Softly and With Feeling
I have a thing about really loud music: I don’t like it, period. So when I go out, I often look for places where the sounds are soft, where you reach out to the music, so to speak, instead of the other way around.
That’s one of the reasons I’ve long been a fan of duos, either a singer or an instrumentalist with a rhythm instrument: a guitar, piano or bass. The music is fairly quiet and accessible, and there’s a charming sense of chance-taking that goes on.
Another duo fan is Cathy Segal-Garcia. She is the vibrant jazz singer who works each Friday and Saturday in the cozy lounge at Ca’ del Sole in North Hollywood, and each Wednesday and Thursday in a similar room at the Smokehouse, right across the street from the Burbank studios. Her album, “Song of the Heart,” is available at local record stores.
“Duos are loose. You can change at will, go,” said Segal-Garcia, who has been heard steadily in Los Angeles jazz rooms for many years. “But they’re a challenge. You really have to be awake; you don’t have a whole band carrying you.”
Segal-Garcia is a native of Newton, Mass., but lives in North Hollywood, not too far from either of her regular gigs. She talked about Ca’ del Sole, where the house pianist is Marty Harris, the silver-haired veteran of the Woody Herman band and other top ensembles.
“The lounge is very intimate and comfortable,” she said. “And Marty’s such a character. He’ll stop and talk to the people, so we’ll have conversations just like we’re in someone’s living room.”
The music that Segal-Garcia and Harris offer is ideal for the soft ambience of the eatery’s lounge: great pop standards and classic jazz songs, from “Night and Day” to “Detour Ahead.”
The singer really likes these kinds of tunes, but when asked during the interview to explain why, she had to think hard before answering. After a while, she said,
“The most important thing is their message, the words. They’re really great vehicles to interpret your own feelings through,” she said.
Nearby, at the Smokehouse, Segal-Garcia carries on a bit differently. There she works with pianist Karen Hammack, a longtime associate. “Karen’s rhythm matches mine and she’s really good for a singer because she listens and responds.” The music ranges from standards to a few originals and even some ‘60s R&B.;
“It’s a funny room that seats about 50, and we work a long show, from 5 to 10:30 p.m.,” she said.
“A good part of the crowd is from the studios and they come in early for happy hour, and to relax after work. But some people really listen attentively. Still, on the way out, a lot of people will tell us we were fabulous or put something in the tip jar, so we know they were listening.”
* Cathy Segal-Garcia sings Wed.-Thur., 5-10:30 p.m., at the Smokehouse, 4420 Lakeside Drive, Burbank. No cover, no minimum. Information: (818) 845-3731. She appears Fri.-Sat., 8-midnight, at Ca’ del Sole, 4100 N. Cahuenga Blvd., North Hollywood. No cover, no minimum. (818) 985-4669.
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Quick Hits: Ageless guitarist George Van Eps (actually he’s 85), who plays such rich, lush chords that he all but sweeps you away, plays one of his infrequent engagements tonight, 9-1 a.m., at Chadney’s, 3000 W. Olive St., Burbank; no cover, one-drink minimum per show. (818) 843-5333. Van Eps is followed Friday by the splendid baritone saxophonist Jack Nimitz, whose superb sense of melody and rhythm can make that big horn sing . . .
Catch nimble-fingered pianist Frank Strazzeri on Monday, and the decidedly modern sax man Benn Clatworthy on Wednesday, both from 9 p.m.-1:30 a.m. and both at Jax, 339 N. Brand Blvd., Glendale. No cover, no minimum. Call: (818) 500-1604.