Rose Mallett Is Fantastic at Vicky's of Santa Fe In Indian Wells, CA

The first time I heard Rose Mallett sing was on March 21, 2012.  I immediately fell in love with her silky and mellow voice.  At that time Rose had been singing for a few years having retired early from a secretarial job with a California Bank.  Rose told me she always had a burning desire to sing and perform and felt the time had come to follow her long-held dream.  Fortunately for all of the music fans in the Coachella Valley,  Rose had the strength to change her life path and make music her total focus!  It is so wonderful to see Rose's progress over the past 5 years in both her vocal skills and her stage presence.  Rose has worked and studied hard to improve her vocal performance and has achieved greatness.  Her voice is still silky and mellow;  she moves through octaves effortlessly and her stage presence is imposing.  When Rose sings, her voice and phrasing at times  recalls the great ones,  Ella and Sarah,  but she clearly has her own special styling.  She has developed a strong following of admirers over the years who attend her performances.  She has earned all of the accolades she receives for the professional way she handled the development of her voice and stage presence.  She has achieved universal praise from everyone who hears her sing and is truly one of the "Divas of the Desert"!

Rose is supported by two seasoned and talented musicians and Rose gives them both a workout.  She is a superb Jazz vocalist and her supporting cast has to always be alert to the changes that flow out of Rose so smoothly. Both her Bassist,  Danny Flahive and her Pianist, Jeff Lance love it.  They both are not only up to the musical challenge but revel in it!

Danny Flahive is one of the most popular Bassists in the Desert and has played for some of the giants in the music business including the recently passed, Buddy Greco, who expected and demanded only excellence from his support players.  It was fun watching Danny enjoy performing with Rose with much admiration for her vocal skills.

Rose has an active schedule that I have listed below.  You can always fin where her she is performing by hitting her site, "Rosemallett.com".

Saturdays: Vicky's of Santa Fe  5:00pm to 7:00pm

Tuesday: The Purple Room, Palm Springs  6:30pm to 9:30pm

Friday: Woody's in Palm Springs   6:30 to 9:30pm

Rose is also producing a special show on Sunday April 29 "Songs of Sarah" at the Arthur Newman Theatre (At the Joslyn Center) that will surely be special!

I found a "YouTube" recorded at the "Purple Room" in Palm Springs, Ca.  Rose sings "Aint Misbehavin" with David Ring on Keyboard and Larry Holloway on Bass.  Enjoy!

Carolyn Martinez Sings and Swings at Vicky's With The Bob Corwin Trio

Thursday nights at Vicky's of Santa Fe Restaurant are owned by Carolyn Martinez with her beautiful voice and the marvelous Bob Corwin Trio.  Carolyn has been performing at Vicky's and other music venues in the Desert for the last few years but her voice and phrasing just keep getting better and better every year.  Carolyn has the ability to bring a lyric to life and convince her listeners that she is actually telling her own life stories.   Carolyn has developed a large and loyal following our the past few years and it's understandable as she really connects with her audience.  She also makes sure she has only the best of the best players to support her.  The Bob Corwin Trio is an exceptional musically-talented trio that works perfectly with Carolyn's voice and arrangements.   Bob Corwin is the kind of piano player every singer dreams of.  He is supportive, and, yet,never overshadows the singer when he gets a chance to solo.  I have never heard better.  Tonight, Danny Flahive on Bass was simply out of sight.  He had several solos that proved again that he is one of the best Bass players in the country.  Tonight was the first time I had a chance to hear Craig Chestnut play Drums and he was great.  His touch and sense of timing never faltered.  

I attempted to record a small part of the performance so you can get a feel of Carolyn's voice and style and also hear how well the trio supports her.  It's my first attempt to post a live video on one of my review blogs and hope you find it enjoyable.

