The Lincoln Center Concert
The December 7th Sinatra Concert, held at the Lincoln Center in Fort Collins, was a
great second opportunity for the octet to flex their muscles. I called the boys and told them to dust off their threads. It was gonna be strictly tuxedo this time around.
The Lincoln Center, with it’s sleek architecture, offers two fine performance theaters, but I was really happy to hear that Jill Taylor of the Aspen Club, who produced and promoted the event, had decided to put the show on in the Center’s beautiful Canyon West Ballroom.
To describe it, it’s like stepping into a Las Vegas showroom from back in the 60s’.
The place has a spread of thirty six eight-chair tables, covered with fine white
presidential linen, a lush cream & wine colored carpet below, six candelabras
above, and of course a full wet bar. .. Dean would have said; “That’s class, pally!”
I was already feeling good about everything, when I got the word from Jill that
every seat at every table had been paid for. This was a sold out performance.
I took the monkey suit to the dry cleaners, and got a haircut.
It was snowy cold the night of the show, but all warm and cheerful inside when I
stepped on stage.
The band was in fine form, and the audience knew it. “I Get A Kick Out Of You”
“Come Fly With Me”, and “The Best Is Yet To Come” all swung like Count
Basie had intended them to.
Around the middle of the evening, I walked down into the audience, and sang a
medley of classics that included “I Want To Be Happy”, “Old Black Magic”,
“S’Wonderful”. “The Tender Trap”, and “All The Way”.
It was all good fun. And after inviting everyone to join in on some XMas standards,
we closed the show with “My Way”, “New York, New York”, and finally, the
jubilant “You Make Me Feel So Young”.
The whole room went up. .. Standing ovations are as good as it gets.
