Author: Judy

Hiring A “Sinatra Singer” For Your Wedding?

Someone I know once hired a “Sinatra Singer” to perform “live music” at his event.
“The guy was terrible,” he said.

Evidently, the fellow was singing with tracks.

Live music is a funny thing. It’s supposed to be LIVE.

Which totally does not mean having a pre-recorded music “track” playing while the so-called “band” is playing along with it. Some of these pre-recorded tracks include vocal enhancement, as well — and the “voices” onstage sing right over them.!

Not everybody knows the difference, either.

But live music is not supposed to be karaoke – or semi-karaoke.

As for impersonators — why substitute hamburger for caviar?

I hate to say it, but the “Sinatra singers” are NOT Sinatra.

Part of the charm of the Rat Pack was their ability to pull off spontaneity, even though many of their best bits of “shtick” were actually well-rehearsed.

But their easygoing repartee was not a copy of anyone or anything else.

There is not going to be another Rat Pack, ever.

And there is not going to be another Sinatra.

But the live vintage music we do for weddings and events comes pretty close.

Live Music For Corporate Events

Live music is an interactive art form.

It’s not for everyone, but the wise party giver knows that events take on a sparkling personality with live music.

Corporate events are often “hurry up and wait,” with speeches and presentations and some music in the mix. Maybe there will be dancing for the guests; maybe not.

It’s my feeling that live music is even more important when there isn’t dancing.

Generally, it’s more entertaining than canned music.

It gives the guests a focal point, and can capture a mood that recorded music doesn’t match.

A Palm Springs Jazz Wedding… For A Rock Star

“Papa” John Phillips created an entirely new sound in the 1960’s.

The hits of the “Mamas and the Papas,” many of which he wrote — and the arrangements for those songs — were based, he told me, on “something old, something new and all of it just slightly familiar so you think you may have heard it before or should have heard it before but can’t quite put your finger on it.”

That something was jazz.

The iconic songwriter, singer and Monterey Pop Festival producer who had put Jimi Hendrix and Janis Joplin on the world’s stage for the first time, Phillips was actually a jazzer at heart.

John loved jazz so much that he named his daughter Bijou after a Lambert, Hendricks and Ross tune, “Mon Petit Bijou.”

One night at the Palm Springs house he shared with his fourth and forever wife, Farnaz, he decided to teach me how to sing the poignant jazz classic, “Something Cool.” It was about 4 a.m. — John never slept — and he had picked up his 12-string guitar, sat down on the floor and crossed his long legs in front of him. Strumming and phrasing slowly and simply, he sang in the eloquent voice of the weary alcoholic female telling of her sad life. He was a great storyteller!

I have sung it exactly that way ever since.

To celebrate John and Farnaz’ marriage in 1995, we invited a bunch of friends to an intimate party at Mel Haber’s Ingleside Inn.

I love Mel Haber. He once sent me a postcard that read: “What have you done for me lately?”

My plan was to entertain John with all of the great Mama’s and Papa’s hits, which we did. My daughter Jennifer had learned the harmonies to “Monday, Monday,” “California Dreaming,” “This Is Dedicated To The One I Love” and the Mama Cass re-make of Gus Kahn’s “Dream A Little Dream Of Me” and sang backup with me and the band, which was great fun.

But what John really wanted to hear was his favorite song, “My Foolish Heart.”

He always said it was the only song he would ever dance to — and that he would only dance to it when I was singing it.

And dance he and Farnaz did, that sultry almost-spring night in Palm Springs in 1995.

“Mama Cass is looking over your shoulder,” he told me.

We would only have him for six more years.

John adored the Great American Songbook, especially Cole Porter’s music. He was particularly fond of the little-known verses, and loved that I included them in my renditions of the tunes.

He thought “My Foolish Heart” should have a verse, too, and often threatened to write one for me in the style of Cole Porter, which he never actually got around to doing.

So I wrote one myself after he died.

It’s dedicated to him, of course.

Old Hollywood Weddings With Vintage Live Music!

Planning an Old Hollywood wedding?

You’ll need some great vintage wedding music to go with your petit fours, wedding cake, champagne, chicken a la king and canapes.

And there’s nothing that says vintage better than live vintage music.

