All Posts

Herb Alpert’s Vibrato was the perfect venue for Sinne Eeg’s stylish James Bond Gala Wednesday night in Bel Air.  The Bond movie music, which has been performed in Norway and Finland, made its stateside debut with guest vocalist Kenton Chen.  Pianist Josh Nelson fronted a top shelf quintet consisting of Dan Schnelle, drums; Jon Hatamiya, trombone; Luca Alemanno, upright bass; and Mitch Foreman, keyboard. The evening opened appropriately with an instrumental, the James Bond The

Dori Amarilio, Keri Kelsey, Lyman Meideros. The final performance at Tom Rolla's Gardenia. photo by Janet S. Blake When the Gardenia opened in 1981, it was a hot ticket, and I dreamed of performing there. The little pink, L shaped room with the gardenia etched window was attracting the top names in cabaret - Julie Wilson (whose picture in recent years hung in a place of prominence,) Penny Fuller, LeRoy Reams, Linda Lavin, Page Cavanaugh, too many others to name here.  I got

Ben Platt commented on the brilliance of Liza Minelli in his performance yesterday at the Ahmanson Theatre, calling her the ultimate nepo baby.  “She gives us a good name,” he said.  Platt, the son of producer Marc Platt (most notably “Wicked” on Broadway and numerous high-profile films,) referenced a question that has come up during his career.  How much has his success been the result of his father’s considerable accomplishments and connections?  After seeing his matinee pe

L to R, Wendy Craig, Dirk Bogarde's shadow, and James Fox. A very arty still from a very artful study of class, alcoholism and sexual manipulation. The Servant, 1963. Joseph Losey (black listed in America and working in England) directed the script by Harold Pinter. Diabolical opportunist Dirk Bogarde and guttersnipe Sarah Miles insinuate themselves into the home of upper class golden boy James Fox. The music by John Dankworth features appropriately lush woodwind arrangements

It was an honor to contribute a song last night at the 103rd birthday celebration at Catalina Jazz Club  for the remarkable Annette Warren, who provided vocals for some of the greatest film legends, including Lucille Ball and Ava Gardner. Annette is also a very successful recording artist and vocal coach, and was married to the great jazz pianist Paul Smith. It was a lovely, warm crowd. Thanks to Alan Eichler  for inviting me and, together with Chris Isaacson, for putting tog

The spectacular Lizz Wright opened last night's "Perfect Angel" tribute show to Minnie Ripperton at the Hollywood Bowl. Another standout performance for me was Chante Moore, who had the vocal chops to deliver on Ripperton's best known recording, "Lovin' You," singing with heart and honesty. I also very much enjoyed Aloe Blacc, a solid performer who knows how to move, and a very tight and energetic male vocal quartet Kings Return. It was wonderful seeing legend George Benson p

Very much enjoyed Jason Graae  at the good ol' Gardenia  last night, accompanied by Gerald Sternbach . So very special to see an evening of cabaret from two authentic talents who really know their craft. It was a well paced, unforced and delightfully quirky evening right down to the oboe playing. Graae's blending of music and humor rises to the level of another great Dane, Victor Borge, who he referenced in a poignant tribute to his father. The interplay between Graae and Ste

What do Mr. Rogers, Dizzy Gillespie, kazoos, the planet Mars and Petula Clark have in common? The answer was to be found last night at the good ol’ Gardenia  as Liz Cole  and Jeffrey Gimble  treated us to a smart, eclectic set of music. Before the show the room was buzzing with conviviality, and when pianist Josh Nelson  walked in, he said, “Oh, wow, this is a room full of friends.” Once they got over some jitters on a somewhat bumpy opener, “I Thought About You,” Cole and Gi

For cryin’ out loud. Those who know know. Brilliant show last night at Jazz Alley from the remarkable Arturo Sandoval with Will Brahm (guitar), Lisandro Pidre (piano), Michael Tucker (tenor sax), Keith Fiala (trumpet), Larry Bustamante (baritone saxophone), Maximilian Gerl (bass), Samuel Torres  (percussion) and Daniel Feldman  (drums). ARTURO opened with a brief, high energy cumbia, then took us on a multi genre roller coaster ride through bebop, ballads and originals perfor

Halfway through a story she was telling onstage at the Catalina Jazz Club  last night, Carmen Bradford  stopped, looked at her watch and asked, “Am I talking too much?” The response from the full house was an emphatic “No!” She continued telling us how she became the vocalist for the great Count Basie Orchestra. It was that kind of night, up close and personal. I was interested to see how an artist known primarily as a big band singer would adapt to a piano vocal duo. The mus

What a pleasure it was yesterday afternoon to be in a room full of people whose attention spans are fully intact. A rapt, diverse audience listened to music led by guitarist Larry Koonse  with Darek Oles on bass, Joe La Barbera on drums and Peter Smith  on piano. I've been wanting to get to Peter Smith's monthly Sessions at Stained Glass at the cavernous First Baptist Church in Pasadena since he initiated them. The performance space is reached after winding your way through d

To be honest, I wasn't receptive to going out for music tonight. Sometimes it is just that way. After a long day, an evening on the...

Sara Gazarek delivered an eclectic mix of her best known recorded arrangements and adventurous new music tonight at Mr. Musichead. The...