I love the 606 Club. It’s the closest thing to the Manhattan West Village jazz clubs we have here in London. The moment you walk in, you’re transported to another world. The truth is, the last two months have been hell, so I was more than ready to be transported.

I’d seen Lea DeLaria in Edinburgh in 1993, doing stand-up comedy.  It was....well...pretty “in your face.”  I’d heard bits of her vocal recordings, but never heard her in person.  I really didn’t know what to expect.

When Ms. DeLaria arrived on stage and “welcomed us to her party,” I was hooked. As the evening unfolded we were taken on a journey through swing, be-bop, scat and ballads, with songs from musical theatre to pop—all from her CDs. Some of the songs were mesmerizing. My particular favourite was “The Ballad of Sweeney Todd.” I’ve heard some pretty amazing jazz versions of Sondheim songs before, but this one is by far the best. Her versions of “Love Me or Leave Me” and “All That Jazz” were also highlights.  When she sang “What’s New Pussycat?” I saw the song in an entirely new light.

Ms. DeLaria has a clarity, richness and warmth to her voice that draw her audience in, and an innate ability to swing even the most seemingly un-swingable of songs. There are times when her voice seems to slip quietly into your body and then melt. It’s almost the same feeling as when you take that first sip of a stiff drink (or, as Ms. DeLaria might prefer, the first puff of a joint) and feel the relaxation course through you.

Occasionally, when there are instrumental breaks, and Ms. DeLaria is melded with her musicians as she listens, there’s a look on her face which is verging on painful. You can see she’s actually inside the music, but for me, just a little less of that would work miracles in an evening of jazz that doesn’t really need them. She has a naturally wicked sense of humour, too. At one point I actually saw her as a cherub cracking faces.

Ms. DeLaria is enveloped by her jazz trio, all of whom are equally great musicians—Jeanette Mason on piano (who also did all the arrangements), “bald” Simon Little on bass and Paul Robinson on drums. They jam. She jams. In fact, she gives a whole new meaning to the word jamming. She even SELLS jam during the break. Plum. Homemade from her own tree in Brooklyn! I knew at least one grows there.

There was one problem with the evening, which was the sound. In the beginning, Ms. DeLaria was drowned out by her trio. Eventually that was righted, but it did take a few songs to get the right balance.

It’s always a good sign when you leave a performance and music feels like it’s oozing from your every pore.  I left the 606 Club humming and bopping and feeling great.  Just what the doctor ordered.

Harold Sanditen
Cabaret Scenes
January 28, 2010
www.cabaretscenes.org