Cabaret Scenes Review - Jessie Buckley

I’m beginning to wonder if writing reviews for Cabaret Scenes is the best job on earth. I seem to go from one great performance to another and, believe me, I’m not all that easy! Honest…..

I first heard Jessie Buckley sing a few weeks ago at a gala. She sang with a six-piece string band and, despite a fidgety audience and a very acoustically unfriendly room, she intrigued me enough to want to review her. I find myself now faced with writing another review full of superlatives. I will need to think carefully about this, so that you understand just how special Jessie Buckley is.

So, in order to give myself a bit more time on that front, I’m going to start with criticisms, rather than praise. That will be a nice switch.

OK, I have one biggish criticism, and an eensy weensy one. The biggish one is that Jessie sings with her eyes closed for too much of the time. She’s cute and sexy and nice to watch, even with her eyes closed, but, at some point, closed eyes can make an audience feel left on the outside looking in. It would be so much nicer to see those beautiful, twinkling Irish eyes smiling just a bit more. She also seems to sing to mostly straight down the middle of the audience, where, luckily, I was seated, but I bet the people on the edges did feel just a little bit alienated. Having said this, her audience jumped to its feet at the end of her show, so it would appear — eyes closed or open — we loved the show. The nitpicking criticism is her dress. Beautiful as it was, an off-white dress in front of off-white curtains washed her out a bit. I’m just being overly picky here to prove that I’m really not that easy.

Now, on to the superlatives. Damn, can this woman sing! I believe Jessie’s is, almost without a doubt, the best voice I’ve ever heard at Pizza on the Park in the last 23 years. It is, without a doubt, one of the best voices I’ve ever heard. I know that sounds a bit over the top, but I’m serious. Her voice is gorgeous, warm, crystal clear, strong, soft, seamless, perfectly controlled – it’s truly exceptional, and to use the title of one of the songs she sang, “It’s Magic.” Her interpretation of lyrics: terrific. She inhabits each and every song she sings with either intense emotion or great fun. I know there are plenty of talented singers around, but last night, during her ballads, you could hear people blink, they were so engrossed. I don’t remember the last time I saw a performer where there was not a hint of movement or noise in the audience for minutes on end. And we’re talking a supper club here – people had food and drinks on their table, but nothing moved, not even the waiters. Jessie stopped time.

As for highlights, where do I start? She and her wonderful pianist, Joe Thompson, certainly set a great tone for the evening with George and Ira Gershwin’s “A Foggy Day (in London Town).” Moving to the other side of the Atlantic, Billy Strayhorn’s “Take the ‘A’ Train” was not only beautifully sung, but the arrangement was fab-u-lous. It was as if we were in New York on our way to Harlem. I felt every chug of the train and every clack of the track. Strayhorn’s “Day Dream” showed Jessie’s ability to use her voice completely. Hugh Martin’s “The Boy Next Door” was just amazing as well – her voice soared on this song – her interpretation was astounding – not to mention moving. Harold Arlen and Johnny Mercer were beautifully represented with an intensely emotional “Blues in the Night” and a dreamy “Hit the Road to Dreamland.” Still, my favorite two songs of the night were Sonny Burke and Paul Francis Webster’s “Black Coffee” and Sammy Cahn and Jule Styne’s “It’s Magic.”

At the end of the show, I wondered to myself, “so, she closed her eyes too much. Still, isn’t a terrific voice on its own enough to carry an entire show of 2 ½ hours?” In the case of Jessie Buckley, absof***inglutely! It doesn’t hurt to have the support of one truly superb pianist, who seems to use all 88 keys in every song. It’s almost as if Jessie were accompanied by a full band, rather than just a piano.

Jessie has too many UK dates coming up to list here, so for details please contact Samuel Joseph on info@samuel-joseph.com. I don’t see any US dates on the list, but it shouldn’t be long before she’s the toast of New York.

Jessie Buckley is a must-see. It’s rare to encounter of talent of this calibre; in fact, it’s almost unheard of. Go see Jessie Buckley – NOW!