Carolyn Martinez Is Impressive at Vickys on Tuesday Nights

Danny Flahive and Carolyn Martinez

Danny Flahive, Carolyn Martinez and Bob Corwin

Ken Steele

Danny Flahive and Bob Corwin

Ken Steele & Carolyn

Don Fraizer, Ron Kalina and Carolyn

Jack Pena, Don Fraser, Shelly Yoelin, Danny Flahive and Bob Corwin

Carolyn Martinez continues to impress large audiences on Tuesday nights at Vickys in Indian Wells, CA.  Carolyn has been performing on Tuesday nights for the past couple of years.  When she first started at Vickys, her audiences were small because not many music fans were familiar with her voice, but it did not take long for the word to get out.  Now she draws large crowds that always include some of the finest musicians performing in the Desert, a sure sign of their respect for her singing ability.  I first heard Carolyn sing 3 years ago, and I became a fan immediately.  Carolyn has a strong, pure voice that when combined with her deep emotional feel for lyrics, makes a powerful performing statement.  I think Carolyn is at her very best when singing Brailizan tunes.  But that's not where her talent ends, she is a terrific Jazz singer and she handles great standards with the skill of a seasoned pro.  If you have not heard Carolyn recently, you need to be at Vickys on Tuesday nights, and I personally guarantee you will love her singing.

Carolyn also is very careful about the quality of supporting musicians she brings with her to her gigs.  She only asks the most experienced pros to work with her.  Tonight was no exception with the marvelous Bob Corwin on Piano and Danny Flahive one of the best Bassists in the West on Bass.  These two seasoned pros could make any singer advance their singing to a higher level.  This duo with Carolyn's beautiful voice was just about perfect!

During tonight's performance, quite a few musicians came by to support Carolyn and sit in with the Trio.  First up was Ken Steele, an extremely multi-talented singer/composer/arranger and producer.  I would love to see Ken have the opportunity to sing on an evening of his own.  He has a beautiful mellow deep voice and his phrasing especially on Standards like " The Nearness of You" are dead center perfect.  In the meantime, I will be happy to hear him sing in almost every place there is live music.  The fact that all the top musicians always ask Ken to sit in and sing a couple of songs is a tribute to his wonderful singing talents.

Also sitting in tonight was Tenor Sax great, Shelly Yoelin, Don Fraser on Drums and Jack Pena on bongos.  

CD Review: Opera great Rose Kingsley Sings Standards On Her New CD "This Is My Life"

I am sure many of you know Rose Kingsley A/K/A "Simply Rose" as one of the world's most celebrated opera singers.  Rose, a soprano, performed at the New York Metropolitan Opera for 15 years.  Rose has been singing Opera throughout Europe to rave reviews for many years.  She has appeared in concert with Placido Domingo, Luciano Pavarotti, Bob Hope and Frank Sinatra. After years of exploring her four octave range, Rose decided it was long overdue for her to explore her more intimate side and decided to record some of her all-time favorite standards in Jazz form.  According to Rose, "My goal was to find songs that really come from my soul and that affected me emotionally.  Some I had sung before, and had not.  They're tunes that touched me that I felt could have the same impact on an audience.  How right she was!  Rose sings the 12 classic standards on this CD with intimacy and emotional understanding of the lyrics.  Her phrasing is perfect and all hers.   Don't expect to hear what we normally hear from female Jazz vocalists, Rose goes her own way with her unique singing style.  The songs she selected for this CD generate great intimate emotion and as I was listening I became more and more under her spell.  The lyrics will move you greatly as they did me.   Who knew an Opera singer could also reach this level excellent of Jazz vocals.  Well, Rose Kingsley knew and she is sharing her inner-self with everyone on her first Jazz vocal CD.

Rose has put together the perfect trio of accomplished musicians to back her on her debut CD.  The trio is led by musical director and superb piano player, Bob Corwin.   Bob is sought out by the best singers in the business and he served as Johnny Mercer's longtime accompanist for years.  In addition, he has been a Musical Director for Jazz legends Carmen McRae, Anita O'Day and Peggy Lee.  Desert favorite Danny Flahive is on upright Bass and Doug Dean is on Drums and Percussion.

