Pink Martini For A Blue Girl

By Chelsea Spear

Opera House, Boston MA
June 13, 2009

“Eclectic” doesn’t begin to describe the music of Pink Martini. For the better part of a decade, this twelve-piece “little big band” has beguiled indie hipsters, polyglots, blue-haired grannies, and NPR junkies alike with their interpretations of standards from America and around the world. Likewise, the original songs that appear on their albums draw inspiration from French poetry, transcendental literature, songs from beloved 1970s movies, and bad dates.

Their records can sometimes feel like listening to a radio that won’t stay tuned to one station, and their irrepressible energy is not always well represented by their recorded output. They are a must-see in concert. Because they have strong ties to New England, they grace the Boston area with their presence at least once a year. In mid-June of 2009, they played what has become an annual show at the Opera House.

Almost all of Pink Martini took to the stage for their traditional concert-opener, their cover of the orchestral work Boléro. This is no ordinary version of Maurice Ravel’s signature suite, however. As the music reached a crescendo, the brass section played a few measures in the style of a Mexican mariachi band. This unexpected cross-cultural flourish, a trademark of Pink Martini’s, drew gasps and laughter from the audience. At the song’s conclusion, bandleader Thomas Lauderdale’s enthusiasm was palpable as he described attending shows at the Opera House when it was the crumbling home of Sarah Caldwell’s Opera Company of Boston.

Diva-next-door China Forbes emerged from the wings to the soaring strains of “Amado Mio,” Rita Hayworth’s famous song from Gilda. This Boston engagement came at a special time for her, as she had given birth to her first child a month before the show. Many of Forbes’s family and friends were in the audience, and she frequently stopped the show to give them a shout out.

Much of the set list was taken up with the band’s finest or most noteworthy works, such as the Japanese film noir theme “Kikuchiyo to Mohshimasu” and their big Gallic hit, “Sympathiqu.” However, they also drew from two of their coming efforts: a live recording which features new material, and an album of new songs called Splendor in the Grass. They premiered the title track at this performance, an aching ballad with a country feel and lyrics of fame and regret, all of which brought to mind Ronee Blakley’s “My Idaho Home” from Nashville.

As this was an ersatz hometown show for Harvard grad Lauderdale and Andover native Forbes, the performance had a loose, playful feel. The pair performed a silly dance to the Italian novelty hit “Toucha Toucha,” another highlight from the new album, and Lauderdale coaxed Forbes into capping “Hey Eugene!” with a multi-note flourish worthy of American Idol. While being in the presence of so many charming people with wonderful chemistry could be tremendous fun, at times the stage patter threatened to weigh down the evening, as with Forbes’s attempt at starting a singalong during their eerie rendition of “Que Sera Sera.”

The main set concluded with a jubilant version of “Brazil” from their first album. Due to the vagaries of Boston’s public transportation, I was unable to stay for the encore, but the song of love lost and regained in South America was a great note on which to leave the Opera House. The ebullient and ambitious scope of Pink Martini drew me out of a blue funk and sent me home with a multitude of songs running through my head.

Pink Martini will be performing in Oregon and Washington throughout August and September, and will appear at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles on September 19. For more on the band, please check out their Official Site or MySpace page.