SINCE 1980VOLUME 31, NUMBER 4 JANUARY 2010www.NYSMS.org

Newsletter

New York Sheet Music SocietyDEDICATED TO THE PRESERVATION OF CLASSIC POPULAR MUSIC

Annie Lebeux is trulyamazing; and she’swonderful! You can’tspend an hour with herwithout being mad abouther. That’s similar to theway I started last month’sreview, but it’s absolutelytrue. We are all so lucky tohave the meetings we soenjoy. Not only wasAnnieLebeaux just delightfuland, super-informative,she fitted perfectly withour society’s dedication tokeeping Sheet Music alive.She had something to tellus about lots of pieces ofsheet music, as well assinging many of the songs,and she kept hereducational portion asfascinating as were heractual performances ofeach song.

She brought Nora Bayesand Jack Norwood back tolife, as well as WillieHoward and SophieTucker and othervaudeville stars. I hadalways heard the lyrics of“It Ain’t Gonna Rain NoMo, No Mo…” as “Howin the Hell can the old

folks tell” instead of theway Annie sang “How inthe heck can I wash myneck if it ain’t gonna rainno mo!” Her versionmakes more sense, in away. When you’re dealingwith Vaudeville, “sense” isnot one of therequirements!

I was familiar with a fewof the songs (the fact thatCohen owes me $97,Robinson Crusoe andFriday venture out onSaturday night, possiblyunder the Anheuser Busch(although maybe I can’tspell it), and that my SwissMiss misses me as muchas I miss my Swiss Miss.);BUT,Annie made them allnew again. I didn’t realizeshe had been working onthe Delta Queen on the

Mississippi. How I wish Icould have been on one ofthose excursions. Formore specifics aboutAnnie’s CD, be sure tocheck Jerry Osterburg’sreview of it in this issue.

I could go on praisingAnnie Lebeaux, but nomatter what I say abouthow talented she is, itwould not be enough. Shereally knows her stuff.

By Jerry Laird

Annie Lebeaux Loves the Old SongsAnd the NYSMS Loves the Way Annie Sings Them!

RediscoveredVaudeville

Songs –Review of new

CD byAnnie Lebeaux

While cruising downthe Mississippi, AnnieLebeaux discoveredgold in the form of oldsheet music. Written bycomposers and lyricistswho went on toillustrious careers inmusical theater, thesongs represent the firstquarter of the 20th

century. The result isher CD,: “ANNIELEBEAUX PerformsRare & RidiculousVaudeville Songs(1903- 1926)” adelightful and wittycollection from the erain which Vaudeville andBroadway co-existed.Included is material byIrving Berlin, GusKahn, Bert Kalmar,Sam Lewis, Joe Young,and Harry Von Tilzer;several numbers wereoriginally introduced bySophie Tucker, EddieCantor, Al Jolson, andBelle Baker. Each of

By Jerry Osterberg

Continued on page 7

Photo by Rose Billings

Photo by Sandi Durell

My best wishes to all our New York Sheet Music Societymembers, friends, and families, for a very healthy, prosperousand joyful 2010. Sorry that I won’t be with you for the firstmeeting of the New Year, which will be on January 23 – but I

know that it will be a very special afternoon with David Hadju, Karen Oberlin,Tedd Firth, Allan Harris and the gang!

I want to thank Annie Lebeaux for her remarkable program in December onVaudeville songs. The presentation was superb, and we all had a lot of funlistening to those delightful tunes of old, and even seeing some of the terrificsheet music. You can read all about the program in this issue.

I am so sorry that we have had such problems with securing our dates at Local802 – how difficult is it for the person in charge to just put down the secondSaturday of each month, as it has been done for years? We have been lousedup so far for November, December, and January. As far as I can tell, Februaryfor Sharon Paige’s program on Ned Washington is set, and so is March withRobert Kimball on his new book on the lyrics of Johnny Mercer. We are stillworking on April, May, and June. We are told to call on a certain date, thenwhen we call (before that given date), we are informed that “the scheduling book”came earlier and our dates have been given away. I fervently hope that we canget this straightened out in 2010, since it is making booking people nearlyimpossible, and it is confusing to our members. Major Little has shared with usthat nearly half of the Local 802 administration is now gone and there are nownew people. Is this any way to run the Musician’s Union?????

