Eric Comstock

We heard a wonderful show by the pianist/vocalist Eric Comstock.  Comstock, who we normally hear performing as part of the Comstock/Fasano Duo with his very talented wife Barbara as vocalist, now has a regular weekly gig at Cafe Noctambulo in the East Village. What the directors of the Cafe Noctambulo are trying to do is recreate the old fashioned supper club, with excellent food and music.  What Comstock does is perform what might be called the Great American Songbook; showtunes and popular music mostly from the first half of the twentieth century, as typified by the music of Cole Porter, the Gershwins, and later by Rogers and Hart, etc.   I know very little about this music, other than the songs from musicals my parents took us to as kids.   But I love the combination of sophisticated harmony and witty lyrics, and it sometimes makes me think of the German lieder of the 19th century in its own 20th century way.    Comstock  is some kind of genius, with both an astoundingly encyclopediac knowledge of the repertoire and an evocative style of singing and piano playing.  He did a wonderful slowed-down version of Ellington's "Don't Get Around Much Any More" which changed my perception of the tune entirely.   He freely moves from tune to tune, with witty and perceptive comments and anecdotes in between.   He played from 8 PM to 12:15 AM, with a couple of short breaks.  In a better world, he (and Barbara) would be very famous stars, playing at the fanciest clubs.

Here is Eric (with tie) and Vera and our friends Krin and Paula, under the colored lights of the club.