Our bands specialize in vintage live music, spontaneity and an enormous repertoire that includes thousands of songs from the 1920’s Jazz Age Roaring Twenties, 1930’s deco, Old Hollywood, the 1930’s and 1940’s Swing Era, 1950’s Mid-Century Moderne and Sinatra Rat Pack, doo-wop, rock & roll oldies, 1960’s pop, the Beatles and the British Invasion, 1970’s R&B, Motown, soul and funk and just about everything from your favorite Broadway shows and the movies.

We love MGM movie musicals, Audrey Hepburn, Howard Keel, Kathryn Grayson and Fred Astaire & Ginger Rogers!

Afternoon or evening, in an outdoor garden or in an upscale hotel ballroom, at the beach or in your back yard — there’s nothing like live music to absolutely make a wedding!

Old fashioned weddings are fun. People used to have them all the time. Seriously.

Back in “the day,” they almost always had live music, especially when they were having an actual wedding reception.

Your wedding, with the help of live music — especially vintage live music — can be your own Broadway or Old Hollywood production.

As well it should be!

California Beach Wedding Destinations

There’s something so special about having a live band, and nothing like live vintage music to set up an element of luxury and elegance on any budget.

And everyone loves an ocean view.

There are many lovely settings in Southern California.

From Pismo Beach to Laguna Niguel….Santa Barbara to La Jolla…there are beaches and backyards overlooking beaches. The weather is great pretty much year-round.

Even when it rains, the weather is fun in California!

A Live Band Can “Make” Your Event!

Memorable wedding receptions are based on thought and planning.

That goes for the music that is played throughout the event.

Live music is a delicious ingredient, and it can be used in many unique ways to spice up a hospitality promotion, concert or special event.

Palm Springs Destination Vintage Weddings

Of swinging jazz big bands music, Old Hollywood and the Rat Pack….

From Santa Barbara to Temecula and Palm Springs, Old Hollywood vintage weddings are fun!

The nostalgia loving bride who wears a vintage wedding dress is probably the same bride who will like a location in the California wine country, overlooking the ocean in La Jolla, somewhere in Malibu, glorious Santa Barbara, Newport Beach or in retro-vintage Palm Springs.

Palm Springs is synonymous with Frank Sinatra, who used to arrive for all-night card games at a local Palm Springs area restaurant, Domenick’s, dressed in his pajamas and bathrobe. A sign outside of Sinatra’s estate read: Forget the dog. Beware of the Owner.

Palm Springs is a unique area, with a lot of architectural and show business history. Ferociously hot in the summer, and freezing in the winter after the sun goes down. I love the place! Our vintage jazz, swing and big band combos fit into the scenery perfectly. And by that I don’t just mean the Rat Pack songs but all of the romantic music of the 1920’s, 1930’s, 1940’s and 1950’s. The Rat Pack’s heydey was actually in the 1950’s and 1960’s, in a time that Palm Springs architecture so gorgeously reflects.

Palm Springs is one of my favorite places in the world, and the perfect setting for an Old Hollywood Wedding.

Vintage Themes: Nostalgic Retro Live Music

Everything old is new again!

Old Hollywood themes are popular in California!

Vintage events are so simple to create!

Vintage-inspired plans, classic menus and food stations, vintage attire, California beach destinations and outdoor venues are all part of the fun.

Elegant food stations, aperitifs, canapes — they can be as simple as devilled eggs or a pate of chopped liver on Ritz crackers, or as opulent as blini, smoked salmon and caviar — carved chateaubriand with bearnaise sauce, Waldorf salad, salmon croquettes, cherries jubilee and champagne punch are timeless and fabulous!

Have your bartender mix Manhattans and Sidecars, and use old-fashioned flowers that look as if they came straight from a cutting garden.

California beach and resort destinations are very popular as the backdrop to a nostalgic theme. When you start with a really spectacular setting, it’s easy to have an event that’s the ultimate in nostalgia.

As vintage-themed settings go, there are lots of choices, in every price range.

Don’t overlook the possibility that your family — or a friend — may have a perfect backyard for your celebration!

Since vintage traditions are all about family, friends, love and romance, you may want to consider having your event on a Sunday afternoon or early evening as an alternative to the typical Saturday night scenario. The savings can be considerable, and people are often more relaxed and ready for a good party on a Sunday!

One good vintage wedding idea is to take a cue from John and Jacqueline Kennedy’s 1953 wedding and cut the wedding cake right at your sweetheart or wedding party table.

