Marilyn Maye
Marilyn Maye
Feinstein’s at the Nikko, San Francisco, CA, May 15, 2015
Reviewed by Steve Murray for Cabaret Scenes
It’s been five years too long since the reigning queen of cabaret graced San Francisco with her delightful presence. Now a sprightly 87, Maye is far from giving up the ghost on her fabled performance career and she proved it with a spirited, well-crafted evening of show tunes and pop that displayed all her inimitable talents.
Backed by the legendary Billy Stritch on vocals and piano, Maye reminded us how powerful medleys can be when thoughtfully composed. “Can’t Take My Eyes Off You,” the huge hit for Frankie Valli, segues into “That Face” (Lew Spence/Alan Bergman), “I Love to See You Smile” (Randy Newman) and “Your Smiling Face” (James Taylor). Another medley begins with Harold Arlen and Ted Koehler’s “Get Happy” and leads into a pair of Vincent Youmans and Irving Caesar songs “Sometimes I’m Happy” and “I Want to Be Happy.” Maye sells each song with her typical panache and seamlessly connects each melody and lyric.
Duets with Billy on “Mountain Greenery” (Rodgers and Hart) and Steve Allen’s humorous “When I’m in Love” were delightful, with two stars of cabaret obviously having great fun. A medley of well-known Sinatra standards and another of “rainbow” songs showed her swing/jazz stylings with nice arrangements by Stritch and Tedd Firth. My favorite number was a mashup of “Lazy Afternoon” (Jerome Moross/John Latouche from 1954’s The Golden Apple) and a stunning version of Blossom Dearie and Jack Segal’s “Bye-Bye Country Boy.” Maye really feels this medley, bringing out subdued wistfulness of the former and the sultry longing of the later.
Maye had the sold-out audience in the palm of her hands, fans who recognize and honor the history and legacy Maye possesses. I have a feeling it won’t be long before she’s back at Feinstein’s. Two nights just isn’t enough time.
Category: Cabaret Reviews, Regional, San Francisco, San Francisco Cabaret Reviews
