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: Anthony Wayne—”…Just Me”

Gerry Geddes
From the first notes of Earth, Wind & Fire’s “Fantasy” (Maurice White, Verdine White, Eddie del Barrio), the opening number of his new show, …Just Me, singer Anthony Wayne leaves no doubt that he has a remarkable voice. The title is somewhat belied by the fact that surrounding him on the stage at The Green...

Club Review: Hannah Carter

Gerry Geddes
It is particularly thrilling to come across young jazz vocalists and musicians who are investigating the classic repertoire from the Great American Songbook on their own terms, not so much interested in recreating it as in discovering their own voices within the material.  Hannah Carter, currently studying jazz at Columbia University, is one such singer,...

Album Review: “A Lady With A Song—Amber Weekes Celebrates Nancy Wilson”

Gerry Geddes
When singer Nancy Wilson (1937-2018) passed, she left behind a legacy of classic recordings, unforgettable concert performances, appearances in film and television, and a career that will inspire singers for generations. She recorded more than 70 albums and was nominated for seven Grammy Awards, winning the coveted prize three times. In a career of more than...

Sally Mayes in “Now and Then: The Stories”

Gerry Geddes
In February of this year, singer Sally Mayes presented the second in her four-part Now and Then series, Jazz/ Standard Time, and it will surely prove to be one of the standout shows of 2024. She recently debuted Now and Then: The Stories, the third installment, at The Green Room 42, and while it may not...

The Deborah Newallo Experience

Gerry Geddes
Red Rooster is a restaurant in the heart of Harlem’s music scene created by Andrew Chapman and Marcus Samuelson. It is so titled in honor of its namesake, a legendary Harlem speakeasy that attracted neighborhood folk, jazz greats, and major figures of the 20th century.  It continues a tradition of good food, friendly service, hip...

Critical Thoughts: Direction Can Help/Direction Can Hurt—A Tale of Two Singers

Gerry Geddes
I recently saw two singers whose shows might have very little in common on the surface but whose failings were pretty much identical, albeit brought to light in different ways.  Their main similarity is that each was ill-served by their directors and by the shows in which they presented themselves.  Coincidentally, each was also directed...

“Find the Road: A John M. Cook Anthology”

Gerry Geddes
As music director and pianist, John M. Cook has contributed to the success of many shows and singers, each one the better for his presence. I have been aware of that for quite a while, but I was not aware of how good a songwriter he is. That situation is rectified in his new revue, Find...

Brian Nash’s “Sunday Night Music Club”

Gerry Geddes
As a pianist, an arranger, a vocalist and a second banana, Brian Nash has been a vital component of some of New York’s best cabaret shows by some of cabarets best performers. With his new show, Sunday Night Music Club, which debuted at The Green Room 42, he grabbed the spotlight center stage and he never...

Lila Day’s “More of the Same”

Gerry Geddes
Lila Day made her cabaret debut with a show that had a “COVID-adjacent” premiere. Despite the circumstances, she loved the experience and knew that she wanted to do another. When she sat down to write her next endeavor, she realized that the ideas that had filled her first show were still firmly front and center in...

Randa McNamara’s “Past, Present, Peculiarities”

Gerry Geddes
When the eager crowd (filled with its fair share of cabaret legends and stars) set foot into the original cabaret space at Don’t Tell Mama to see Randa McNamara’s Past, Present, Peculiarities, they had no idea they were in for the added treat of entering a time machine that would transport them to the glory...