Meyer Davis and his Orchestra played that night under a canopy on the grounds of Hammersmith Farm. The Kennedy’s first dance song? “I Married An Angel.”

Happy 50th Anniversary: Party Like It’s 1959!

Holy Batman and Robin!

No, wait — that was 1966.

I cannot believe it, but 1959 was fifty years ago, the year that Bobby Darin recorded “Mack The Knife,” The Coasters sang “Poison Ivy” and novely songs, country music, rock & roll and and love songs hit the airwaves and converged in one incredible swan song to the Golden Era of American music, not long before the Beatles showed up and the British Invasion began.

Music had already changed quite a bit by the time the Beatles hit in 1963. In 1961, at the Peppermint Lounge in NYC, Joey Dee & The Starlighters introduced the New York Jet Set crowd to learn (ugh, it pains me to think about it) a new dance (and it goes like this)… The Twist.

But I digress.

Back to 1959. Pre-Beatles, pre-Joey Dee and Chubby Checker.

Paul Anka once told me that he started his own baby boom in 1959. Nine months after the release of “Put Your Head On My Shoulder” a whole lot of babies were born.

I believe it.

I was just starting high school that year, a tennis playing, big-band singing New York City girl in Connecticut.

I was memorizing lyrics like crazy! It wasn’t enough to know all the material from the Swing Era anymore, or early Elvis, jive, rockabilly and C&W-influenced swing like the music Bill Haley and the Comets had taken mainstream in 1954.

Or the songs from the mid-1950’s “crooner period.”

The hit songs of 1959 blasted out of radio stations all over America, one station to a town. They simply called it all “music” back then. The fragmenting of radio formats had not yet begun.

Bobby Darin! The Coasters! Paul Anka! Dion, Elvis and Della Reese!

Never again in the history of music would there be such a wild and wonderfully divergent batch of music on a Top 100 list as there was in 1959:

