Unapologetically Judith Owen ~ Adelaide Cabaret Festival ~ Review

[Cabaret; Music.      Australian Premiere] The Banquet Room, Adelaide Festival Centre Fri June 13 Judith Owen must bless the day her Gentleman Callers came calling. This superb bunch of New Orleans musicians (plus one Australian) make it a joy to be in the same room! Dressed in a  glittering black suit with white fedora and sporting all the sassy moves of a seasoned cabaret artist Judith Owen assures us early on that we are in for a grand night out. This show is touted as a risque look at some of the ‘badass ladies of 1940s and 50s jazz and blues.’ The days when innuendo and double entendre was a clever way to be filthy and get away with it. So we have Julia Lee’s “The Spinach Song” (“ I didn’t like it the first time, but oh how it grew on me”), Nellie Lutcher’s “Fine Brown Frame”, and Dinah Washington’s “Big Long Slidin’ Thing” (about a trombone playing husband!). In her investigation of this era Judith has indeed uncovered some gems.  These have been well documented on her recent live release “Come On & Get It”. So far so good. Just when we are beginning to feel this show could be a one trick pony, Owen altars the settings and drops in an astonishingly sensitive reading of “Fever”, most famously performed by Peggy Lee. But Owen’s version is not a carbon copy. This slow sultry version shows off her vocal range and ability for sensitive interpretation. Suddenly we have left the double entendre and are in the territory of Strong Women. Her stomping rendition of Aretha Franklin shakes away any sleepy vibes anywhere in the building and has the joint jumping! Blossom Dearie’s “Blossom’s Blues” keeps it going, and to turn it up another notch Owen takes to the piano to lead the band rocking out to Nina Simone’s “I Put A Spell On You”. In a surprise twist the show finishes with its first male songwriter contribution  - Louis Jordan’s “Caldonia” – but it is about a strong woman and who doesn’t want to hear a hot New Orleans band playing Louis Jordan? Under a different hat Judith Owen is a gifted songwriter and interpreter of other material. My personal Judith Owen playlist might lean towards some of this material. But hell, this is the Cabaret Festival and in her allotted hour Judith Owen has given us a splendid contribution! 4.5 stars  Adrian Miller Unapologetically Judith Owen at the The Banquet Room on Sat 14th June is SOLD OUT. #TheClothesline