No one could put a song across like the great Mabel Mercer. The likes of Frank Sinatra, Lena Horne and Peggy Lee attributed her with teaching (by performing) how to communicate the truth of a lyric. Complete focus, understated delivery, impeccable phrasing and extraordinarily sensitive interpretation make her iconic to generations of vocalists and musicians. Her attributes create a kind of Grail for which performers search, each in his or her own fashion. Like the incomparable Fred Astaire for whom the best composers and lyricists of the American Songbook lined up to write, her song styling broke the mold of audience expectation.
Miss Mercer died in 1984. Owing predominantly to the zealous efforts of her dear friend and publicist, the indefatigable Donald Smith, The Mabel Mercer Foundation was established on her birthday, February 3, 1985. In 1989, the first annual Cabaret Convention was held in New York City. Since that time conventions have been established in San Francisco, Chicago, Philadelphia, Palm Springs, London and the Hamptons. The foundation continues to be “the only non-profit arts organization of its kind… perpetuating the memory of the legendary artist by stimulating and promoting public interest in American song and the singular art of cabaret she epitomized.” It’s still spearheaded by Smith whose active care not only of the organization and art form but of its living community is an example to us all.
In a year when one of the oldest, most lauded cabaret rooms of New York City, The Oak Room of The Algonquin Hotel, has been shut down and The New York Times continues to lead the pack of prominent news media who have never deigned to support a cabaret column or calendar, the community huddles together for warmth and encouragement like never before. What makes pop and jazz more viable, more worthy of coverage than this evergreen musical genre?! As singers from Broadway and opera join our ranks and the next generation drawn to the American Songbook looks to the future, we wonder what it will take to be recognized by those supposedly disseminating information and opinion about our national art forms. Write, call, make your voice heard if you care!
Mabel Mercer would’ve been 112 this year. Friday evening, her annual birthday anniversary concert packed The National Arts Club. The show, after all, must go on. An audience that reached across time was represented by enthusiasts ranging from 93 year-old Ervin Drake, author of, among other songs, “It was a Very Good Year” and the indomitable Julie Wilson who made her Broadway stage debut in 1946, to stalwarts of the next generation such as pianist Bill Zeffiro and vocalists Jeff Harnar and Stacy Sullivan. Most of the crowd were simply fans, those who follow, attend and applaud the craft.
Stepping in for the ailing Donald Smith, KT Sullivan acted as master of ceremonies. With talented James Followell at the piano, Nancy Anderson (above) took the stage first. Known for her performance of Noel Coward, the vocalist began with his “You Are Not My First Love.” She was appropriately wry not amusing, flirty not suggestive. “Once in a Blue Moon” (Richard Rodgers/ Lorenz Hart) followed. Slight, constant vibrato makes her voice sound as if from an earlier era. Phrasing was thoughtful, lyrics oddly elusive. A lesser known example of Mercer repertoire, “It’s Not Easy Being Green” (Joe Raposo) written for Kermit the Frog, was ably served by Anderson’s pristine rendition. Noel Coward master Steve Ross (also at the piano) joined her for a jaunty duet of Coward’s “Room With a View.” The singer’s …we’ll bill and coo oo oo hit just the right tone.
Steve Ross (above) began his own turn with Cole Porter’s “It’s De-Lovely.” The kind of talent that stills a room without raising his voice, Ross not only delivers brio with unceasing ease, but knows all the verses to the treasures he performs. His adroit phrasing and musically raised eyebrow can even make this particularly seasoned audience chuckle. Mercer’s signature “Down in the Depths on the Ninetieth Floor” (also Porter) was pitch perfectly world weary. Ross shared a recollection about Mercer’s show having once reduced him to tears, pausing just a few beats longer than usual before going on to a delicately reflective rendition of “Both Sides Now.” (Joni Mitchell) “More I Cannot Wish You” (Frank Loesser) closed the parentheses with a flawlessly light touch. The room collectively sighed.
Jennifer Sheehan, above (James Followell, piano), a shining light of the new generation, offered a beautifully understated “Isn’t It a Pity.” (George and Ira Gershwin) Microphone in hand, she gracefully crossed the stage, communicating with every bit of an extended audience. Sheehan has a beguiling quality. The rumba-flavored “Remind Me” (Jerome Kern/Dorothy Fields) showcased great capacity to vary and control a single phrase. “Time Heals Everything” from Jerry Herman’s Mack & Mabel, was less successful. With “My Shining Hour” (Harold Arlen/Johnny Mercer), Sheehan returned to emotionally resonant performance.
Craig Rubano, left above, (James Fallowell, piano) favored us with a brisk, bouncy version of “All of You” (Cole Porter) followed by a beautifully rendered “Why Did I Choose You?” (Michael Leonard/ Herbert Martin) from The Yearling. His full, rich baritone is reminiscent of Alfred Drake, without the affectation. Rubano barely makes a gesture. All focus is on expansive feeling. Laying the microphone aside, he then sang Bart Howard’s “On the First Warm Day.” It was sheer elegance. KT Sullivan, right, above, also without a microphone, rose from the audience to offer a gossamer rendition of Howard’s “My Love is a Wanderer.” These two deceptively simple numbers embodied the best of cabaret.
“We have till 8:15,” Sullivan began, “and I have an idea. Donald gave me a book called Midnight at Mabel’s which I sent to my mother. She was so inspired by stories of performers who learned by sitting stage side, hanging on Mabel’s every word, wondering how she did it, my mother wrote a song.”
Elizabeth Sullivan, vocalist, writer, and matriarch of the musical clan, accompanied her daughters KT and Stacy Sullivan on piano as they sang the gorgeous “As Long As We Sing,”* also blessedly without microphones. The two soprano voices rose together like birds in flight as the ladies reached for one another’s hands. It was like being in church. One imagines Donald Smith might have heard something in the wind Friday night. Miss Mercer would have been deeply touched. We were. (Photo above, Elizabeth, KT, and Stacy Sullivan).
As long as we touch another’s heart the way she knew just how to do
As long as we sing, she’ll be singing too.
From “As Long As We Sing”
*More people should sing Elizabeth Sullivan’s lovely songs
Photo credit (except for Mabel-from the archives of The Mabel Mercer Foundation): Maryann Lopinto
Group shot, top, left to right: Elizabeth Sullivan, Steve Ross, KT Sullivan, Stacy Sullivan, James Fallowell, Jennifer Sheehan, Craig Rubano
The Mabel Mercer Foundation
In Association with The National Arts Club Presents
The Songs That Mabel Sang
A Birthday Anniversary Concert Celebrating Mabel Mercer
February 3, 2012
