The Gold Street Gossip Shop and Lizard Lounge Memoirs, Chapter 47…

Adam Rudegair, a youngster shines, and Chaos coaches the singer

The Leinster can be a strange place, populated as it occasionally is with hirsute gentlefolk whose IQ almost precisely matches the number of their teeth missing. They and their boyfriends have, of late, become inured (or inebriated) to the Sunday Arvo incursion of comedians calling themselves musicians, or is it the other way round, you can never be sure.

So it was that this week’s bossa bungling, blues bashing and jazz mangling began. Not a huge crowd, but a quality afternoon of music. The Captain got quite excited at the prospect of Stuart (saxaphone) and his oppo on Trombone dropping in for a red hot go, and so he should. They definitely lifted the standard. Props to Andrew Putnam for some fine drumming all afternoon.

Highlight No 1 A young girl, assisted by her father to the piano, got up to play – nothing special until she decided she would sing My Funny Valentine. Didn’t know what key, and it is a song whose form could lead anyone astray, but she nailed it to the absolute best of her ability, with a band that responded in kind. Aforementioned pater grinning from ear to ear.

Highlight No 2: Young Adam Rudegair, master of ceremonies for the jams for many years, wandered in as he does every five years or so, sat down and played some great piano.

Highlight No 3: An English lass who was there with about a dozen friends, got persuaded to get up and sing “Summertime”. As is quite traditional, she protested that (a) she didn’t know the song, (b) she didn’t really know how to sing, and (c) she was as nervous as all get out. We explained that this had never stopped anyone before and she duly managed (with some assistance from Captain Chaos) to get through the ordeal, much to the delight of her audience and an enthusiastic band..

Hard to decide which was best. Three performances, each, in their own way, exactly what the jam sessions should be. TW