Review: Benmont Tench's Rapturous Café Carlyle Debut Hits All of the Highlights

Legendary keyboard player and founding member of Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers Benmont Tench made his solo debut at the legendary Café Carlyle this week. The five-night run began on Tuesday, February 18, 2025 and plays through Saturday night. Tench was completely at home amid the elegant, intimate atmosphere at the Carlyle, perched center stage at the piano surrounded by Ludwig Bemelmans’s famed murals. The venue was packed with Tench’s fans, listening appreciatively as he played highlights of songs from his career, some of his own favorite songs, and selections from his new album. (The Melancholy Season, his second solo album, will be released on March 7 by Dark Horse Records.)

While Tench was playing, I watched the faces of some of the people in the audience: they were entranced watching him play. Tench soaked up all of the crowd’s energy and adoration and returned it tenfold, imbuing his performances with tender feeling. A masterful keyboardist, his husky voice a perfect complement to his skill on the piano. I’ll admit I went into the concert unfamiliar with Tench, but his songs are well-known enough that I’d heard many before, modern classics like Tom Petty and the Heartbreaker's "American Girl" and “You Should Be So Lucky” from his first solo album. He added a few of his own 1960s to ‘80s favorites as well, like an acoustic reimaging of Joy Division’s iconic “Love Will Tear Us Apart.” There’s a reason Tench’s skillful piano was sought out by artists ranging from Stevie Nicks to Bob Dylan.

Tench began the night with a little Gilbert and Sullivan, reading the lyrics to “I Am The Very Model,” totally deadpan. The reason for that dip into Penzance? He recently survived an encounter with jaw cancer, and that was one of his speech therapy exercises. His sense of joy was palpable, and his wry sense of humor made for a warm, fun-filled evening, even though the theme of the night, as he joked early on, was “welcome to hell.” His selection of songs flowed splendidly, moving between a range of emotions from melancholy to joy, funny to sad, older classics and some new numbers he wrote for his upcoming album – all imbued with the same sense of classic energy as his older numbers. Between songs, he shared anecdotes from his own life and music career and the inspiration for some of the tracks he played – “Wobbles,” a song from his new album, is about a woman he met nicknamed Wobbles. The crowd burst into laughter when he asked her why, and she responded that it’s because she wobbles when she walks. His introduction to “Dallas,” another track from the new album, had the crowd in stitches (“if you happen to be from this city, try not to be offended”).

Tench ended the night with an encore, demanded and rapturously received by the fans. If you’re free tonight, tomorrow or Saturday night, do yourself a favor and snag one of the few remaining tickets to Tench’s residency. There’s no better way to spend an evening than soaking up the atmosphere at the Carlyle listening to Tench’s iconic music while enjoying the Carlyle’s fine dining and sumptuous menu.

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Photos courtesy of Café Carlyle

Learn more about Benmont Tench and his upcoming album on his website at www.benmonttench.com

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