Seems surprising that this tribute to the Peggy Lee songbook was the first we’ve seen here, but local chanteuse Veronica Klaus is a natural for Lee’s sultry, hip material. “Why Don’t You Do Right,” Lee’s early hit with bandleader Benny Goodman, was deftly handled by Klaus with nice arrangements by pianist Tammy Hall. Remarking that Lee’s singing mantra was “softly with feeling,” Klaus sang the lovely ballads “Moments Like This” and Lee’s 1955 Oscar-nominated “He Needs Me” from Pete Kelly’s Blues keeping them smooth and sensuous.

Klaus’s voice is lower and huskier than Lee’s and her range is smaller, but what she accomplishes with her talents and this wonderful material is wonderfully entertaining.  She knows how to work the ballads and shines on the up-tempo tunes. “Come Back to Me” swings like vintage Lee with excellent rhythms from bassist Daniel Fabricant and drummer Kent Bryson.  Harold Arlen/Johnny Mercer’s “Wait’ll It Happens to You” and “Don’t Smoke In Bed” are sung in Lee’s laconic tempo. Klaus, like Lee, added her own verses to Leiber and Stoller’s “Is That All There Is?,” making it personal and charming. She did the same with Lee’s classic “Fever,” adding special material involving Liberace and his chauffeur and Gertrude Stein with Alice B. Toklas.

Klaus, an adored San Francisco favorite, continues to re-invent herself as a performer.  Blonde hair classically coifed, and stunning in a gold and ruby strapless gown with matching jacket, she radiates style and class in the classic sense while standing firmly in the present. Lee’s songbook adds some great sassy and impish material to Veronica’s expanding playbook.  To quote her opener, “It’s a Good Day,” this show is a good day for Klaus and her fans.

Steve Murray
Cabaret Scenes
April 25, 2011
www.cabaretscenes.org