Interview: Catching Up With THE SUNDAY SET's Billy Stritch and Jim Caruso

Ladies and gentlemen, Vaudeville is alive and well and living in New York City, and it exists in the persons of Billy Stritch and Jim Caruso. These two (nearly) lifelong best friends are a duo on a par with the greatest duos in the history of show business, presenting their own special mixture of music and humor on a regular basis for over twenty years, now. Devoted regulars flood Birdland every Monday night for Jim Caruso'S CAST PARTY where Caruso (one of the naturally funniest humans on Earth) hosts the long running open-mic and Stritch (a musical savant with an otherworldly singing voice) acts as musical director who needs no sheet music. This standing appointment every week is not all, for the twosome, because they have a much-lauded regular gig at The Carlyle, they have a yearly two weeks of Christmas shows with gal pal Klea Blackhurst, and from time to time they take their act on the road. Returning from the lockdown like entertainers on steroids, Billy and Jim have been going non-stop for several months. but Broadway World Cabaret got the two chums to sit down for a q&a about two new CDs, two out-of-town club dates, and two successful virtual shows that kept them busy during a crazy time.

This interview was conducted digitally and is reproduced with slight edits.

Jim Caruso and Billy Stritch, welcome to Broadway World!

Jim: Oh hello, Stephen. I didn't see you there!

You gentlemen are the busiest people I know. You both created virtual shows during the lockdown when the clubs reopened you dove right back in at Birdland, you sat down in Las Vegas, released two new albums, and - if the rumors are true - Bemelmans Bar at The Carlyle is back in the picture. Is there anything I left off?

Billy: Isn't that enough? Seriously though, the months of the pandemic ended up being one of the busiest times in my career! As you mentioned, Jim and I both created live-stream shows which became full series. Mine was called "Billy's Place" and it was broadcast every week live from my living room. There was no way of knowing when I started it that it would end up being a run of 65 one-hour broadcasts, each with totally different content. Luckily I had the help of my partner Doug Major who ran the cameras and did the graphics and monitored the comments, etc. That was invaluable! So "Billy's Place" ended up being a LOT of work but also it kick-started my somewhat dormant solo performing career. I've always done a ton of work as an accompanist but my solo work always has tended to go on the back burner. The pandemic forced me to push it to the forefront and that was such a positive thing for me artistically.

Jim: We recently hosted two great nights of Cast Party in Los Angeles, and one in Palm Springs. We have one coming up in Winter Garden, Florida, and a few more on the horizon. Plus, I've been having a ball continuing my job booking wonderful performers at Birdland!

So, let's start with the CDs - Billy, you created Billy's Place in the throes of the pandemic and released it to great acclaim. What was the process like recording an album under covid precautions?

Billy: It was surprisingly easy mainly because the album (also called "Billy's Place" on Club44 Records) was totally a solo performance. No band or backing musicians, just me and a piano. It's the type of recording I'd always wanted to make and because of Covid social distancing protocols, it made perfect sense to do it. I flew to Nashville on a plane with 12 passengers and spent two days in a studio with my co-producer Wayne Haun, our great engineer Joe and his assistant Leah. It was easy and fun and loose and very exciting to be making a new recording during lockdown.

So many people thought I was crazy to get on a plane back then (this was August 2020) but Steven, I have to say that it was great to fly during the time when NO ONE was traveling. Empty planes, empty airports, I felt totally safe. I miss that and I'm not even joking! I flew numerous times in 2020 and early 2021 and it was great each time.

Jim, The Sunday Set is a live concert recording. When making a live recording, does it add pressure to you in real-time, lest something go wrong and mess up the recording?

Jim: Actually, no. In 2019, we did a run of Sundays at Birdland Theater and asked our trusty Technical Director Rob Polanco to do a nice recording of the show just for fun. Those tracks sat in a drawer until the middle of the shutdown. After watching every single episode of "West Wing," I needed some entertainment, so I listened. I liked. I sent to Billy. He listened and liked. We sent to Wayne Haun, the president of Club 44 Records. He listened and liked. The rest is show biz history. "The Sunday Set" is an unexpected pleasure - and catches a moment in time, as all live recordings do.

You both have a few albums on your CV, and those albums always have such nice packaging. Do you have any thoughts on the changing tide in recording, now that so much of the industry has gone digital?

Jim: Please! You're talking to a person who still misses LP covers and the enormous artwork that accompanied them. Those liner notes helped me learn about producers and arrangers and all the moving parts of the record business. CDs were similar, but you needed a microscope to read the details. Now, the details are impossible to find. I hate to sound old-fashionedy, but I miss reading the fine print of a recording. That being said, there's always room for a gorgeous photo and good, clean graphics.

