Happy Weekend! It’s been another busy week in NYC nightlife for me, starting with a Birdland doubleheader on Monday night. First up, it was multi award-winning vocalist Natalie Douglas in her timely tribute to Lena Horne. The show had been planned for months, and nobody could have predicted that Ms. Horne would have passed away just days before the Birdland show. However, given the circumstances, the touching tribute was made all that more poignant, and it truly became a celebration of Ms. Horne’s incredible life and career. Backed by a fantastic trio (musical director Mark Hartman on piano, Essiet Essiet on bass, and Joe Choroszewski on drums), Ms. Douglas wound her way through a good portion of the Lena Horne songbook, mixing in all kinds of fun and interesting anecdotes along the way. In addition to the big hits like “Stormy Weather” “Believe In Yourself,” “As Long As I Live” and “Can’t Help Lovin’ Dat Man,” Ms. Douglas also took care to add in some lesser known songs, such as the saucy yet proper “I Love To Love,” which may well be my favorite song of the night! With her powerhouse voice, cheery, engaging persona, and excellent storytelling, Ms. Douglas put on a touching, thoughtful , and well-executed tribute to the great legend of stage and screen - I have no doubt Lena would be proud!
After Ms. Douglas’ show, I stayed put at Birdland for
Jim Carusos’s Cast Party (my regular Monday night hangout!), and it was another terrific night there. Host
Jim Caruso was his usual charming, witty self;
Andy Ezrin did a terrific job filling in for
Tedd Firth on piano; regular “Cast Party Symphony Orchestra” members
Steve Doyle and Dustin Jensen (on bass and drums, respectively) were outstanding, and the parade of talent was great! Regulars like
Hilary Kole, William Blake,
David Goldman,
Aaron Weinstein,
Joan Crowe, and
Ray Jessel were outstanding, and relative newcomers such as
Kathleen France,
Trevor McQueen Eaton,
Annie Kozuch and
Husani Addae also excelled! All in all, a very fun night!
On Wednesday evening, I headed back to Birdland to catch one of my favorite jazz vocalists,
Karrin Allyson. With her smooth, smoky voice and impeccable pitch, Ms. Allyson embodies everything one might expect when one imagines a cool, sophisticated female jazz singer. Mixing in some original tunes along with standards such as “Nature Boy” and “I Ain’t Got Nothin’ But The Blues,” Ms. Allyson also displayed some incredible chops with her scat solos...oh, and her piano playing isn’t too shabby either! It was a great night, and I look forward to seeing more of her in the future!
Thursday night was another doubleheader. The first half was a thoroughly enjoyable hour at the famed Oak Room at the Algonquin Hotel, where I was quite fortunately able to catch
Johnny Rodgers and the
Johnny Rodgers Band in their new show, What A Wonderful World. Blessed with an impeccably smooth voice and a naturally charming personality, Johnny is also a very talented pianist, songwriter, and interpreter of lyrics. Mixing in some of his favorite standards (“Too Marvelous For Words,” “Any Place I Hang My Hat Is Home”), rock (“Jailhouse Rock”), blues (“It Should’ve Been Me,” “The Birth Of The Blues”), rarities (“Huggin’ and Chalkin’”) and originals (“Home To Mendocino,” “She,” and “The Best of You In Me,” which was co-written with
Richard Barone), Mr. Rodgers was equally at home and equally entertaining whether he was at the piano or out in front as the singer with the band. And speaking of the band...wow!
Joe Ravo on guitar,
Brian Glassman on bass, and
Danny Mallon on drums provided tremendous musical support, and their easygoing banter with Mr. Rodgers added to the warm, welcoming feel of the show. Of course, I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention the JRB (that’s the abbreviation for “
Johnny Rodgers Band” for those in the know!) rendition of “What A Wonderful World.” Mr. Rodgers prefaced the song by informing the audience that the band will be touring Southeast Asia on behalf of the State Department this November (they’ll be “music ambassadors,” if you will!), and that they’d been looking for a song to speak to that experience. After some debate, they’d settled on this classic...and as they performed it in a simple, heartfelt manner, letting the lyrics and the beauty of the intention behind the song shine through, it was clear that they’d made the right choice! The JRB truly put on a wonderful show, and I strongly encourage anyone who is able to get to the Oak Room by May 29th to catch them!
After the Oak Room, I ran (literally...in 4 inch heels - ouch!) over to the Friars Club to catch the last half of their Cafe Thursdays open mic night. As usual, the room was overflowing with all kinds of talented entertainers. Even though I’d missed the first half, I still got to see some terrifically gifted performers including
Rena Strober (currently performing in
White’s Lies with
Betty Buckley),
Tom D’Angelo,
Larry Stevens, and host
Stan Gilbert). Marty Silver on piano and Bobby Sher on drums were excellent as usual, and it was a great way for me to wrap up the week!
Where I’m Going This Week...
Well, I’ll be taking a mini-vacation for myself, and will be taking the week off from writing so that I can go down to Fort Lauderdale for the 50th Anniversary Celebration of Where The Boys Are! Yes, it’s a big to-do and
Connie Francis herself will be there...so there will be no article next weekend, but check back in two weeks for all the news on the big celebration!
Pictured: Johnny Rodgers
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