Category: Music

Back in 1977, I saw the comedian Robert Klein when he came to the University of Maryland for a show.  I can still remember many details of it.  But most of all, I remember the opening act.  A huge fellow waddled across the stage, wearing overalls, possibly weighing close to 300 pounds, though my memory might be playing tricks, as he does not look nearly that heavy on his album cover.  The audience did not know who he was – he was not introduced – and some people laughed at his appearance, which saddened me.  He looked like he might be the maintenance man or a piano tuner, if played by Oliver Hardy.  Then he sat down at the piano, to everyone’s surprise.  He played and sang.  When he opened his mouth to sing, I was mesmerized.  He also accompanied himself on guitar for a few songs.  He played both instruments with great skill.  And I loved his voice and his songs.  He was funny and self-deprecating.  After the show, I went straight to the record store in the Student Union and bought his album, “A Simpler Time,” on A&M Records.  Many other students did the same. I thought for sure he would be a big star.  I must have played this record hundreds of times, and I can still hear “Oooh, I’ve got no lights. Oooh, I’ve got no heat,” whenever I’ve lost power or heat. And I know “I’ve been down this road before,” and that has been a very pleasant earworm when it hits me.

Despite my expectation that Katakis would be the next Billy Joel, I never heard of him again.  Some years ago, after many attempts to find out what became of him, I discovered he had become a successful “writer who also takes photographs,” a professor of Native American literature, and more, in a career lasting more than four decades.  He’s no longer that huge fellow I saw in 1977, either. Katakis has published a number of titles, including a spectacular book of his journeys around the world, Photographs and Words. And he manages the literary estate of Ernest Hemingway! I found his email and wrote him a letter to acknowledge him and ask what happened to his music career.  Weeks later, he found the email in his spam folder and wrote me back.  I learned that he quit the music business maybe a year after this show, just disgusted with it.  He was really thrilled and appreciative to learn he had made such an impact in his short time making music.  He had to read the letter to his wife.  It was, I suppose, his “Moonlight Graham” (Field of Dreams) moment.  “You were good, Doc!” 

The album is long out of print.  And nothing in any of Katakis’s bios even mentions his early career. After many years, someone in Japan finally had the good sense to put the album on YouTube.  It is, in fact, the soundtrack to a video of the actual album playing on a turntable, and it sounds pristine.  I’m perhaps as moved today as I was some 44 years ago.  And wondering if I or a wise reader of this post can possibly cover a couple of these lost tunes, which deserve another day in the sun.

More information about Michael Katakis can be found at his website, http://www.mkatakis.org/gallery_links.html

And now, for your listening pleasure, sides 1 and 2 of A Simpler Time:

I started my night at the National Arts Club to see Bill Boggs interview Will Friedwald on the occasion of the third edition of Friedwald’s seminal book on Frank Sinatra’s records, “The Song is You.”  This is a gorgeous building on Gramercy Park, next to the Players Club.  It’s an old-fashioned membership club, a bit staid, with a mostly older member base.  There’s art everywhere, old and new.  The Explorer’s Club is also a few doors away.  Theodore Roosevelt’s childhood home is down the block – Roosevelt was a member of the National Arts Club, as well as the Explorer’s Club.  A few friends were in attendance. 

The men interspersed video and film clips of Sinatra, including a segment of Bill Boggs’ own 1975 interview of Sinatra, and entertained questions from the audience.  There was a “bobbysoxer” in attendance, who told of her cutting school to see Sinatra at the Paramount in 1942.  She told me she was 14, which would make her 91 today. 

My friend Jonathan Smith, known around town for his Stan Lauren impersonations, suggested we head over to Swing 46 to bid singer Sarah Hayes a bon voyage.  Sarah is about to embark on a three-month cruise.  We got there, but no sign of Sarah.  I texted her and discovered she was at Flute, a Champagne bar on 54th Street, where our friend Ellen Bullinger was singing, and “all the girls” were there.  So off we went.  There, I found Ellen singing with two of my favorite musicians, Kerry MacKillop on flugelhorn and Ron Jackson on seven-string guitar.  Several friends sat in to sing.  I was a bit too late, so not this time. 

On Saturday, June 8th, I had tickets to see my friends Eric Comstock and his wife Barbara Fasano at Birdland. It was a beautiful day, so I biked down to Birdland, even though I was meeting a date there, the lovely Lara. I got there early, and the club kindly allowed me to put my folding bike backstage. By the time Lara came, I was cleaned up pretty nicely with a summery jacket and tie, dress shirt and shoes, and a summer hat. My pal Will Friedwald came, but sat behind us with our friend David Rosen, who takes some of the best photos you’ll ever see of New York nightlife. David also has a Brompton, after years of riding a recumbent, but parks his outside.

Eric was in fine form tonight both on piano and vocally. He played with bassist Sean Smith, and later his wife came out for a set. Eric is quite knowledgeable about the music he sings, and offered wonderful stories about the songs, most of which were new to me. We had terrific seats, and had dinner there.

As luck would have it. there was a show downstairs starting just as Eric and Barbara’s show was ending. “Old Friends,” a set piece with Clint Holmes, Veronica Swift, and Nicholas King, with a top-notch five-piece band behind them, led by the outstanding accompanist and musical director Tedd Firth. Tom Hubbard on the bass. I had wanted to see this for awhile. I asked Gianni Valenti, the owner of the club, if I could see the show (without paying a second cover). This is where it really pays to be a regular and to befriend the owner, because he kindly invited Lara and I to sit at the table next to him near the door downstairs, on the house. Thanks, Gianni!