Billy: I think a big part of the fun of creating an album is the artwork - and I know Jim would agree. We both remember fondly buying LPs and spending hours poring over the artwork and design and credits. I appreciate the convenience of being able to stream and download music but with that you don't get to read the credits or anything about the music. It's a cheat, not only for the listener but certainly for the artists and writers - who make literally pennies on a download as opposed to a physical CD. Listen, I'm thrilled to get my music out there but it's becoming impossible for 99% of artists to make any sort of revenue from recordings these days. A very sad state of affairs.

And how was your trip out West? Did you enjoy your time in Sin City?

Billy: I always enjoy Las Vegas, although the label "Sin City" doesn't apply so much these days. I was lucky to experience Vegas a lot in the 80s and 90s and many times with Liza. We worked a lot at the Desert Inn and the old MGM Grand, when going to a show was really an event and going out afterwards was terribly exciting. Playing blackjack at a table reserved for Liza and our friends with dozens of people looking on was a heady experience. Hanging out with Seigfried and Roy was amazing. Headlining at Caesar's Palace as Liza's opening act and accompanist was unforgettable. Hard to top that.

Jim: Las Vegas certainly doesn't need my help in spreading the word that it's fun. But it is. It can be whatever you want it to be. I don't gamble, I don't drink and I don't hire hookers, yet I still have a ball in Vegas. And the performing community is very tight-knit. They always show up for Cast Party, which is very touching. Everyone from the stars on the Strip to jazzers, tappers, and theater kids join us. And it's a joy to work at Myron's at The Smith Center, which is an absolute state-of-the-art venue.

Jim, Cast Party has such a specific vibe, especially here in New York, where there are so many regulars. When you take the program to another city, what kind of changes do you have to make in the presentation to bend with the new atmosphere?

Jim: Producing Cast Party in New York City simply involves opening the Birdland doors. Miraculously, the performers show up, as does the audience. When we Party in other cities, I have to do a little behind-the-scenes work to make sure a proper show takes place. It's easier if it's a city with a huge performing arts community. But sometimes I need help from the venue or a few key players who know the territory. I spread the word that we're coming. By the time we roll into town, I usually have a good list of "ringers" to give the show some razzle-dazzle. I think Billy will agree that we have hardly ever been disappointed with the talent pool in ANY of the places we've been.

Billy, did you folks get out to enjoy Vegas and some of the nightlife there, or were you too focused on making the nightlife, instead?

Billy: Well as I said before, the whole nightlife scene is different these days. When Jim and I bring Cast Party to Vegas, we're always at the Smith Center which is not located on or near the Vegas strip so it's a much different vibe. Occasionally we've been there and had a night off and been lucky enough to go see and hang out with our friends Donny Osmond or Barry Manilow. And we are big fans of the Peppermill Diner, a quintessential experience that I highly recommend to anyone. It's on the strip and the vibe is mid-century meets disco meets Denny's times 100. Pretty much only known to the locals. Open 24 hours too!

Put me in the picture of your Bemelman's Bar history and outline what it is that makes it such a perfect experience for the two of you, as performers, as friends, and as New Yorkers.

Jim: The Carlyle Hotel is steeped in history, as we all know. But did you know that music has been a huge part of the scene there since the hotel opened in 1929? At first, the fancy people wanted classical music, which they got. Then jazz worked its way in, which was shocking for the time! Everything changed when Bobby Short stormed the Café Carlyle stage in 1969. He put a very chic spotlight on the American Songbook which has been shining ever since. When we got the Bemelmans gig ten years ago, I was over the moon. I'd cheered Barbara Carroll there so many times, it almost felt like going home. Billy and I went in armed with Cole Porter and Rodgers & Hart material, then realized a few months in that those songs, while ravishing, were not anyone's nostalgia. We still do them but have added more contemporary tunes. And when I say "contemporary," I mean songs that were written within the past fifty years! The Carlyle is a New York landmark. It's an honor to be part of that story. Not unlike Birdland, there is magical energy in those golden walls.

Billy: The Carlyle Hotel has always been the gold standard to me and was a place I was aware of long before I ever visited New York. There is history in every room and on every wall - and if those walls could talk!

I'll always remember seeing Bobby Short in the Café on my very first trip to New York and then becoming friends with him a few years later. Playing in Bemelmans makes me feel like I'm part of the history of one of the most celebrated and iconic places in New York, and that's a fantastic feeling!

Billy, you are, next, heading to London to do some work there. Help us promote your overseas action with a little tidbit, won't you?

Billy: I'm thrilled about this upcoming trip! I'll be returning to Crazy Coqs which is about as glamorous and art deco as it gets. I've performed there half a dozen times but the last visit was in 2015 so I'm long overdue.