Harold Sanditen
Cabaret Scenes
April 8, 2010
www.cabaretscenes.org



	Jessie Buckley Pizza on the Park London, UK
I’m beginning to wonder if writing reviews for Cabaret Scenes is the best job on earth. I seem to go from one great performance to another and, believe me, I’m not all that easy! Honest….. I first heard Jessie Buckley sing a few weeks ago at a gala. She sang with a six-piece string band and, despite a fidgety audience and a very acoustically unfriendly room, she intrigued me enough to want to review her. I find myself now faced with writing another review full of superlatives. I will need to think carefully about this, so that you understand just how special Jessie Buckley is. So, in order to give myself a bit more time on that front, I’m going to start with criticisms, rather than praise. That will be a nice switch. OK, I have one biggish criticism, and an eensy weensy one. The biggish one is that Jessie sings with her eyes closed for too much of the time. She’s cute and sexy and nice to watch, even with her eyes closed, but, at some point, closed eyes can make an audience feel left on the outside looking in. It would be so much nicer to see those beautiful, twinkling Irish eyes smiling just a bit more. She also seems to sing to mostly straight down the middle of the audience, where, luckily, I was seated, but I bet the people on the edges did feel just a little bit alienated. Having said this, her audience jumped to its feet at the end of her show, so it would appear — eyes closed or open — we loved the show. The nitpicking criticism is her dress. Beautiful as it was, an off-white dress in front of off-white curtains washed her out a bit. I’m just being overly picky here to prove that I’m really not that easy. Now, on to the superlatives. Damn, can this woman sing! I believe Jessie’s is, almost without a doubt, the best voice I’ve ever heard at Pizza on the Park in the last 23 years. It is, without a doubt, one of the best voices I’ve ever heard. I know that sounds a bit over the top, but I’m serious. Her voice is gorgeous, warm, crystal clear, strong, soft, seamless, perfectly controlled – it’s truly exceptional, and to use the title of one of the songs she sang, “It’s Magic.” Her interpretation of lyrics: terrific. She inhabits each and every song she sings with either intense emotion or great fun. I know there are plenty of talented singers around, but last night, during her ballads, you could hear people blink, they were so engrossed. I don’t remember the last time I saw a performer where there was not a hint of movement or noise in the audience for minutes on end. And we’re talking a supper club here – people had food and drinks on their table, but nothing moved, not even the waiters. Jessie stopped time. As for highlights, where do I start? She and her wonderful pianist, Joe Thompson, certainly set a great tone for the evening with George and Ira Gershwin’s “A Foggy Day (in London Town).” Moving to the other side of the Atlantic, Billy Strayhorn’s “Take the ‘A’ Train” was not only beautifully sung, but the arrangement was fab-u-lous. It was as if we were in New York on our way to Harlem. I felt every chug of the train and every clack of the track. Strayhorn’s “Day Dream” showed Jessie’s ability to use her voice completely. Hugh Martin’s “The Boy Next Door” was just amazing as well – her voice soared on this song – her interpretation was astounding – not to mention moving. Harold Arlen and Johnny Mercer were beautifully represented with an intensely emotional “Blues in the Night” and a dreamy “Hit the Road to Dreamland.” Still, my favorite two songs of the night were Sonny Burke and Paul Francis Webster’s “Black Coffee” and Sammy Cahn and Jule Styne’s “It’s Magic.” At the end of the show, I wondered to myself, “so, she closed her eyes too much. Still, isn’t a terrific voice on its own enough to carry an entire show of 2 ½ hours?” In the case of Jessie Buckley, absof**inglutely! It doesn’t hurt to have the support of one truly superb pianist, who seems to use all 88 keys in every song. It’s almost as if Jessie were accompanied by a full band, rather than just a piano. Jessie has too many UK dates coming up to list here, so for details please contact Samuel Joseph on info@samuel-joseph.com. I don’t see any US dates on the list, but it shouldn’t be long before she’s the toast of New York. Jessie Buckley is a must-see. It’s rare to encounter of talent of this calibre; in fact, it’s almost unheard of. Go see Jessie Buckley – NOW! Harold Sanditen Cabaret Scenes* April 8, 2010 www.cabaretscenes.org

Jessie Buckley

Pizza on the ParkLondon, UK

Pizza on the Park
London, UK