| . | 05/13/2009
Patty Clark at Sardi's
By: John Hoglund
Smooth jazz found a home at historic Sardi's for two weeks with attractive big band singer Patty Clark. The theater district staple and show business tourist mecca, famous for all things Broadway, show biz caricatures and entertainment events, recently hosted Broadway's James Barbour for an extended engagement. This run included Barbour along with special guests from Broadway. Now, along comes Patty Clark. Might there be a new music venue on the horizon?
With Ms. Clark in residence, all it takes is a classy lady, a terrific band and the great American songbook. The results are a shining set of standards sung by a consummate pro in a league with swing greats like Anita O'Day. She's that good. She's a mature lady with a mature musical sensibility. When she caresses “I Remember You” with lyrics by Johnny Mercer and music by Marty Schertzinger, you know she has been there. That same nostalgia infuses “The Nearness Of You” (Hoagy Carmichael – Ned Washington.) Clark effortlessly transports her audience back to another era.
When she offers a playful, bossa reading of “Tico, Tico” (Abreu- de Oliveira) she loses herself in the fun romp like a schoolgirl. It all makes for a delightful set by a singer who has perfect clarity and excellent enunciation (are you listening American Idol wannabes?) The silkiness of her alto on “I See Your Face Before Me” (Dietz-Schwartz) was about as close to perfect as it gets in jazz set.
That set list was pretty typical jazz fare. However, it was Clark's smooth and silky interpretations that set it apart from so many of today's jazz hopefuls who don't know their brass from an oboe. Watching a singer like Patty Clark who brings an emotional balance, a subtle good humor and a sly sexiness to everything she sings, makes one realize the crucial role good instincts play in offering intelligent and entertaining interpretations of evergreens from the American songbook. A perfect example was Jobim's “Quiet Nights Of Quiet Stars” also known as “Corcovado.”Here, she recalled the late Susannah McCorkle (who never reached the heights she deserved) or the legendary jazz singer Morgana King (who introduced the song to American audiences in the 1950's.
A seasoned band singer who has worked on the road and television with Bob Hope and Lawrence Welk, Ms. Clark is note perfect and creates a sublime spell on all her readings. More important, she brings to the songs the warm, sensitive, often slyly dramatic qualities that great jazz ladies like Peggy Lee were famous for. The set was polished and tight. The musicians were one with the singer. With luck, she'll be back.
The set was complemented with great flair by a quartet of exceptionl musicians with John Di Martino at the helm.
Patty Clark has been extended and appears at Sardi's through May 16.
Sardi's is located at 234 West 44th Street Reservations: (212) 221 8440
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