Many thanks to Joan Adams, our Associate Editor, for running the table ofKenyan Goods at the last meeting, and to you for buying many of the items. I willbe bringing your contributions to Acacia House (www.AcaciaHouse.org), andspending my birthday on January 17th with my daughter and her young charges in Nairobi. We hope totake a short safari to the Maasai Mara, staying in a tented camp. I hope to learn about the country that hasso fascinated Liz, and which has changed her life. This is a trip of a lifetime for me as I never, ever dreamedthat I would be going to Africa, much less visiting my daughter’s orphanage there!

It has come to my attention that many people have not rejoined TNYSMS for the 2009-2010 Season, andthat they are complaining that they have not received the Newsletter. It is expensive to print and mail theNewsletter and your membership fees help us to defray this cost – so if you don’t receive the Newsletter,it means that you have not paid your membership dues. Please remember to rejoin, and tell your friendsabout this wonderful organization.

I want to wish you all a very happy holiday season filled with good health, joy and love and a 2010 filled withmusic and song! See you next year……….

President’s Message...Linda Amiel Burns, President

PAGE 2 NEW YORK SHEET MUSIC SOCIETY JANUARY , 2010

LLiinnddaa

O F F I C E R SPresident:

Linda Amiel Burns1st Vice Presidents:Lynn DiMenna &Sam Teicher

2nd Vice Presidents:Robert Kimball &Sandy Marrone

Treasurer:Glen CharlowMembership:

Glen Charlow & Trudi MannRecording Secretary:

Edie StokesPrograms & Special Events:Elliott Ames & Sandi DurellMarketing & Public Relations:

Laura SlutskyWebsite:

Glen CharlowNewsletter Editor & Publisher:

Jerry Lairdlairdstdio@optonline.net214 Highland Ave.,Norwalk, CT 06853

Associate Editor:Joan Adams

Graphic Designer:Glen Charlowglen@NYSMS.org

NYSMS Official Photographer:Rose Billings

New York Sheet Music SocietyP.O. Box 564

New York, NY 10008

New YorkSheet Music Society

Rachel Stone, Marc Crawford Leavitt and Joel Landyperform in IT’S [still] THE ECONOMY, STUPID - ahumorous political musical revue written by the 3performers. Saturday, January 23, 2010 at 8:00pm (doorsopen 7:30pm), The People’s Voice Café, CommunityChurch of New York, 40 East 35th St. NYC. Donation: $15at door. For more info, call Rachel at 718-472-0102.

Scot Albertson will be at Kitano (38th & Park), on Dec30th for two shows, 8:00pm and 10:00:pm with DarylKojak, pianist/musical director. No cover. $15.00minimum. And moving into 2010 (Wow! Where did thatdecade go?), on February 9th at the Bahai Center, 33 E.11th for two shows, 8:00pm and 10:00pm. $15 ticketprice. 212-222-5159.

Linda Amiel Burns’ next Singing Experience, “Swingingon a Star” will be at the Triad on Tuesday, March 16th at7:30. Rehearsals start Tuesday, February 16th (Yes, bothdates fall on the 16th. Remember: February and Marchboth start out the same except for Leap Year) Call Lindaat 212-315-3500, to make reservations for the show. Ofcourse Linda would love to have some of our Society’smembers join her cast in joyful song!

Midtown Jazz at Midday, Saint Peter’s Church, (54th Street,just east of Lexington) Wednesdays at 1:00 pm, hostedby Ronny Whyte. Suggested Donation is $7.00. Theprograms last approximately one hour. You may alwaysfind the schedule at: www.saintpeters.org/jazz.htm

January’s Schedule:1/6: : Kim Kalesti – singerJ1/ 13: Bill Charlap – Solo Piano1/20: Russ Kassoff Big Band, featuringsinger Catherine Dupuis1/27: Joyce Breach, singer, with Jon Weberon pianoNOTE: Icon Parking, 51st bet. 3rd &Lexington -Downtown side- charges $15:00(including tax), to park for five hours, withvalidation at St. Peter’s reception desk.