If you haven’t yet seen or heard of Veronica Swift, you will. She’s a dear friend of mine. She only turned 25 last month. She’s one of the best singers of jazz I’ve ever heard. “Bebop lives here” is her motto. She grew up with this music all around her — her mother, Stephanie Nakasian, is also a terrific singer who sang with the likes of Jon Hendricks. Her father, the late Hod O’Brien, was a renowned jazz pianist. Veronica is well-trained at the conservatory level — she can sing opera as well as jazz standards — and has a magnificent instrument and what I’d describe as otherworldly skills to play with impossible modulations, sans reference notes. She scats as well as anyone I’ve heard (including her idol Anita O’Day and mine, Ella Fitzgerald). Here was a chance to hear her show off many other vocal sides, and even some acting chops.

The show struck me as a “Manhattan Tower for the 2000’s” — all but one song an original for the show, and it told a story, with many Manhattan references in the lyrics. The three stars played together like, well, old friends — and I hope this show gets bigger!

After the show, while speaking with the stars, I mentioned a particular friend of mine, Roy, who has spectacular parties with jam sessions. I’d gotten Veronica and Will into one of these. I’d also met the cabaret star Jamie deRoy at one, and she was there tonight. Seconds after mentioning these parties to Jamie, my friend messaged me out of the blue, asking if I’d like to come jam at his new home. I invited Lara to join me, and scooted to the upper west side (took the bike on the train), where I spent the remainder of Saturday night with Roy on piano and his friend Alvin on sax, with iRealPro backing tracks, on a stage in Roy’s home. Yes, a stage. Roy has a bunch of guitars and other instruments, so it was fine that I didn’t just happen to have one with me. It was challenging — they played things like Coltrane, Miles Davis and other jazz standards — I have a great ear and good instincts, but I don’t actually play “jazz” per se — still, I was able to find chords and leads that suited the music.

A good week for The Boulevardier!

Monday, June 3rd, was something else. First was the Taste of Times Square street party on 46th Street. As always, my home base was Swing 46, where the George Gee Orchestra played and my friend Sarah Hayes sang. Sarah is about to go off on a three-month cruise, so I may not see her until the fall.

Then it was off to Birdland. First, I saw a terrific show by Broadwsay/cabaret star Melissa Errico downstairs at the Birdland Theater. I had to leave early, however, as my main reason for being at Birdland was Jim Caruso’s Cast Party. If you haven’t yet been to this, it’s one of the best things in New York. For some eighteen years, Jim Caruso has had an ongoing open mic event every Monday night, where “some of the most talented people in the world will perform…. also other people.” The great Billy Stritch accompanies everyone on the piano, along with Steve Doyle on bass and Daniel Glass on drums. On this particular, night, there were no duds. My dear friend Susie Clausen, surely my female counterpart as a Boulevardier of New York (when she’s not home in California), made her world debut on a stage, playing the sax and singing on “Hey Big Spender,” having been personally coached by the legendary Marilyn Maye, who came both to cheer Susie on and to sing a song herself. At 91, she’s nothing short of indomitable, selling out entire runs at Feinstein’s/54 Below, no easy feat for anyone. Susie’s song was a blast. She’s only playing sax for a few years, and singing for only a few months (at Marilyn Maye’s insistence). Susie has the kind of appeal that makes everyone adore her instantly., from the club owners down to the busboys. What she lacks in chops is more than made up for by her vivacious persona, authenticity, and her beauty.

Clint Holmes, remembered by most for his 1972 hit “Playground In My Mind” (“My Name is Michael…”), is today a renowned jazz singer with a wonderful voice. He sang. Marilyn sang. The wonderful entertainer Susie Mosher (who hosts a weekly show called The Lineup every Tuesday at the Birdland Theater) sang. A number of other singers, most of whom I know personally, sang. And oh yes, I sang. This was my seventh time at Cast Party. I tend to play more fun numbers or even novelty bits at this show, because of the “party” nature. (“No ballads!”) Four of the first six times I played ukulele as well as sang, and once I played guitar. On this occasion, I decided to sing jazz in a jazz club. I sang the Cole Porter classic, “What Is This Thing Called Love,” singing the song through in rubato before swinging it, and ending it with a powerful note. I got major kudos from Jim Caruso, Susie Mother, Clint Holmes, and most importantly, Marilyn Maye, who passed along some notes to Susie Clausen for me, since I’m also one of Marilyn’s students.

I’ll continue this week in separate posts.

This was my fourth appearance at Parnell’s as the “Spotlight Singer” on their open mic night, which is Thursday. On this night, pianist Bill Zeffiro plays for everyone. Bill is often mistaken for me and the other way around — we’re the same age within three months, are shaved-headed, wear fedoras and love Sinatra, but he’s Italian and I’m Jewish… go figure.

I get a dozen songs at this gig, six songs in two sets. I make it a point to play mostly different songs each gig, so that anyone coming to see me more than once won’t have heard my set before. There might be one or two repeats, usually if I feel I didn’t nail it the previous time. I know hundreds of songs, so why stick to a handful?

The night was fairly successful, with over 25 people coming to see me, plus a few who were there anyway. I had a couple of Broadway people who came — Loren and Kelly Lester, both successful. Loren is about to hit the road starring in “The Band’s Visit” for the next year. It was quite an honor for them to show up. Loren got them go give me a seventh song. I played guitar and ukulele in the second set, including one number where I played guitar without Bill on piano. A friend of mine from grade school came well after I was done, and after my friends left. Bill kindly invited me to sing a song for her.

Best part — Brian, the owner, who is a fan, told me to talk to Cheryl, who books the talent, to get booked for a Saturday gig. So I’ll be there September 28th, a Saturday. I have to supply the pianist (paid for by the club) but this means I’ll get to control the night, and sing many more songs. #Winning!