Auckland International Cabaret Season: Opening Night (Concert Review)

The five-day Auckland International Cabaret Season kicked off last night with Tim Finn’s solo show, White Cloud and then a parade of seven female vocalists paying tribute to Billie Holiday inLady Sings The Blues.

Tim Finn’s one man show…well, ok, two man…guitarist Brett Adams sat quietly in the corner playing along with Finn’s piano and guitar…started out just after 6pm in the Concert Chamber.

The show consists on songs written by Tim along with dialogue by playwright Ken Duncum (and I assume some input from Finn) examining what it means to be a Pakeha along with more personal introspection by Finn, in particular, the death of his mother.

It’s a low key affair, with Finn alternating between a centre-stage mic and a piano on stage left. Old photos and family home movies are displayed on a screen above the stage.

Finn’s songs and monologue are obviously heartfelt, but I’m not sure if the material is strong enough to hold an audience’s attention for the length of the show.

At 7:30 it was time to move to the main room at the Town Hall where a sold out audience was set to experience Lady Sings The Blues, in which seven vocalists take their shot at the songs that helped shape Billie Holiday’s legacy. The seven include six Kiwis…Ladi6, Whirimako Black, Julia Deans, Annie Crummer, Ria Hall and Hollie Smith along with Irish chanteuse Camille O’Sullivan.

Billie Holiday is considered by many to be the greatest female vocalist of the 20^thcentury and performing her songs can be a daunting task. Fortunately the vocalists had an ace band to back them up. Led by guitarist and musical director Dixon Nacey, they were Mike Booth (trumpet), Roger Manins (sax) Grant Winterburn (keys), Cameron McArthur (bass) and Adam Tobeck (drums).

The show featured an off-stage female announcer who provided biographical info about Lady Day and the songs, while introducing each vocalist as they took the stage.

First up was Ladi6 and her rendition of the song, Lady Sings The Blues. She did a lovely job of channelling the spirit of Billie Holiday without sounding like an impersonator…not an easy task.

Next up was Whirimako Black who, not surprisingly, turned out to be my favourite of the group. Her delivery on Good Morning Heartache and later, withCrazy He Calls Me, was impeccable. Her’s is a voice that sounds like it has lived the blues and she make every lyric believable.

Julia Deans had the unenviable task of following Black and she rose to the challenge. The former Fur Patrol frontwoman proved that she is more than a rock chick, turning in a sultry version of Everything Happens To Me and later, Holiday’s own heartbreaking, Don’t Explain. Both were exquisite.

Annie Crummer seemed unsuited to her first number, Lover Man, Where Can You Be. She used too much vibrato for my taste and moved from low to high register somewhat uncomfortably. Her playful version of Them There Eyes was much better and the crowd responded accordingly, giving Annie a well-deserved ovation.

Ria Hall is a relative newcomer and her inexperience showed on the two songs she performed…I Cover The Waterfront and Blues In The Night. Technically, she’s a fine singer, but there’s more to these songs than hitting the right notes and she never really connected with them emotionally.

Irish songstress Camille O’Sullivan showed off her pipes during a hauntingGloomy Sunday and Duke Ellington’s In My Solitude.

Hollie Smith appeared later in the programme first with Nina Simone’s Do I Move You and then with the closer, God Bless The Child. While Hollie is a wonderful vocalist, she has a tendency to over-sing, which was fine for Do I Move You (although I’m not sure why a Nina Simone song was inserted into the programme), but her over-the-top version of God Bless The Child rendered the tune unrecognisable and, for me at least, unlistenable. It sounded like Hollie was trying out for one of those TV talent shows.

The evening would have been better served if it ended with Ladi6’s Strange Fruit.Its Billie Holiday’s most powerful song and again, Ladi6 nailed it with help from Dixon Nacey’s band who provided an accompaniment that added a new dimension to the song.

Still, it looks as though this year’s Cabaret Season is off to a strong start with plenty more happening in the following days.

Marty Duda

Click on any image to view a photo gallery of the Cabaret Season Launch Party shot by Veronica McLaughlin and featuring Tom Rodwell & Coco Davis performing:

Lady Sings The Blues set list:

1. Lady Sings The Blues – Ladi6
2. Good Morning Heartache – Whirimako Black
3. Everything Happens To Me – Julia Deans
4. Lover Man, Where Can You Be – Annie Crummer
5. I Cover The Waterfront – Ria Hall
6. Gloomy Sunday – Camille O’Sullivan
7. In My Solitude – Camille O’Sullivan
8. Crazy He Calls Me – Whirimako Black
9. Don’t Explain – Julia Deans
10. Do I Move You – Hollie Smith
11. Blues In The Night – Ria Hall
12. Strange Fruit – Ladi6
13. God Bless The Child – Hollie Smith