Member News...

From our president... Linda Amiel Burns:Special Theater Discounts for NYSMS Members! We know that youlove a good deal, so in association with Marna Mintzer and MGMConsulting, NYSMS members are being offered Broadway & OffBroadway theatre ticket discounts of approximately 48% or more offretail, plus arts event ticket discounts ranging from 30-50% off. For showupdates and ordering information, call 212-935-2664 to hear what isavailable and please mention your special Membership code #A1.Offerings change frequently so phone the Hotline and listen carefully tothe many choices currently available.

Send Member News to Lairdstdio@optonline.net no later than the 15th of each month for the next issue.

Do you seek an elusive song? If so, contact SandyMarrone, smusandy@aol.com or callher at 856-829-6104. You can also visit Sandy in New Jersey, to seethousands and thousands of sheets of music, most ofwhich can be yours very reasonably.

Scott Barbarino has a website www.CabaretExchange.comwith very informative features and articles, and theinformation on his current and future schedules.

Jeffrey C. Williams has resumed his weekly live radiobroadcast, “AT THE RITZ!” on WVOF 88.5 FM from 300 –4:00pm every Saturday with former co-host, thewonderful Lynn DiMenna, phoning in occasional updatesand reviews as New York Special Correspondent! To hearthe show any time, go to www.attheritz.org and click on24/7! Great music, night and day!

Joe Franklin and Steve Garrin have re-opened the JoeFranklin Comedy Club at 761 Seventh Avenue. (50th St.)Call 212 541-6592 for the schedule.

Mel Miller offers five musicals for less than the price of oneBroadway ticket, with his “Musicals Tonight.” Actually, thisseries is a LOT les expensive than some of the prices wesee now!!! Call 212-468-4444 for information.

The Singing Experience Cable TV Show on MNN - TimeWarner: Channel 56 or on RCN:- Channel 111. The showbroadcasts are every other Sunday at 5:00PM.

“Sheet Music Magazine” always has wonderful tributes toThe Great American Songbook. It includes sheet musicfor at least a dozen songs. Long-time TNYSMS memberEd Shanaphy (Publisher and Editor-In-Chief) makes surethat each and every issue is equally wonderful. If youaren’t a subscriber, you should be. It’s $14.95 for eachone-year subscription, Send to: Sheet Music, PO Box58629 Boulder, CO 80323-8629

Sheet Music Plus is the Internet’s biggest sheet musicseller, with hundreds of thousands of titles to choose from.You can check the site out for yourself at:http://www.SheetMusicPlus.com/store/tellfriendsite.html

If you have any member news, or other items you would like to haveconsidered for this newsletter, please send it by e-mail to the editor,Jerry Laird: lairdstdio@Optonline.net. It will be subject to editing,depending on size and content, and please remember that we try togo to press four weeks before each monthly meeting. We often getvery good items that get to us after the newsletter has been printedand mailed.

JANUARY , 2010 NEW YORK SHEET MUSIC SOCIETY PAGE 3

To the Editor:

Just a note to encourage – no, urge- our Sheet MusicSociety members to attend the marvelous Midtown Jazzat Midday programs, which are scheduled forWednesdays,from 1:00pm to 2:pm at Saint Peter’s Church. Ournewsletter always lists their programs in the “MemberNews” column, but rarely do we have any responses tothe actual shows.Well, the producer, Ronny Whyte seems to have aboundless supply of superb musicians, who give sogenerously of their time and their talents to thisextraordinary weekly event. Just to name a few recentparticipants we have enjoyed, in no particular order: Jay Leonhart, John Bunch, Joyce Breach, DarylSherman, Marlene VerPlank, The Ray Kassoff Big Band(and it was BIG!), along with Ronny Whyte himself. Even mishaps turn out wonderfully: When Jay Leonhartwas caught in jury duty, John Proulx (pianist, singer,songwriter) performed solo, singing standards, beautifuloriginals, and introducing his gorgeous tribute to ChetBaker, a CD which is now in residence on my CDplayer. I should also mention that when the great BootsMaleson was sidelined by an arm injury (mending well),who stepped in but Saadi Zain, who has delighted ourmembership many times. As our president, Linda AmielBurns has said, our society is the greatest bargain inNew York City. Well, I suggest that at a $7.00 suggesteddonation, this is an undeniable musical bargain, as well. “Try it, you’ll like it.”

