Braving blizzards, transit trains and the New Jersey Turnpike we set off last weekend for my appointed gigs. First up was the Metropolitan Room in New York City. After spending the first half of the week in blissful rehearsal with Michele Brourman, I lay awake all Thursday night listening to the wind howl and the snow fall (yes, if you’re really listening you can actually hear it fall) and wondering who in their right mind would venture out in the worst storm of the year just to hear me sing. Ah, but New Yorkers are a hardy lot and we ended up with two lovely and enthusiastic audiences. We had a fine time delving deeper into the material that Michele and I had begun to develop in LA over the summer. The addition of Miss Laurel for two numbers was the icing on the cake. For me, there is nothing better than making music with people who are not just great musicians but also dear friends. The relationship the three of us have off-stage has only served to make the music that much better.
Miss Laurel, Me & Michele after the 10:00 Show at Blues Alley. Thanks Michael M. for the snap!
By Sunday morning the weather had cleared and we hopped into the car, pointed it south, and set off for DC. My friends Alex Tang and Bob Bagnall allowed us to invade their gorgeous historic house in the Kalorama section of the city. We were provided with comfy beds, vegetable frittatas for breakfast and all the Girl Scout cookies we could eat. I wondered if they’d notice if we took up permanent residence on their third floor. Michael Miyazaki and Ron Squeri provided us with a wonderful evening-before-the-show supper that included several of my longtime DC pals. Michael and another DC friend Matt Howe provided me with the only pictures from this run of gigs, for which I will be eternally grateful. It was wonderful to be back on the stage at Blues Alley. The audience was filled with many old friends, and some of my very first mentors. The whole experience was like coming home. It was difficult to leave, but we’ll be back soon!
Me on-stage at Blues Alley...Photo courtesy of Matt Howe
On Tuesday we staggered to the car and up the Jersey turnpike to home, slightly the worse for wear but thrilled at the work we did. Many many many thanks to the top notch staffs of the Metropolitan Room and Blues Alley, especially Ted Stafford (Met Room) and Robby Cooper (Blues Alley) who gave us great lights and sound. I am grateful to everyone who came out to cheer us one. Thank you! It was a delight to sing for you. We are making plans to do this again in the near future, so keep watching this space for dates. Some nice people even wrote a bit about the shows, you can check out their thoughts HERE, & HERE, & HERE.
And before I forget, I’ve gotten some requests for the song list so here it is:
I feel Lucky Mary Chapin Carpenter / Don Schlitz
Walking after Midnight Donald Hecht
I Got Lucky in the Hall Marshall Barer / Dean Fuller
Breathing /So In Love Amanda Mcbroom / Michele Brourman
Cole Porter
Round Amanda McBroom / Joel Silberman
Lucky Break Melissa Manchester / Beth Nielsen Chapman
Once in a Blue Moon /Night Ride Home Anne Caldwell / Jerome Kern
Joni Mitchell
It’s Never Perfect Shelia Rae / Michele Brourman
Monotonous June Carroll / Arthur Siegel
Silver Heart/ Shut Up and Drive Michele Brourman
Melvern Rivers Rutherford III / Annie Tate / Sam M. Tate
Sometimes More is More Michele Brourman
Ring of Fire June Carter / Merle Kilgore
Independence Day Gretchen Peters
A Mother’s Prayer Melissa Manchester
No comments:
Post a Comment