Interludes

VIEWPOINTS – From SINATRA to SARDINES: Affectionately curated evenings of the Great American Songbook

• By drediman
• October 8, 2026
• No Comments

This fall, in between my attendance of intense and highly dramatic theatrical offerings, I’ve been able to cleanse my palette by sitting back and enjoying the riches of the Great American Songbook. Here are my thoughts on two such affectionately curated evenings of music and banter.

THE HOT SARDINES
Birdland Jazz Club
Closed

The Hot Sardines have made it their business to put on a fun show, while also taking audiences on a musical journey through the annals of jazz and the American Songbook. This was certainly the case during their sold out fall shows at Birdland (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED). At the heart of the band’s eclectic yet musically refined performances is vocalist Elizabeth Bougerol, one of the artistic directors of the increasingly popular jazz outfit. What distinguishes the self-possessed Bougerol is the fact that she’s a devout music historian (and a former music journalist), as much as she is a top notch jazz vocalist. Indeed, her deep love for popular music history is infectious — she comes into each show prepared and well-researched — and it’s hard not to fall under the spell of her enthusiasm. More importantly, The Hot Sardines are thrilling musicians with a distinct sound — distinguished by a cushiony punch — that’s clearly born out of a passion for what has come before, but somehow also fresh, alive, and forward-thinking. The recent concerts at Birdland found Bougerol, alongside pianist and co-artistic director Evan Palazzo and the rest of the talented ensemble — including tap dancer Edwin “Fast Eddy” Francisco, whose exuberant hoofing also uniquely doubles as percussion — in peak form, turning out song renditions that were far from museum pieces. Some highlights from the late night set I attended included assured, superbly arranged versions of standards such as Django Reinhardt’s “Coucou”, the Boswell Sisters’ “Hummin’ to Myself”, “Into Each Life Some Rain Must Fall” (utilizing the Quincy Jones arrangement), Sophie Tucker’s “Some of These Days”, and Cole Porter’s Western-tinged “Don’t Fence Me In”. For good measure, the crew threw in the Sardines’ own composition “Pencil Full of Lead” from their latest album Good News. The band’s encore was a rousing “Bei Mir Bistu Shein”, which sent the audience out into the comfortably mild night on a high.

OUR SINATRA: A MUSICAL CELEBRATION
The Marjorie S. Deane Little Theatre
Through November 29

Also on the docket recently over at the Marjorie S. Deane Little Theatre near Lincoln Center was the return engagement of Our Sinatra: A Musical Celebration (RECOMMENDED) (the show is a companion piece to Going Bacharach: The Songs of an Icon, another similarly structured show at the same theater with which it’s currently running in repertory). The production marks the 25th anniversary of the smartly curated evening celebrating the voice, song stylings, and influence of Frank Sinatra, one of the most beloved pop singers of the 20th century and an iconic interpreter of the Great American Songbook. Earlier this year in London, I was able to catch Sinatra, the big budget jukebox musical chronicling the life of “Ol’ Blue Eyes”. I found the Kathleen Marshall-helmed production — which is clearly being groomed for the Great White Way — to be lukewarm, at best (at least currently). Indeed, given that Sinatra was a crooner for the ages, I’d rather a show about him pay tribute to his musical legacy rather than the tabloid headlines he’s been in. Constructed as a hybrid between a cabaret act and a musical revue, Our Sinatra — which has been shaped by the trio of Eric Comstock, Hilary Kole, and Christopher Gines, who, now as then, perform in the show — thankfully, solidly does the former. Simply directed by Kurt Stramm (under the supervision of the great Richard Maltby, Jr.), the compact and wittily comprehensive evening of song surprisingly covers plenty of ground, letting the music do much of the proverbial talking, with some personalized associative storytelling sprinkled throughout to convey Sinatra’s influence on each of the singer’s lives. Vocally, each performer brings something unique to the table. At the piano, Comstock delivers his numbers with a Rex Harrison sing-speak flair, while Gines makes an attempt to replicate Sinatra’s familiar song phrasings. By far the strongest singer is the sterling-voiced Hilary Kole, who jazzily sings up a storm (she also has one of the evening’s most memorable tale to tell; no spoilers here) and harmonizes like a dream with her co-stars. The evening culminates in a pair of medleys that amusingly race through the balance of Sinatra’s most iconic songs (there are so many of them!).