This time in addition to a couple of solo shows I'll also be accompanying my great pal Lillias White and I expect she will blow the roof off the place! We are doing two different shows - in repertory, so to speak. "Lillias White Sings Broadway" and "Lillias and Billy sing Hoagy Carmichael and Friends". The run is from April 14-23 and we would love to see as many friends and fans as possible. All the info is on their website (https://www.brasseriezedel.com/crazy-coqs/)

Jim, you are rather a patriarchal figure at Birdland, always so excited by the acts that play there, and you've had some exceptional shows lately - I see you there and you're always so supportive of the people on the stage. Walk me through the experience of being Jim Caruso and watching the performers you support having a good show.

Jim: You just stunned me with the word "patriarchal!" But I have always been an uber-fan of great talent. And I have motley taste in music. Broadway, jazz, country, pop...if I like it, I like it. I think that's helped Birdland appear more open in its booking style. At least I hope that's what people see. It really is the best music room in the city, if you ask me, and you did. Good music and the people who make it should be celebrated with great sound, great lights, and a fabulous audience. I get to wear many hats in my career. I've sung my entire life, so it goes without saying that performing is meaningful to me. But the second I learned to share the spotlight, whether hosting Cast Party or booking other performers, my life became a bit more fulfilling. I'm happiest when the room is packed, the energy is high, and the music is swinging. We all get to share such a happy experience!

How were your individual experiences as virtual entertainers, and do you miss the medium, now that you're back at live performing?

Billy: I'm actually glad to have a break from the live-streaming! It was a very intense time and a lot of work to keep it new and fresh every week. What I do miss is the connection with fans and friends from all over the world. Making those connections was such a plus and an unexpected perk of the lockdown! I don't think I'll end the virtual shows completely and probably will continue them from time to time, but right now I'm enjoying the break. Plus I'm working live gigs and traveling more than ever these days.

Jim: I loved my weekly Pajama Cast Party! I hosted 73 weeks in a row, and it really got me through that bizarre time with some semblance of normalcy. My producer Ruby Locknar and I were writing, producing, booking, promoting, and performing like nothing was wrong! I'm a bit of a control freak, so I loved dealing with the details. Who knew we all needed a TV studio in our apartments? I tweaked the lights and sound each week until it felt like an honest-to-goodness TV show.

You are both cornerstones of the Birdland family, and it looked like the legendary club might not survive the shutdown. What was the center of strength that kept the Birdland family going during all the uncertainty?

Jim: To me, Birdland is a cultural treasure because it's all about celebrating talent. I think Gianni Valenti, the owner, would agree. He was determined to keep the bills paid, so we all kept busy upgrading the venue, coming up with virtual content, and keeping the club's name in the news. Of course, when Tom and Michael D'Angora and Susie Mosher came to us with an idea to raise funds via GoFundMe and a virtual telethon, we were immensely grateful. It was so successful and showed us that Birdland is beloved on a worldwide basis.

Billy: Birdland has consistently had very high standards for so many years, not only in the level of talent they present but also in the way they present it. Great staff, great sound, and sightlines, and a very relaxed and welcoming atmosphere. It's become a beloved institution over its 70-year history and that certainly is what has kept it alive. Too many people loved the club and couldn't allow it to fade away, thankfully!

Has the return from the brink changed anything within the inner workings of the Birdland family? How's it looking from where you both sit?

Billy: It's looking good to me. As long as people remain safe and vigilant in the face of Covid I think we'll survive. As much as we'd like to believe otherwise, Covid isn't over. As live performers, our livelihoods depend on everyone staying smart and safe. I hate to get so serious but it's worth saying!

Jim: I've always said that every single ass that sits in our audience should be kissed. While that might not be possible, or even appealing, the idea is right. In before times, we were happy to have a sold-out house. Now, it feels like a minor miracle! Since reopening in July, we've been astonished to see the throngs filing through those doors on West 44th. The people were ready to be entertained and desperate to be uplifted. Isn't that what art is all about? We're lucky to be in the right place at the right time.

Billy and Jim, thank you for having this chat with Broadway World today. I am super excited to see what youse do next.

Jim: I plan on running to Starbucks for a Venti Skim Cappuccino. Billy, what are YOU doing?

Billy: I'm headed out to the park to walk the dogs! That's exciting. Thanks as always, Stephen!

Read the Courtney Savoia review of The Sunday Set HERE, and the Broadway World review of Billy's Place HERE.

Billy Stritch has a website HERE and THIS is the Jim Caruso website.

Learn about Jim Caruso'S CAST PARTY and other great shows at Birdland HERE.

Learn more about Bemelman's Bar at the Carlyle HERE.

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