Paul Anka – (All Of A Sudden) My Heart Sings – 02-59 – ABC Paramount
Paul Anka – It’s Time To Cry – 12-59 – ABC Paramount
Paul Anka – Lonely Boy – 06-59 – ABC Paramount
Paul Anka – Put Your Head On My Shoulder – 09-59 – ABC Paramount
Annette – Tall Paul – 02-59 – Disneyland
Ray Anthony – Peter Gunn – 02-59 – Capitol
Frankie Avalon – Venus – 03-59 – Chancellor
Frankie Avalon – Bobby Sox To Stockings – 06-59 – Chancellor
Frankie Avalon – A Boy Without A Girl – 07-59 – Chancellor
Frankie Avalon – Just Ask Your Heart – 09-59 – Chancellor
Frankie Avalon – Why – 12-59 – Chancellor
Lavern Baker – I Cried A Tear – 02-59 – Atlantic
Chris Barber’s Jazz Band – Petite Fleur (Little Flower) – 02-59 – Laurie
The Bell Notes – I’ve Had It – 03-59 – Time
Brook Benton -It’s Just A Matter Of Time – 03-59 – Mercury
Brook Benton – Endlessly – 05-59 – Mercury
Brook Benton – So Many Ways – 11-59 – Mercury
The Browns – Scarlet Ribbons – 12-59 – RCA
The Browns – The Three Bells – 08-59 – RCA
Edward Byrnes & Connie Stevens – Kookie, Kookie (Lend Me Your Comb) – 05-59 – Warner
Freddy Cannon – Tallahassee Lassie – 05-59 – Swan
Freddy Cannon – Way Down Yonder In New Orleans – 12-59 – Swan
Ray Charles – What’d I Say (Pt. 1) – 08-59 – Atlantic
The Chipmunks – Alvin’s Harmonica – 03-59 – Liberty
The Coasters – Charlie Brown – 02-59 – Atco
The Coasters – Along Came John – 06-59 – Atco
The Coasters – Poison Ivy – 09-59 – Atco
Dave ‘Baby’ Cortez – The Happy Organ – 04-59 – Clock
The Crests – 16 Candles – 01-59 – Coed
Bobby Darin – Dream Lover – 05-59 – Atco
Bobby Darin – Mack The Knife – 09-59 – Atco
Tommy Dee – Three Stars – 05-59 – Crest
Dion & The Belmonts – A Teenager In Love – 05-59 – Laurie
Martin Denny – Quiet Village – 05-59 – Liberty
Carl Dobkins Jr. – My Heart Is An Open Book – 07-59 – Decca
Fats Domino – I’m Ready – 05-59 – Liberty
Fats Domino – Be My Guest – 11-59 – Imperial
Fats Domino – I Want To Walk You Home – 08-59 – Imperial
The Drifters – There Goes My Baby – 07-59 – Atlantic
Duane Eddy – Forty Miles Of Bad Road – 07-59 – Jamie
Tommy Edwards – Please Mr. Sun – 03-59 – MGM
Paul Evans & The Curls – Seven Little Girls Sitting In The Back Seat – 11-59 – Guaranteed
The Everly Brothers – Take A Message To Mary – 05-59 – Cadence
The Everly Brothers – (‘Til) I Kissed You – 09-59 – Cadence
Fabian – Turn Me Loose – 04-59 – Chancellor
Fabian – Hound Dog Man – 12-59 – Chancellor
Fabian – Tiger – 07-59 – Chancellor
The Fiestas – So Fine – 06-59 – Old Town
Miss Toni Fisher – The Big Hurt – 12-59 – Signet
The Flamingos – I Only Have Eyes For You – 07-59 -End
The Fleetwoods – Come Softly To Me – 03-59 – Dolphin
The Fleetwoods – Mr. Blue – 09-59 – Dolton
Ernie Fields – In The Mood – 11-59 – Rendezvous
Frankie Ford – Sea Cruise – 04-59 – Ace
Connie Francis – Lipstick On Your Collar – 05-59 – MGM
Connie Francis – Frankie – 06-59 – MGM
Connie Francis – Among My Souvenirs – 12-59 – MGM
Frank Pourcel’s French Fiddles – Only You – 05-59 – Capitol
Wilbert Harrison – Kansas City – 05-59 – Fury
Homer & Jethro – The Battle Of Kookamonga – 10-59 – RCA
Johnny Horton – The Battle Of New Orleans – 05-59 – Columbia
The Impalas – Sorry (I Ran All The Way Home) – 04-59 – Cub
The Islanders – The Enchanted Sea – 11-59 – Mayflower
Stonewall Jackson – Waterloo – 07-59 – Columbia
Jan & Dean – Baby Talk – 09-59 – Dore
Johnny & The Hurricanes – Red River Rock – 09-59 – Warwick
The Kingston Trio – Tijuana Jail – 04-59 – Capitol
The Kingston Trio – M.T.A. – 07-59 – Capitol
Steve Lawrence – Pretty Blue Eyes – 12-59 – ABC Paramount
Kathy Linden – Goodbye, Jimmy, Goodbye – 05-59 – Felsted
Wink Martindale – Deck Of Cards – 10-59 – Dot
Johnny Mathis – Misty – 11-59 – Columbia
Mitch Miller – The Children’s Marching Song – 02-59 – Columbia
Guy Mitchell – Heartaches By The Number – 11-59 – Columbia
The Mormon Tabernacle Choir – Battle Hymn Of The Republic – 10-59 – Columbia
Ricky Nelson – Never Be Anyone Else But You – 03-59 – Imperial
Ricky Nelson – It’s Late – 03-59 – Imperial
Ricky Nelson – Just A Little Too Much – 07-59 – Imperial
Ricky Nelson – Sweeter Than You – 08-59 – Imperial
Sandy Nelson – Teen Beat – 09-59 – Original Sound
The Nutty Squirrels – Uh! Oh! Part 2 – 12-59 – Hanover
Reg Owen – Manhattan Spiritual – 01-59 – Palette
Bill Parsons – All American Boy – 01-59 – Fraternity
Phil Phillips With The Twilights – Sea Of Love – 08-59 – Mercury
The Platters – Enchanted – 05-59 – Mercury
Elvis Presley – A Fool Such As I – 04-59 – RCA
Elvis Presley – I Need Your Love Tonight – 04-59 – RCA
Elvis Presley – Big Hunk O’ Love – 07-59 – RCA
Elvis Presley – My Wish Came True – 08-59 – RCA
Lloyd Price – Stagger Lee – 01-59 – ABC Paramount
Lloyd Price – Personality – 06-59 – ABC Paramount
Lloyd Price – I’m Gonna Get Married – 08-59 – ABC Paramount
Della Reese – Don’t You Know – 10-59 – RCA
Marty Robbins – El Paso – 12-59 – Columbia
Ivo Robic – Morgen – 09-59 – Laurie
The Rock-A-Teens – Woo Hoo – 12-59 – Roulette 4192
Bobby Rydell – Kissin’ Time – 09-59 – Cameo
Bobby Rydell – We Got Love – 11-59 – Cameo
Santo & Johnny – Sleep Walk – 08-59 – Canadian American
Jack Scott – Goodbye Baby – 01-59 – Carlton
Neil Sedaka – Oh! Carol – 11-59 – RCA
Skip & Flip – It Was I – 08-59 – Brent
The Skyliners – Since I Don’t Have You – 04-59 – Calico
Cyril Stapleton – The Children’s Marching Song (Nick Nack Paddy Wack) – 02-59 – London
Dodie Stevens – Pink Shoe Laces – 03-59 – Crystalette
Travis & Bob – Tell Him No – 04-59 – Sandy
Sammy Turner – Lavender-Blue – 07-59 – Big Top
Conway Twitty – Danny Boy – 11-59 – MGM
Ritchie Valens – Donna – 01-59 – Del-Fi
Sarah Vaughan – Broken-Hearted Melody – 09-59 – Mercury
The Virtues – Guitar Boogie Shuffle – 04-59 – Hunt
Jerry Wallace – Primrose Lane – 10-59 – Challenge
Dinah Washington – What A Difference A Day Makes – 08-59 – Mercury
Thomas Wayne – Tragedy – 03-59 – Fernwood
Andy Williams – Hawaiian Wedding Song – 02-59 – Cadence
Andy Williams – Lonely Street – 10-59 – Cadence
Jackie Wilson – Lonely Teardrops – 01-59 – Brunswick