"This is My Life" from "Simply Rose" is an excellent CD that any lover of intimate ballads from the "Great American Songbook" will love.

                             Playlist
1. "Here's To Life"                                         2. "Over The Rainbow"
3. "Come In From The Rain"                        4. "Don't Cry Out Loud"
5. "Send In The Clowns"                               6. "Can't Help Loving That Man Of Mine"  
7. "Cry Me A River"                                      8. "The Man That Got Away"
9. "One For My Baby"                                   10. "In The Wee Small Hours"
11. "Where Do You Start"                              12. "This Is My Life"  

You can listen to Rose signing songs from her CD on her website: http://www.simplyrose.info/   

Michael Dees, David Ring and Danny Flahive Perform Wonderful Music at the Purple Room

Michael Dees, Danny Flahive and David Ring

Michael Dees

Michael Dees

Danny Flahive

Michael Dees and David Ring

David Ring

The Purple Room is a new supper club re-born in a room that has deep historical musical roots in Palm Springs.  The old Purple Room established in 1960 was famously the home to Sinatra's Rat Pack.  During the 1960s, the Purple Room was the rallying spot for Sinatra and his famous friends. They sang, they played and just had fun there.  Now the Purple Room under new management has transformed the Purple Room into it's former self.  The owners of "Trio Restaurant" have applied their capital and restaurant skills to create a great new supper club with live music 6 days a week.  On Tuesday nights starting at 6:30 pm Michael Dees sings and plays the drums with David Ring and Danny Flahive who was sitting in tonight for Larry Holloway. Michael Dees is a relatively new singer in the Desert, but he has already added to the music scene with his beautiful voice, impeccable timing and Sinatra-like phrasing. Michael is one of the most impressive singers I have heard in many years.  In addition to singing some of the greatest songs from the Great American Songbook, like "My One and Only Love", "I'm Old Fashioned" and the "The Way You Look Tonight",  Michael also sings some of the songs and lyrics he has written.  His songs are stunningly beautiful and stand up perfectly against the classic songs listed above.  He is a brilliant musical talent and I highly recommend that music lovers in the Desert get to the Purple Room to hear him sing.

David Ring was playing Keys tonight and every time I hear David I gain more and more respect for his musical talents.  David plays Jazz that is new and inventive unlike any other of the currently playing in the Desert.  He supports Michael's voice and phrasing perfectly!  Danny Flahive was a joy to listen to on Bass.  Danny has a huge following of supporters in the Desert and for good reason.  Danny always plays with emotion that supports the message of the lyrics.

The Purple Room has an early bird dinner from 3:00 PM to 6:00 PM that includes a 3-course dinner for $19.95.  This is the best deal in the Valley,  the great sounds of Michael Dees, David Ring and Larry Holloway and a 3-course dinner for about the cost of a tip at many other restaurants! 

Rose Mallett, Simply A Great Jazz Singer!

                                       

Rose Mallett

Rose Mallett has had a full schedule of performances this winter, but I had not seen her until Thursday night when I went to Escena Lounge and Grill inside the beautiful Escena Golf Club. The Escena Lounge and Grill is a wonderful place to enjoy great food and listen to some of the wonderful sounds of Jazz provided by Rose and fellow musicians, Barry McClure and Danny Flahive.  Rose Mallett has a wonderful Sarah Vaughn-like lush voice that when combined with her 3 1/2 octave range, puts even the most casual Jazz listener in outer space. In my opinion in the short period has been singing in the Desert she has become one of our best Jazz singers.  She approaches her songs without fear and applies her own Jazz interpretation bringing new life to the many great standards she sings.  Rose is a perfectionist and it's no surprise that she has chosen two of the best side-men in the Valley to support her performance.  Barney McClure has taken the Desert Jazz scene by storm this winter playing gigs almost every night. Barney is a wonderful personality and a great pianist. I was surprised to learn that he is self-taught on the keyboard and did not start playing keyboard until he was seventeen. Any singer would love to have him playing for them! On stand-up Bass is everyone's favorite Bass player, Danny Flahive. Just like Barney, Danny is in great demand and performs almost every night. Danny has his own unique approach to playing Bass, and his solos are well constructed and beautifully played. When you combine these three mega-talents together, the resulting sounds are a beautiful thing to hear.

