Phil Putnam has a real champion in his friend Ben Cameron who, if we can believe Cameron’s banter, promised Putnam—in a drunken haze—to dedicate an entire cabaret show to his music. So, Ben Cameron Does Phil Putnam came to be on a lovely autumn night at The Duplex in Greenwich Village. It was an evening of songs with sweet observations, some of which were moving.

With Putnam on the keyboards, Zoe Sarnack on guitar and Jason Loomis on an Asian-style drum, Cameron led the audience of friends and Saturday evening revelers on a tour of the world according to Phil Putnam, a gay-centric, young world, full of humor, sex, self-doubt, frustration and more sex. Gay as the artists are, the emotional truths were universal.

I’m No Prize,” a comic song about pre-emptive self-deprecation, was the first number from the prolific writer’s songbook. Also hilarious was “The Grindr Song,” a paean to that phone app. A man goes shopping at Target on a lonely Valentine’s Day, turns on this app and revels in the availability of all the horny cutie-pies strolling around.

On the more emotional side was “I Just Want to Be Your Son,” where small talk about the weather hides all the regrets inherent in father/son relationships, especially when the son refuses to come out, and “Life in Hand,” in which the refrains, “I ache” and “I won’t break,” fill this lament about waking up alone.

Katie Thompson, a sumptuously-voiced redhead, was the guest vocalist who sang “I’ve Decided to Move Aside,” about a lover coming to the rueful conclusion she has to leave a relationship.  She put her heart into this affectingly honest song.

Honoring Dan Savage’s It Gets Better program, which gives hope to abused gay youths, Cameron and Putnam sang “Follow the Line” with the refrain, “the answer is time and all you have to do is stay alive.” In a homage to his partner, Putnam sang “If I’m Quiet,” a tender song about observing and treasuring loved ones.

The finale was “One Little Step Ahead” about learning life’s lessons and growing, knowing “what to keep and what to kill.”

Ben Cameron has an easygoing stage presence and an unadorned voice, perfect for the matter-of-fact feel of Phil Putnam’s songs. Putnam’s voice is a tad richer and, of course, he sings his songs the way he wants them to be sung. He isn’t a great melodist. The lyrics seem to come first with him and the melodies serve them.

Ben Cameron Does Phil Putnam was a great introduction to this rising young artist’s work.

Joel Benjamin
Cabaret Scenes
October 15, 2011
www.cabaretscenes.org