Jazzy, brassy, bluesy, she does it all. When Marilyn Maye first appeared at the Metropolitan Room, she had long been a respected singer in countless venues, appreciated for her recordings and recalled by over 30 appearances on The Tonight Show. For many younger cabaret audiences, however, she was a new experience. That vanished quickly. Marilyn Maye took the Metropolitan Room by hurricane, and in her latest show, Maye Sings Ray…and More!, she delivers no less force.

When Maye steps on the stage, she illuminates an aura of humor and ebullience. She comes from the school of inherent good musical taste, a school where acute phrasing is expected and stress on words transport the song right to the listener. Born in Des Moines but seasoned in Kansas City, she inserts jazz inflections, shivers of emotion, forming renditions that end up as singularly Maye, with verve, optimism, and a potent personality.

Opening this show, she selects an upbeat series including "Golden Rainbow," "Today I Love Everybody" and a "Get Happy" medley. She sings "I Get A Kick Out of You" to Eklof's drumbeat, and "Autumn in New York" crackles with appreciation for the city and the fans who embrace her.

The core of this show, however, is Ray Charles, hashed out through Marilyn Maye's sensibility and Billy Stritch's R&B arrangements. Why Ray? Why not? Maye's illustrations prove that even though Charles' heart was often breaking, it was full. Accompanied by Stritch, who adds the right feel to every tune, with bassist Tom Hubbard, and Jim Eklof on drums, Maye grabs the audience, surging ahead with "Hallelujah, I Love Him," and doesn't let go even with the heartbreak of "Am I Blue?" or the heavy the beat of "Busted." She sinks to the despair "Born to Lose" with Stritch's bluesy keyboard. While she delivers full-throated vocal richness, the songs come across with investigative shadows of a life lived and appreciated.

Marilyn Maye is a fail-safe pleaser. As Jerry Herman wrote for Mame, "It's Today," so treat yourself and see her show.

Marilyn Maye appears with Maye Sings Ray…and More! at the Metropolitan Room September 12 - 23. She returns to the Metropolitan Room with a tribute to Johnny Carson in November.

Elizabeth Ahlfors
Cabaret Scenes
September 12, 2007
www.cabaretscenes.org