Grab your hats and hold on to your seat when Canadian pianist/singer Gregory Charles takes the stage with “Take the ‘A’ Train” (Billy Strayhorn).  The Café Carlyle seemed to be in for an evening of jazz-influenced standards, much in the tradition of Bobby Short.  Like Short, Charles would pop up from his bench occasionally, propelled by his own musical energy. He went into As Charles “It Had to Be You,” (Gus Kahn/Isham Jones) and “Minnie the Moocher” (Cab Calloway and Clarence Gaskill), urging the audience to help out with the “hi-dee-hi-dee-hiee-hos.”  He continued with "Just a Gigolo" (Irving Caesar/Leonello Casucci) and "I Ain't Got Nobody" (Roger Graham/Dave Peyton/Spencer Williams), Louis Prima-style.

Nevertheless, for Charles, improvisation is the name of the game and, if you gotta have a gimmick, his gimmick is the request bowl.  Before the show, audience members were given slips of paper to write down their favorite version of their song request.  After his openers, Charles turned to the requests, and promised he would not be stumped by any request. He lived up to the claim, although he faked a few lyrics and had problems with the words and music of “Unforgettable” (Irving Gordon).

Joined by the extraordinary Musical Director/guitarist Jean-Benoit Lasante, Jean-Betrand Carbou on bass and Samuel Joly on drums, Charles took the requests randomly and noodled for the right key. With the tightness of the band, their jazz influence and their creative ease in rock, he set off with a variety of requests delivering Guns n’ Roses’ “Sweet Child O’ Mine,” Led Zeppelin’s hit “Stairway to Heaven” and Paul Anka’s “You Are My Destiny.”  On the smoother side were a silky “The Nearness of You” (Hoagy Charmichael/Ned Washington) and the Latin sway of Antonio Carlos Jobim’s “Água de Beber.” The group delivered imaginative improvisations that gave spirited distinctiveness to the variety of songs. Charles commented, “Each night they risk their reputations with me.”

The requests formed the bulk of the show and, while it was fun, any gimmick can get stagnant, especially in a more formal club.  I would like to see the charm and musicianship of Gregory Charles and his band showing off their creativity with a repertoire, using the request bowl for a shorter segment.

Elizabeth Ahlfors
Cabaret Scenes
April 2, 2012
www.cabaretscenes.org