Rose performs at Escena on most Thursdays but you should call first to make sure she is performing. She also is performing at many other venues including Woody's in Palm Springs.  She is scheduled to appear at Woody's on Fridays, March 7, 14 and 21. You might also check out her site to see her full schedule. 

Barry McClure, Rose Mallett and Danny Flahive

Barney McClure

Danny Flahive

Don Rice, Danny Flahive and Joe Lettieri Jazz It Up At Sullivan's Steakhouse

                                   

Don Rice, Danny Flahive and Joe Lettieri

On Wednesday I went to Sullivan's Steakhouse to hear Don Rice and his Jazz Trio including Danny Flahive on Bass and Joe Lettieri on Drums.  Sullivan's is a fun bar and one of the most popular in Palm Desert.  Wednesday night is Jazz night with Jazz starting at 6:30p.m. The bar is always a busy place, but if you wait until happy hour is over at 7:00 pm, you will be able to find a table.  The feel of the room is warm and comfortable and with the addition of Jazz, it is a great place to have some wine and listen to really good Jazz.  Don Rice and his Tenor Sax are well-known throughout the Valley and for good reason. Don gets a wonderful bold and warm sound out of his horn and reminds me of many of the Tenor greats who I listened to and loved when I was growing up in New Jersey. I have written about Danny Flahive before and every time I hear him, he seems to get better. He plays with great intensity and creativity that makes each of his solos seem new. Danny is one of the great Bass players here in the Desert, and someone I just love to hear play. On Piano tonight was Joe Lettieri who I had not heard before.  Joe has a soft but exciting style, and he had no problem playing beautiful Piano for the great songs this group played tonight. 

I don't know how long this group has been playing together but they fit together perfectly. They play great classic Jazz tunes and classics from the "Great American Songbook".  I highly recommend a trip to Sullivan's to have some fun and enjoy the outstanding Jazz these seasoned musicians perform every Wednesday night. 

Johnny Morris Delights Audience At The Steinway Society Jazz Concert

                                                             

Johnny Morris

Roger King, Drums, Johnny Morris, Piano and Danny Flahive Bass

The Steinway Society of Riverside County presented one of their many concert events at SoCal Pianos in Palm Desert on Sunday January 26th. The Steinway Society of Riverside County was founded in 2002 by Ruth Moir who still is the president of the group. We all know that when times get tough, the first cuts school districts make are in the arts program especially the music programs. Today, most elementary schools have no music in their classrooms. The same is true for many middle and high schools who struggle even to maintain some kind of basic music development program for their students.  This is why The Steinway Society of Riverside County was created to address these problems by providing interactive music education classes, hands-on instrument training and live performance programs designed to engage, educate and inspire children to reach for their dreams. The Society has been extremely successful in achieving their goals with their music programs touching over 20,000 children every year through exposure to music. This is an organization worthy of our support as their entire income is generated through donations. You can make a donation by visiting their web site at: www.steinwayriverside.org.

Performing today was the always wonderful piano player Johnny Morris who brought two other fine musicians with him, Roger King on Drums and Danny Flahive on Bass.  Johnny Morris has been playing for residents in the Valley for years and every time he plays, he just amazes his audiences with not only his great playing ability but his remarkable ability to select the greatest songs out of the "Great American Songbook". In addition, Johnny without the aid of any charts, plays every song requested by his audience. He calls this "Try to stump the piano player". He asks the audience to name any song they want him to play and Johnny has the ability and mental quickness to beautifully play all the songs. Another Johnny Morris secret is that he has the ability to sing the lyrics for most of these songs from memory. In the many times I have heard him perform, I cannot remember anyone stumping the great Johnny Morris. If you have not heard Johnny play recently, you can hear him again at the Backstreet Bistro every Monday night starting a 5:30 PM. He is one of the greatest piano players of standard music living today, and you can hear him right here in the Valley every Monday.

