It’s been quite the year for Frank Sinatra. Sinatra: The Musical is currently playing at the Aldwych. Sinatra: One Last Shot was at the Edinburgh Fringe. And now Chris Weeks plays one night at the Crazy Coqs with To Be Frank.
It’s no mere impersonation, though. Weeks is clearly committed to celebrating the career and legacy of Ol’ Blue Eyes, as well as casting the net a bit wider to include songs popularized by Dean Martin and Nat ‘King’ Cole. Through a 15-song set, Weeks is accompanied by Fraser Urquhart (piano), Mark Fincham (bass), and Finn Genockey (drums), who create a relaxed, informal, and warm atmosphere for these swingin’ classics.
Theatre fans may know Weeks best for his stint in The Rat Park (as Martin), which continues into next year, and his earlier portrayal of Buddy Holly in Buddy. However, he is also an acclaimed jazz singer, performing both solo and as the frontman of The Bluejays. He clearly loves the music in To Be Frank, and offers little stories and asides between the songs.
The choice of setlist covers all the bases of Sinatra’s career, from “Night and Day” to the inevitable encore of “New York, New York”. Many of the songs are upbeat: the bossa nova-influenced “The Girl from Ipenema” (crafted in collaboration with Antonio Carlos Jobim); “Come Fly With Me”; the sultry “Witchcraft”; and (starting a-capella) “The Lady is a Tramp”.
What made Sinatra, Martin, and Cole unique is their ability to inhabit a song with their own phrasing and personality. They were each intensely talented singers who knew what audiences wanted to hear. The story of Dean Martin’s “Everybody Loves Somebody”, a throwaway track to round off an album, knocking The Beatles off the top spot of the Billboard charts, is delicious.
This is no tribute show. Weeks has his own style, phrasing, and ability to connect with a crowd. When his trio of musicians is playing, he is often lost in the music and rhythm. He might not have succeeded in encouraging the Crazy Coqs audience to sing along – of course we all knew the songs – but he certainly held us captive. When he sang “Sway,” most of us did.
I did notice a couple of lyric changes in “Night and Day” and “One For My Baby,” but the first can be traced back to Sinatra’s version “day and night, night and day,” while the other, “I know the routine,” fits as well as the original “I got …”. These are glorious songs that can stand a little bit of alternative interpretation. I also felt that the arrangement of “You Make Me Feel So Young” felt a little fast, but that’s just personal taste.
The Nat ‘King’ Cole number is, of course, the silky-smooth “Unforgettable”, accompanied by the story of Sinatra objecting to the black artist who played on stage having to eat outside of the dining room. Other stories highlight Sinatra’s approach to life, from copying Tommy Dorsey’s breath control as a trombonist to his own professional practice as a vocalist, to the words on his tombstone (“The best is yet to come”).
This is an enjoyable concert for swingin’ lovers everywhere.
4.5 stars for this one.
Chris Weeks: To Be Frank was at Crazy Coqs on 27 Sep.
For more on Chris, visit his website.
Photo credit: Louise Penn