Ease on Down the Road

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

Girls’ Night(s) Out

Melissa Manchester, Michele Brourman, Me, and Amanda McBroom Post show at the Gardenia

The Gardenia gig was delightful! Michele Brourman and I put together a terrific set of songs from some of our favorite composers including Gretchen Peters, June Carter Cash, Joni Mitchell, Amanda McBroom, Michele herself and Melissa Manchester. Ms. Manchester even showed up at the club with her mother to hear me sing her delicious songs Lucky Break (written with Beth Nielsen Chapman) and Mother’s Prayer. If you think it’s daunting having one composer in the room try having THREE, but I couldn’t have asked for a more supportive cheering section. Amanda McB joined me for a duet on Michele and Sheila Rae’s tune It’s Never Perfect and a trio with Michele and me on Monotonous. Many friends old and new dropped by including composers Shelly Markham and Ray Jessel, singer Anne Kerry Ford, my very best friend from high school Cindy Banescu, and my newlywed cousin Elizabeth Mucci, who brought her new hubby along for my approval. Many many many debts of gratitude are owed to Tom Rolla and the Gardenia staff, my friends Jason Graae and Glen Fretwell who provided me with a lovely temporary home in the Hollywood hills, Miss Laurel back on the East Coast who is a never-ending fount of wisdom and sanity, Amanda McBroom who sang my praises and worked the phones getting people to come out to see us, and last but never least my partner in song Michele Brourman, whose awe-inspiring talent and support make me feel I can do anything! We’re eagerly anticipating our return.

Someday Soon

My people are not a portable people. A trip to the corner store requires an oversize tote bag containing at least two books, a spare pair of shoes, three shades of lipstick and two and a half pounds of loose change. I’ve come to accept this about myself, and I appreciate the lovely shoulder muscles that have developed from schlepping my paraphernalia all over town. My portability powers will be sorely tried this summer as I get ready to make a couple of trips out to the West Coast. I understand that Continental Airlines only lets you have one fifty pound bag and then they ask for a kidney and your first born child. Ah, but lest you think I protest too much…All this schlepage is for a good cause. I’ll be spending time on the Other Coast working on a brand new set of tunes to be debuted at the Gardenia in West Hollywood on September 4th and 5th.

I’ll also be working with a brand new set of collaborators. I have wanted to work with Michele Brourman for a very long time, and I’m thrilled that we’ve finally found the time and a venue to do it. Michele is an arranger, composer, pianist and vocalist with exquisite taste. We have been having a grand time pitching ideas back and forth. Right now we’re working whittling the song list down from the forty or so songs we absolutely love to an hour’s worth of material. Obviously packing light isn’t my only issue, although in my defense we started out with eighty.

Two of my other favorite Angelinos will be making guest appearances. Singer/Songwriter Amanda McBroom will pop in for a song or two, as will the insanely talented Jason Graae. I am a lucky girl to have such gifted and generous friends!

And now…back to packing and song whittling!

Redheads on the Town

Apres Show

The Redheads with Michele Brourman & Amanda McBroom

What’s better than an evening with one of our favorite singer-songwriters? A double feature, of course; starring two of our favorite people on the planet Amanda McBroom & Michele Brourman. Last Friday night your Redheads trekked downtown to the Metropolitan room to see, hear, cheer on, and yes, even steal a song or two from these virtuosos. Miss. Amanda ruled the first half of the evening singing a great mix of tunes, some she wrote, some she didn’t and several were from her upcoming album of Jacques Brel tunes. She was accompanied by Miss. Michele Brourman her frequent co-writer, musical director, long time friend and the producer of the new Album. If this was the only set we’d seen that evening it certainly would have left us with great smiles on our faces, but then came part II. After a break Michele took the stage solo and wowed us with her great warmth, tender voice, and masterful songs. Both these ladies have long been on the list of people we wish would write songs just for us so our pens were busy all evening making notes of tunes we wanted to add to our repertoires.

The audience was nothing to sneeze at either. It was chock full of other composers on our dream list including Carol Hall, Julie Gold, John Bucchino, and Shelia Rae. Also gliding through the room were Tommy Tune and Robert LaFosse. Ahhh…if only we could move through the world with that much grace… It was a wonderful night with wonderful friends, and we even managed to get a snap shot or two!