Review: Jeff Harnar's SAMMY CAHN THE SECOND TIME AROUND Delights at 54 Below

On Saturday July 27th, Jeff Harnar entered the stage singing the sweet lyrics of Sammy Cahn. That lyricist was the subject both of that night’s tribute show, and of Harnar’s new album, aptly titled Sammy Cahn: The Second Time Around. Harnar is one of New York’s finest cabaret singers, approaching songs with a subtlety and nuance of expression that allows them to shine. Harnar picked some choice Cahn favorites to sing at the July 27th show, showcasing the work of a masterful lyricist and interspersing the songs with theater history and personal stories. Harnar's ability to connect with his audience and place himself squarely in the mindset of each song's point of view is a delight to behold.

The night was celebrating the release of Harnar’s new Cahn album, which is a re-recording and re-imagining of an older, now out of print album. The album features some of the same songs plus a few new tracks. This time, Harnar recorded with over 20 years more experience and “the correct pronouns,” he reported to laughs from the audience at 54 Below, waggling his eyebrows suggestively. “I’ll Only Miss Her When I Think of Her” from Skyscraper is now “I’ll Only Miss Him When I Think of Him,” for example, a move that makes the song more personal to Harnar. (For more about the process of putting together the album re-recording project, read a Q&A with Harnar.)

The appreciative audience listened to Harnar’s spin on a number of Cahn classics, from a boppy version of “Teach Me Tonight” sung with an infectious smile to a medley from Skyscraper.  Harnar has impeccable comedic delivery; he sang “Everybody Has The Right To Be Wrong (At Least Once)”, moving from the very funny verse to the silky smooth refrain, originally sung by Peter Marshall. Harnar imbued each repetition of “I’m in Love” with variation and nuance in Cahn’s “I'm In Love” (from Romance On the High Seas). Harnar has a few special guests on the album, all of whom were in attendance at the Saturday night show: Clint Holmes, MOIPEl and Grammy winner Nicole Zuraitis. Harnar and Holmes sang a spirited mashup of “Come Dance with Me” (Harnar) and “I Like to Lead When I Dance” (Holmes). After once through a traditional rendition of each song, the pair switched solo parts, singing in counterpoint, and having fun changing up the arrangements. Each of Harnar’s guests is a vocal powerhouse in their own right. On a duet of “Come Fly With Me” with Harnar, Nicole Zuraitis scatted and twisted the lyrics wonderfully, bringing a new perspective to one of Cahn’s most well known classics. MOPEI (a group composed of identical triplets Mary, Maggy and Marta Moipei) dueted with Harnar on a “Bei Mir Bistu Shein” with arrangements influenced by their Kenyan roots and some of the original lyrics translated into another language (I believe French, if I’m not mistaken). Even Alex Rybeck, Harnar’s music director and dutiful companion on the piano all evening, got a duet in, singing across from Harnar on “Opposites” from Skyscraper, another very funny number.

The entire show was a delightful escape into another era of music performed by a master and his very talented friends. As an aside, I watched the show via livestream, a very pleasant experience with multiple camera angles providing views of the entire room at 54 Below and making me feel just like I was there. In a chat displayed alongside the video, some fellow livestream viewers shared their locations and appreciation for the livestream allowing them to dip into the club despite not being in NYC.

The show was directed by Barry Kleinbort, with Music Director Alex Rybeck. The band featured Steve Doyle on bass, Ray Marchica on drums, Marc Phaneuf on sax and flute, and Alex Rybeck on piano

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Harnar’s album is available now from PS Classics.

Header photo credit: Conor Weiss. (See his full set of photos from the July 26th show here.)

Find more upcoming shows at 54 Below on their website.

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