Back from Vacation!

Okay, so it wasn't a *real* vacation...I didn't go anywhere fascinating or exotic, but I did take a week off from the day job and escape NYC, so it was lovely! I even managed to squeeze in some performing - what more could a girl ask for?

Anyway, though, let me get caught up here! I actually only saw a few shows between my last blog entry and today, so this should be fairly quick!

Let's see...on Tuesday, July 22nd, I headed back to the Time Out New York Lounge to catch Julian Yeo and his band again. Turns out that he's going to be there every other week, which is a great thing to know! As I wrote a few weeks ago, Julian and the band always provide an entertaining evening, and the TONY Lounge is a terrific setting for them! Check them out tonight or on August 19th - they'll be there from 6-8 p.m.

The following evening, I had a gig at The River Room of Harlem, which was a lot of fun. We had a nice crowd, and I was backed by a fabulous band (Fortune Esposito on guitar, David Crone on keyboard, Matt Wigton on bass, and Brian DeWitt on drums), and we were even treated to a spectacular light show, as thunderstorms moved in over the river towards the end of the evening!

On Thursday, July 24th, I headed to the Metropolitan Room to see Lina Koutrakos her show of torch songs, aptly called "Torch." I've seen Lina perform a number of times, mostly doing rock, so it was a treat to see her doing this style of music. One of the things I always admire about her in her rock singing is her gutsy, soulful, passionate commitment to the music and the lyrics, and she brought those same dynamic qualities to this show, making it a truly captivating experience!

The next week was my vacation week, so aside from singing with the Fortune Four (my dad's rockin' band!) at the Lava Lounge at the Monticello Raceway and Casino, it was a fairly slow week for me, entertainment-wise! The Lava Lounge show was a blast - we did a 60's show, including music from the Beatles, the Stones, Leslie Gore, the Monkees...and even some Hendrix! It was really a fantastic way to spend a summer evening!

That just about brings us up to date - check back for more updates soon!

Oh - and check out the pics below - on my week off, I got to take my nephew Charlie to his very first Yankee game!! His mom and dad also came, as well as my dad. We had a great time, and I'm pretty certain that Charlie is just about the cutest fan ever!