With best regards to all, Joan Adams

Once again our featured guest(Annie Lebeaux in this case) hassent me on a trip down MemoryLane. When I first started to goto movies with my parents (orsome other unfortunate adult) Ithought the movies were veryreal, and I let those guys on the screen know Ifelt (especially when Injun Joe was chasingJackie Coogan around that cave!). We stillhave vaudeville (or Vod-Ville! at some of ourtheaters in Omaha). And Omaha was the buttof a lot of the jokes and songs: “I left Ma andPa back in Omahahaha when Kansas City Kittysmiled at me.” The Irene Ryan who was Granny

on the “Beverly Hillbillies” was afriend of my mother, and she(Irene, not my mother) washalf of a comedy team,“Tim & Irene,” who didweekly sketches at TheMilitary, a neighborhoodtheater within walking

distance of our house. Atthe downtown Orpheum (and

I learned more about that circuitfrom Annie Lebeaux}, I remember seeing suchlegends as Sophie Tucker, Ted Lewis, andothers, including my mother’s favorite whom Imet at my first meeting of the “New York SheetMusic Society,” Arthur Tracy, the Street Singer.It was his 94th birthday, at the Women’sRepublican Club. His style of singing includedthe rolling of the r’s…as in “Septemberrrrrrrrrin the Rrrrrrrrain.” A few amazing performers Ilater met in connection with my work inadvertising were: Rudy Vallee, DonaldO’Conner (he tap-danced his way through the30’s into movies with Peggy Ryan and AnnBlythe at Universal) and George Burns. Omahawas the headquarters for Gracie Allen’s run forPresident of the United States in 1940. Shereceived 38 votes. I know because she told meso.

In addition to the types of songs Annie sang, Iremember that a lot of the comics (or singers,whatever) did parodies ofpopular songs, or songs leftover from the 20’s, such as“I’m Forever Blowing Bubbles,”or “Honey,” (or who-cares-about-copyrights?). I won’ttry to repeat the lyrics they re-wrote, although one parodyended with, uhhh- no…onsecond thought let’s just saythat there are many aspects that brought aboutthe death of vaudeville.

Laird’sLair

PAGE 4 NEW YORK SHEET MUSIC SOCIETY JANUARY , 2010

�

the sixteen songs tells a story, andfew would be considered politicallycorrect these days.

“Where Did Robinson Crusoe GoWith Friday On Saturday Night?”,“If You Talk In Your Sleep Don’tMention My Name”, “HeinieWaltzed ‘Round On His HickoryLimb”, and all the rest will bringlaughter to your heart. Had AnnieLebeaux presented these lively andfunny songs in that era the way shedoes now, she would have been theToast of New Orleans. You mayalso want to check out another ofher CD’s, “Am I in Love?”featuring several standards, and anumber of Lebeaux’s originalcompositions, including “BeyondThat Fog’” and “Speed Dial.”Annie Lebeaux is truly unique – atreasure to be discovered.

Review of new CD byAnnie Lebeaux

continued

Loli Marquez-Sterling is Pure Gold

JANUARY , 2010 NEW YORK SHEET MUSIC SOCIETY PAGE 5

By Joan Adams

It was adark ands t o r m ynight, onDecember13th, butinside TheTriad, theheat wason.

