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Gather 'round, children, here's a wonderful bedtime story. Once upon a time, in the Land of Cabaret, there was a wonderful club called Broadway Baby, which was located in the kingdom of the Upper West Side, on Amsterdam Avenue and 79th Street, long, long ago, from the mid-1980s through the early-1990s. All sorts of enchanted lords and ladies could be found there in the piano bar and the showroom stage, with wondrous names like Annie Hughes, John DiCarlo, Natalie Douglas, Linda Wallem, James Luzar, Steve Potfora, Patrick Dragonette, Tammy Quinn, Leah Menken, Valentine Ryder, and so many more.But one day, an evil wizard cast a wicked spell on this most magical enclave, which was called the Rent-Hike. All of the lords and ladies cried bitterly to know that their lovely little isle was soon to be taken away, with nary a melody to be heard there ever again, and with no fairy godmother to save the day (a relative term, of course), they were all cast to the winds and the four corners. Some survived, some flourished, and some perished. But one thing is perfectly clear; it was this enchanted oasis that permitted the brilliant and award-winning chanteuse Mary Foster Conklin to join forces with 
the equally-marvelous singer-instrumentalist John DiPinto, as a brand-new and refreshingly newfangled vocal duo lo these many moons later. And it is one's fervent hope that they, and their growing new mutual audience, will live happily ever after.
Now, here's the thing about Mary Foster Conklin. When this writer was a mere lad, half his life ago, he was introduced to her in 1990. This was back in the great days when the ASCAP/MAC Songwriter's Showcase was still presented by Jamie deRoy and Michael Kerker at the Bruno Walter Auditorium, housed within Lincoln Center Library for the Performing Arts. It was upon this happenstance that a certain Carol McCann (a gilded vocalist herself) waved over yours truly to introduce a friend and said, "You simply must meet Mary Foster Conklin. She's doing a show at Broadway Baby in two weeks and I simply won't rest if you tell me you won't see her. She's a knockout." What greeted this writer was a mousy, bespectacled young lady with no makeup and a misleadingly-dowdy aura, and the obvious question to self was, "THIS is a KNOCKOUT?!?" Well, it was a joy two weeks later to visit Broadway Baby for the show as a favor to Carol, to see this young woman, now fully made up, minus the glasses, her hair done perfectly and revealing an absolutely incredible physique in her marvelously-tailored and glittering gown, strutting across the room for her entrance as though she was the greatest star on earth, and tearing into an outstanding hour of jazz-blues-cabaret, which included such songs as "Danny's All-Star Joint" and "Junk Man." Since that time, she's garnered awards and critical acclaim nearly unequaled, up to and including spectacular accolades from Terry Teachout in the New York Times, and a catalog of recordings that have become the envy of many a lesser artist. John DiPinto, meanwhile, had already become well-known and much in-demand as an accompanist and musical director before settling into a comfortable berth at Broadway Baby at the time. But it was recently, when the two blissfully decided to join forces (which may well have been a decision of divine intervention from all evidence) as a musical and vocal duo, that both have reached a pinnacle which may well not be seen for decades to come. For they are simply stupendous together in their show at the Metropolitan Room and will be impossible to top in any way.
The whole show is a departure in so many ways for both; DiPinto is almost solely on accordion instead of piano, and they're both aided gorgeously at every turn by Skip Ward on bass and Tony Romano on guitar. But it goes way beyond that. They open with a 5/4 rendering of "If I Fell" by John Lennon and McCartney that is so top-of-the-heap, that it's almost impossible to imagine what might happen next. That, however, comes with a D-flat rendition of "Virgina Moon," then Count Basie's "Two for the Blues" in A-flat, and they complete hit it out of the park with Dr. John's "Maybe It's Because of Love." Just when one thinks it can't possibly get better, Conklin and DiPinto revisit The Beatles with "She's Leaving Home," and by the time they start scatting on a C-minor version of "Bernie's Tune," they've won our hearts for time immemorial. The evening climaxes (in every way imaginable, literally and figuratively) with a sensational delivery of "Something Stupid," originally made famous by Nancy Sinatra and her father, an unknown singer named Francis Albert. (Kidding!)
Whether Mary Foster Conklin and John DiPinto will decide to pursue further greatness as a jazz vocal duo remains a mystery. Whether or not they should, however, is a given. They MUST. This is too good not to share upon so thirsty a cultural climate.
the equally-marvelous singer-instrumentalist John DiPinto, as a brand-new and refreshingly newfangled vocal duo lo these many moons later. And it is one's fervent hope that they, and their growing new mutual audience, will live happily ever after.Now, here's the thing about Mary Foster Conklin. When this writer was a mere lad, half his life ago, he was introduced to her in 1990. This was back in the great days when the ASCAP/MAC Songwriter's Showcase was still presented by Jamie deRoy and Michael Kerker at the Bruno Walter Auditorium, housed within Lincoln Center Library for the Performing Arts. It was upon this happenstance that a certain Carol McCann (a gilded vocalist herself) waved over yours truly to introduce a friend and said, "You simply must meet Mary Foster Conklin. She's doing a show at Broadway Baby in two weeks and I simply won't rest if you tell me you won't see her. She's a knockout." What greeted this writer was a mousy, bespectacled young lady with no makeup and a misleadingly-dowdy aura, and the obvious question to self was, "THIS is a KNOCKOUT?!?" Well, it was a joy two weeks later to visit Broadway Baby for the show as a favor to Carol, to see this young woman, now fully made up, minus the glasses, her hair done perfectly and revealing an absolutely incredible physique in her marvelously-tailored and glittering gown, strutting across the room for her entrance as though she was the greatest star on earth, and tearing into an outstanding hour of jazz-blues-cabaret, which included such songs as "Danny's All-Star Joint" and "Junk Man." Since that time, she's garnered awards and critical acclaim nearly unequaled, up to and including spectacular accolades from Terry Teachout in the New York Times, and a catalog of recordings that have become the envy of many a lesser artist. John DiPinto, meanwhile, had already become well-known and much in-demand as an accompanist and musical director before settling into a comfortable berth at Broadway Baby at the time. But it was recently, when the two blissfully decided to join forces (which may well have been a decision of divine intervention from all evidence) as a musical and vocal duo, that both have reached a pinnacle which may well not be seen for decades to come. For they are simply stupendous together in their show at the Metropolitan Room and will be impossible to top in any way.
The whole show is a departure in so many ways for both; DiPinto is almost solely on accordion instead of piano, and they're both aided gorgeously at every turn by Skip Ward on bass and Tony Romano on guitar. But it goes way beyond that. They open with a 5/4 rendering of "If I Fell" by John Lennon and McCartney that is so top-of-the-heap, that it's almost impossible to imagine what might happen next. That, however, comes with a D-flat rendition of "Virgina Moon," then Count Basie's "Two for the Blues" in A-flat, and they complete hit it out of the park with Dr. John's "Maybe It's Because of Love." Just when one thinks it can't possibly get better, Conklin and DiPinto revisit The Beatles with "She's Leaving Home," and by the time they start scatting on a C-minor version of "Bernie's Tune," they've won our hearts for time immemorial. The evening climaxes (in every way imaginable, literally and figuratively) with a sensational delivery of "Something Stupid," originally made famous by Nancy Sinatra and her father, an unknown singer named Francis Albert. (Kidding!)
Whether Mary Foster Conklin and John DiPinto will decide to pursue further greatness as a jazz vocal duo remains a mystery. Whether or not they should, however, is a given. They MUST. This is too good not to share upon so thirsty a cultural climate.
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