The Wedding Planner

Recently, one of our bands played for the ceremony, cocktails and reception at a very well-planned wedding — envisioned and orchestrated in great detail by the groom.

I can’t take any credit for its success, except for conceptualizing and orchestrating the strategic plan for a killer continuous music presentation of the bride and groom’s favorite vintage music, played in three locations by various people who just happen to be the finest musicians in the world.

The bride and groom barely stopped to eat, although everything that was served at the many food stations in the triple ballroom was absolutely extraordinary. They were too busy dancing.

“Look for us on the dance floor,” they had told the guests — and they meant it!

Resorts like this one usually demand that events be overseen by a real, live, certified professional wedding coordinator — which the groom is not.

“No dice,” said the groom. “I’m planning my own wedding, and that’s that.”

Clipboard in hand, he had walked the site with me on a sunny afternoon some weeks before the wedding.

“I’d like to put the harpist over there,” I had told him, pointing to a distant spot on the lawn below us where the curvature of the property aligned perfectly with broad blue-green waves of surf-dotted ocean. “We’ll need a power drop so she can be amplified.”

“Done,” he said.

“And the jazz trio over there, just inside the walkway,” I suggested.

“Perfect,” he said. “That’s just where I had them already.”

In the ballroom, we were met by the catering manager, who helped us measure the area where we would put the stage and helped me decide how to best utilize the space.

“Perfect,” said the groom.

Soon, I had received a floor plan, seating chart, timeline, song list and detailed instructions.

The big day arrived, and the weather was crystal clear, with a gorgeous bride and a handsome — and totally relaxed — groom.

As the processional began, the harpist played the bride’s selections — “It Had To Be You” and “For Me and My Gal” — on her antique Aeolian harp with a gold crown finial.

The lovely vintage wedding ceremony music wafted up the lawn, past the guests and the jazz trio waiting for their arrival at the cocktail area.

In the ballroom, the stage was perfectly configured to comfortably accommodate twelve superb musicians.

Following the cocktail hour, the guests entered the ballroom to a vintage medley that included one of the groom’s favorites, “On The Sunny Side Of The Street.”

Other songs on the list included:

Just In Time
Time After Time
As Time Goes By
Soon
I’ve Got A Crush On You
While We’re Young
Our Love Is Here To Stay
Isn’t It Romantic
Where Or When
Skylark

The couple particularly liked songs that dealt with time and the passing of time. Accomplished ballroom dancers, they wowed the crowd with their foxtrot steps and even waltzed together several times during the evening.

Because they were having such a good time, everyone else had a good time, too.

Great wedding planning and a great band really do make a difference!