Roger King works as a private lender during the day and then becomes a world-class Drummer in the evenings.  He has a great sense of performance and did an outstanding job today without the benefit of any charts or rehearsals. Roger plays with Carolyn Martinez every Thursday night at Vicky's.  The third member of the group was Bassist Danny Flahive. This is my first experience hearing Danny play and he is nothing short of terrific. Johnny gave Danny lots of room for solos today, and he sparkled.

There were a couple of major-league performers who came by today to support Johnny Morris and the Steinway Society. One of the greatest Harp players playing today, Ron Kalina played a couple of terrific ballads with the trio to the delight of the standing room only crowd. Also performing and having some fun was world famous piano player, Bill Marx. Bill and Johnny played a duet while continually changing seats and it was very funny. Bill is always a treat to hear and is always supportive of any event that helps develop music for children. In addition today was a trio of student Trumpet players who were just a delight. They did a great job of performing the classic "Satin Doll" with the trio.

Ron Kalina

Johnny Morris and Bill Marx

Hannah Morgan, Thomas Nole and Riley Hertz

The President and Founder of The Steinway Society of Riverside County, Ruth Moir

My Day At The Newport Jazz Party Explosion By Beverly Jensen Leys

A group of Jazz lovers from Palm Springs including my friend, Beverly Jensen Leys recently traveled to Corona Del Mar, CA to attend the 13th Annual "Newport Beach Jazz Party". I asked Beverly if she would do a "guest" blog and tell us what she saw and heard on the day she attended.

                                         My Day At The Newport Jazz Party Explosion
                                                      By Beverly Jensen Leys
On Saturday, February 16, my friends and I witnessed and enjoyed some of the world's finest musicians.  Our first stop was the beautiful and elegant Ritz Restaurant.  My friends and I had the perfect table right in front of the band which consisted of Graham Dechter on Guitar (my nephew) Llew Mathews on Piano and Scott Hamilton on Alto Sax.  They were a wonderful and exciting trio. We enjoyed every minute.

The following group was also trio consisting of Brian Nova, Doug Macdonald and Bruce Foreman, all of who played guitars with Danny Flahive on Bass.  They provided additional wonderful and exciting sounds.

We then strolled across the street to the Marriott for the big evening performances by the great musicians at the Newport Jazz Party.  Our table was not as close to the stage as we would have liked, but there was no problem hearing every musician.  First up was James Morrison from Australia who was fantastic on Trumpet, Bass and Trombone.  The always great, Jeff Hamilton Trio plus Brian Nova accompanied him.

The Jeff Hamilton Trio performed again with Jeff on Drums, Tamir Handelman on Piano and Christoph Luty on Bass.  WOW... what a band and after three tunes Jeff brought out a special guest, my nephew, Graham Dechter to play Guitar.  His playing was phenomenal and brought down the house.

Next was Ernie Andrews who is a great performer and singer.  He was backed by my dear friend Richard Simon on Bass, Jeff on Drums and Eric Reed on Piano.  They were fabulous!

The Last group was Houston Person on Tenor Sax, Ken Peplosky, Gary Foster, Chuck Berghofer and friends.

The entire Newport Explosion begins on Friday and goes until Sunday night.  We were only there for one day.......but what a day!!  We returned to Palm Springs around 3:00 a.m., and it was worth every minute.  We are already making plans to go again next year, and you should do the same.

Bob Scofield, Jane Bush Betty Johnson, Beverly Jensen Leys and Cliff Johnson
A/K/A  The Dynamic Five