Janie Dee at the BBC – album launch – Live At Zédel

Janie Dee at the BBC – album launch – Live At Zédel, London.

Star rating: five stars ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

As if currently scaling the heights in Follies at the National Theatre wasn’t arduous enough for Janie Dee, she chose to use her week’s break from the production to perform in cabaret. Not one cabaret, mark you, but two different ones.

At 7pm she performed songs from her CD, while at 9.15pm she presented Off the Record in which she was joined by special friends from the world of dance and theatre, along with some emerging musical talents [I caught the earlier show].

One may wonder why she does not relax during her time off, and then she tells us that she loves cabaret with its spontaneity, unexpectedness and the edginess of appearing without a script or the protection of the theatre’s fourth wall. It also gives her the chance to mingle and talk with her audience. Working the room is yet another of her many talents.

Kicking off with ‘On a Clear Day You Can See Forever’, she moved effortlessly from smooth ballad to up-tempo number. From then on it was all songs from the album – with one exception – we did not get to hear ‘Never Let Me Go’.

An admirer of Kander and Ebb, Dee delivered three songs from their impressive catalogue: ‘Yes’ (70, Girls, 70); ‘There Goes the Ball Game’ (And the World Goes ’Round) and ‘One of the Boys’ (Woman of the Year).

Later she was joined by vocalists Luke Byrne and Jordan Harrington and the three of them even managed to perform Paul Robinson’s slick choreography (Robinson was also the show’s director). The boys also got their own slot with a rousing ‘You’re Nothing Without Me’ (City of Angels).

Dee paid tribute to three influential people in her career – Wayne Sleep, who was in the audience; the late Peter Hall; and Alan Ayckbourn, from whose pen (along with Paul Todd) comes ‘Copytype’. This is Dee’s comic party piece as she plays the dim BBC copy typist struggling with the bizarre layout of the keyboard.

Two poems by Spike Milligan, set to music, were most delicately served up – the whimsy of ‘Can You Hear Me, God? contrasted with the wit of the anti-vivisectionist ‘Cigarette Scientist’.

Dee used two numbers to celebrate her children – ‘Isn’t She Lovely’ for daughter Matilda, and appropriately for her son Alfie, the song of that name by Bacharach and David which was given a beautifully measured delivery.

The gentle ‘Somewhere Only We Know’ was a song that always makes her remember her childhood home, while ‘Jardin D’Hiver’ showed off her linguistic skills. It was a beautiful fusion of a Gallic chanson with a Latin beat provided by finger drumming.

This led to some banter with her drummer, Oz (Michael Osborn) and the rest of the trio – Eric Guy (double bass) and Steve Clark (piano and MD). The Latin theme was also present on Jobim’s ‘One Note Samba’

For her finale we were treated to a very fine version of the Gershwins’ ‘Our Love is Here to Stay’ which included an extended instrumental session.

I look forward to recapturing this exquisite evening when I settle down to listen to the CD which for many fans has been long overdue.

Barrie Jerram

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