday, September 27, as well as on BarbraStreisand.com starting on Tuesday, September 29.
Streisand’s new studio album, Love Is The Answer, will be released on Tuesday, September 29. The first full-length collection of new studio recordings from eight-time Grammy award winner Barbra Streisand since 2005's Guilty Pleasures, Love Is The Answer was produced by Grammy-winning Canadian jazz artist Diana Krall and arranged by Grammy-winner Johnny Mandel. The album will be available in both a standard and a deluxe version. The deluxe edition is a two-disc package that features the Mandel arranged orchestra versions on disc one and quartet counterparts on disc two featuring Barbra accompanied only by quartet (piano, bass, guitar & drums).
Photos by Walter McBride / Retna Ltd.
