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.

Club Review: Kate Baker

Gerry Geddes
There is a lot of speculation about how (and which) clubs will make it through the pandemic and bring night life back to the city.  There is less talk about how performers get back into shape after a year and a half of forced inactivity; that, too, is an area of concern.  From what I...

Club Review: Blaine Alden Krauss “From the Soul II”

Gerry Geddes
July turns out to be the perfect month for Feinstein’s/54 Below to book Blaine Alden Krauss in From the Soul. The fireworks started even before he hit the stage, and they did not stop until he had the crowd literally dancing in the aisles during his encore.  I didn’t notice anyone actually up on a...

Club Review: Derrick Baskin

Gerry Geddes
Derrick Baskin Tony-nominated Derrick Baskin has already made a name for himself in the worlds of theatre and music with appearances on Broadway in Memphis, The 25th Annual Spelling Bee, The Little Mermaid and, currently, Ain’t Too Proud: The Life and Times of the Temptations. His film and TV credits include Difficult People, Annie,...

Club Review: Sheila Jordan

Gerry Geddes
Sheila Jordan Singer/curator Ben Cassara chose the perfect singer to open his Pangea Hot Summer Night Jazz Series when he chose Sheila Jordan.  There is a special sense of excitement and a bit of awe when one goes to see one of the legends, and still performing at the top of...

Club Review: Flotilla DeBarge in “Corona & Flo”

Gerry Geddes
It seems like drag is everywhere these days thanks in large part to RuPaul and her show and her knockoffs.  But it’s a different kind of drag, a more meta, self-referential kind of drag; it seems to come from watching other drag queens.  It is akin to the newer breed of directors whose entire frame...

CD Review: Rebecca Angel’s “Love Life Choices”

Gerry Geddes
Singer Rebecca Angel’s debut recording, Love Life Choices, is in some ways, the perfect summer album, particularly for Summer 2021.  Her smooth, silky, yet surprisingly resilient voice, coupled with pulsing, insinuating music, is like a cooling breeze on a sweltering day.  In this case, however, that breeze contains embers of the fear, concern and pain of Covid-19. ...

CD Review: Eleri Ward’s “A Perfect Little Death—Suf/Sond”

Gerry Geddes
People everywhere are or will be recounting tales of what they did doing the Covid lockdown, but few will have a souvenir of that time as brilliant and creative as singer-songwriter Eleri Ward's. In a closet of her New York apartment, she fashioned A Perfect Little Death—Suf/Sond, a recording that imagines what 13 iconic Stephen Sondheim...

CD Review: Sarah Moule “Stormy Emotions”

Gerry Geddes
Sometimes, listening to a brand new CD can be like discovering the pot of gold at the end of the proverbial rainbow, and that is just how I felt listening to the latest release from British jazz vocalist Sarah Moule. Stormy Emotions consists of 12 songs by lyricist Fran Landesman and composer/pianist Simon Wallace, including 10...

CD Review: Amber Weekes’s “‘Round Midnight — Re-Imagined”

Gerry Geddes
Singer Amber Weekes’s newest release, ‘Round Midnight — Re-Imagined, has a classic, lived-in feel that allows the listener to luxuriate in its style, its romance, its intelligence, and its sheer musical richness while enjoying the rich storytelling and the trove of surprises to be found in its tracks.  There is quite a lot of backstory and factual...

Club Review: Bossa Tap Trio

Gerry Geddes
In 1952, the iconic star Fred Astaire recorded a multi-album set of the classic songs he had introduced or featured over the previous decades. Norman Granz, the producer, surrounded the song & dance man with legendary musicians from Jazz at the Philharmonic, with Oscar Peterson on piano. The songs were, of course, immaculately sung, but the...