Loli Marquez- Sterling waspresenting her latest act,“Shaken Not Stirred,” whichstarted hot and got steadilyhotter. An idiosyncratic view ofher life and her meaningfulrelationships with music,alcohol, Cuba, the USA, alcohol,family, lovers, and – oh,yes –did I mention mucho alcohol?That last motif had me worriedfor a bit that we would behearing a one-note samba, butas directed by our very ownLinda Amiel Burns, we wereengaged in a surprising journeywith a multi-faceted artist, whotook us through many twistsand turns along the way. Wewere engaged in many moods,

many styles (with Latin beatsdominating) and enjoyed manyanecdotes: some amusing,some rowdy, some wistful, andsome all of the above at once.Loli was her very own self, notreminiscent of any otherperformer I can recall. Shebrought a special sweetness andsincerity to her softer moments,and, then she pulled out all thestops on her more energeticnumbers. And, boy - were theyenergizing to her enthusiasticaudience! With seven fabulousmusicians on the stage, PLUStwo terrific back-up singers onseveral numbers, it wassurprising how freely andgracefully Loli moved around inher little space. But, who canperform Latin music without thebody joining in? And Loli surelycould shake it, while theaudience was stirred. Yes, theweather outside was frightful,but Loli was delightful, This wasthe sixth act on which Loli andLinda have collaborated, and theresults just keep getting betterand better. My hope is that“Shaken Not Stirred” will returnin the Spring, performing in alarger venue –she deserves it.

Just another greatphoto from the Dec.5th, 2009 meeting ofthe NYSMSfeaturing AnnieLebeaux. Taken byour officialphotographer, RoseBillings.

(l-r) Sandi Durell,Linda Amiel Burnsand Annie hold upsome fun sheetmusic.

Merrill Grant brings you a loveable, funny, light-hearted evening of songs and anecdotes of ShirleyTemple, along with those of the leading ladies in herfilms- Dorothy Dell, Rochelle Hudson, Alice Fayeand others. Tap dancing and other sparkling

surprises are in store as Merrill tells of the span of time in herchildhood she refers to as "My Shirley Years." Winner of AudienceFavorite at "1930's Idol" 2009.

P.O. Box 564New York, NY 10008

Jan 23Feb 13Mar 13

Apr 10May 8June 12

The 09-10 SeasonMeeting Dates:

Now you canjoin or renew your

membership OOOONNNNLLLLIIIINNNNEEEE!!!!

www.NYSMS.orgIt’s all right there, spelled out for you, in 3 easy steps!

LOCATION – Local 802 – Musicians’ Hall at 322 West 48th Street.Flea market 12:30 – Sheet music, tapes, CD’s etc. Program: 1:45 – 3:30PM.

Non-member guest fee $10. Single membership only $50 per year. $65 Couples

SHARON PAIGE celebrates The Songs of NedWashington. Sharon will be performing songs fromher acclaimed CD "Love Is The Thing" and will beaccompanied by the great pianist, arranger KeithIngham and bassist Murray Wall. Sharon will tell us

about the life and accomplishments of Ned Washington, composerof such songs as “The Nearness of You”, “My Foolish Heart”, “AHundred Years From Today”, “Give a Little Whistle” and “Love Is TheThing”. NYSMS member Joe Regan, Jr wrote the liner notes for theCD and will attend and participate in the Q & A.

February 13, 2010

DAVID HAJDU -- music critic for The New Republic,Columbia Professor of Journalism and author on theperennial best-seller. "Lush Life," on the life of BillyStrayhorn -- will make you sit up and take noticewith shock and delight when you hear his takes on

so-called "celebrities" and some names possibly unfamiliar tomembers of the NYSMS, given our musically sophisticated tastes.There's Beyance for one -- and have you forgotten Elmer Fudd?ELLIOTT AMES introduces this memorable program with music bytwo of our finest interpreters of American song, KAREN OBERLINand ALLEN HARRIS.

January 23, 2010

What’s Coming Up Next...

Did you know every issue of this newsletteris online at www.NYSMS.org

“All programs are subject to change without notice. But of course we’ll always try to let you know!”

Next Meeting is January 23, 2010

TBA

March 13, 2010

April 10, 2010

May 8, 2010

June 12, 2010

Our VP and reknowned music historian Robert Kimball willl be ourguest speaker talking about his brilliant new book on the Lyrics ofJohnny Mercer. Lynn DiMenna and others will perform some ofMercer's hits!

Sandi Durell's fabulous Songwriter's Showcase. Hear the newstandards being made by today's talents performers and composers.More info to follow.