Gerry Geddes

Gerry Geddes, critic for BistroAwards.com, is an award-winning director, writer, teacher, performer, lyricist, and a contributor to the podcast Troubadours and Raconteurs. He conceived and directed the acclaimed musical revues Monday in the Dark with George (Bistro and MAC Award winner), Put on Your Saturday Suit—Words & Music by Jimmy Webb, and Gerry Geddes & Company (in its five-year residency at Pangea). He has directed singers André De Shields, Darius de Haas, Helen Baldassare, and Lisa Viggiano. He has been active in the cabaret world for over five decades and has produced numerous CDs; his lyrics have been performed and recorded here and in Europe. Gerry’s workshop, The Art of Vocal Performance, is regularly offered to singers of all levels. His memoir of life in NYC, Didn’t I Ever Tell You This?, was recently published and is available at barnesandnoble.com. He is currently at work on his first novel.

Aaron Valentine — “Who Are You Again? Learning to Sing Through Life”

Gerry Geddes
Hearing Aaron Valentine’s rich, piercing vocals on a medley of A Chorus Line’s “Music and the Mirror” (Marvin Hamlisch, Ed Kleban) and Glee’s “Let Me Be Your Star” (Marc Shaiman, Scott Whitman) near the top of his recent show at Don’t Tell Mama, Who Are You Again? Learning to Sing Through Life, it’s easy to...

Christopher Caswell — “Ordinary Miracles”

Gerry Geddes
For his new show at the Laurie Beechman Theatre, Ordinary Miracles, singer Christopher Caswell chose a form of cabaret that has become more and more popular—the confessional memoir. The form has its own unique set of pitfalls, most obvious of which is that performers tend to invest even the smallest incident with an importance which...

“Flying High—Still Soaring”

Gerry Geddes
The new recording, Flying High—Still Soaring, the latest project from Champian Fulton, is a follow-up to her 2024 album, Flying High—Big Band Canaries Who Soared. This last album just scratched the surface of the incredible treasure trove of songs bequeathed to the world by band singers—an army of vocalists that fronted big bands on the...

The BLCK Madonna— “Between the Lines”

Gerry Geddes
The BLCK Madonna is the stage name for jazz singer Ana Hoffman whose new album, Between the Lines, is an inviting and hypnotically musical reimagining of seven jazz standards through her bright, thoughtful, distinct, and masterful vocals and the outstanding support of her band which is subtle, strong, soaring, and intriguing throughout. The group includes...

Kenny Barron — “Songbook”

Gerry Geddes
Anyone with even a passing interest in or knowledge of jazz has no doubt heard the name Kenny Barron.  He is an acclaimed master of the piano and has been since the early 1960s.  He has worked with the best in the field and, at 82, he could easily choose to rest on his well-deserved...

“The Beat of a Wandering Heart—The Songs of Marty Silvestri and Joel Higgins”

Gerry Geddes
A revue is a curious inhabitant in the world of cabaret, often existing in a limbo between theatre and cabaret which at its best can benefit from the advantages of both, but can also suffer from the limitations. When it works, a revue can reimagine and showcase the musical and narrative strengths of the material in...

Bill Russell’s “Has Anyone Seen My Mind?”

Gerry Geddes
When lyricist/librettist Bill Russell is not busy writing influential, iconic musicals like the Tony-nominated Side Show and Elegies for Angels, Punks, and Raging Queens he does not put down the pen (or the keyboard) but rather keeps busy with an endless stream of poems and observations, rants and raves. He culls his favorites from the...

Maureen Kelley Stewart— “This Is Always”

Gerry Geddes
If likability were quantifiable, say on a scale of one to 10, singer Maureen Kelley Stewart would probably rate a 12. Her new show, and return to cabaret, This Is Always, was filled with beguiling charm and her ingratiating joy in singing. From her debut in 1991 she has always partnered with some of New...

Kim David Smith’s “Comme Une Folle: torch songs for tough times because gay”

Gerry Geddes
With his new show, at Joe's Pub, Comme Une Folle: torch songs for tough times because gay, singer Kim David Smith stepped out from the shadow of Marlene Dietrich and claimed the spotlight as his own, without an assist from the legendary diva.  Not that being in her shadow was in any way a detriment...

Juliet Ewing’s “Simply ‘S Wonderful—The Magic Of Gershwin”

Gerry Geddes
Regardless of the prevailing musical tastes, singers in each generation discover the remarkable, varied, romantic and passionate musical artistry of George and Ira Gershwin. What is often forgotten (or not realized) is that their output in its time was not in the jazz idiom. They inhabited the worlds of pop, Broadway, and even opera later in their...