Patrick DeGennaro Press Reviews

What Cabaret Needs Now

By the time Patrick DeGennaro gets around to recalling accompanying the school chorus at the piano as they sang Burt Bacharach songs, he remembers thinking, “I just don't get it!” This revelation happened in the middle of his dynamic new show, 'The Burt Bacarach Songbook,” which wrapped up a run at the Metropolitan Room last weekend. He mentions this after singing one of the shows many highlights, a sincere “Whoever You Are I Love You.” That song, one of the most overlooked and beautiful from the Bacharach canon, is one of many high points in one of the single most commercially viable shows to pop up in a club in years.

In the case of Mr. DeGennaro, unlike his younger days spent in the auditorium at the piano, he clearly gets it just right now. The end result was a sterling performance by one who has been absent from the cabaret scene too long. His rangy pop tenor remains as passionate as when he made his cabaret debut at Don't Tell Mama in the late 80's and his energy level is high for this ambitious show that could easily find a life outside the intimate confines of a cabaret space.

Dressed casually in black, he seemed comfortable with the material and gave it his all. Fronting the pumped up band led by musical director/arranger Ian Herman, the show was punctuated with amusing anecdotes about Bacarach's life and his often schmaltzy melodies. While most of the hits are from his somewhat erratic collaboration with lyricist Hal David, he also wrote songs with Bob Hilliard, Carole Bayer Sager and Elvis Costello.

With Dionne Warwick as the catalyst for most of the mega hits, DeGennaro included mainstays like “I Say a Little Prayer,” “Windows of the World,” “Always Something There to remind Me” and “What the World Needs Now,”etc. By the end of the show, the audience was eating out of his hand and sighing and singing along as they recognized the opening bars of a familiar favorite.

Patrick DeGennaro is a refreshing force to be reckoned with in this show directed by Lina Koutrakos. Hopefully, this team will think outside the box and book the show into theatrical venues across the country where these familiar tunes will be even more appreciated than in the overly savvy New York arena where Sondheim wannabes churn out unmemorable ditties about angst and hysterically lethal lyrics with little heart. Like the songs or not, few people over the age of thirty, don't recall a Burt Bacharach hit song. Who doesn't know “Alfie?” (given an excellent treatment here.)

In the right managerial hands, this show can have a life as I mentioned earlier and hopefully, someone in the know will book one of the most exciting crowd pleasers to walk on by.

--John Hoglund

Patrick DeGennaro
The Bachrach Songbook

Birdland
Long a fixture on the piano-bar and cabaret scene, Patrick DeGennaro hasn't done a show in several years but his latest effort, The Bachrach Songbook, which debuted at Birdland in July, was worth the wait. Boasting a powerful tenor with a throbbing vibrato that wraps itself around phrases like Tony Bennett and Vic Damone, DeGennaro has a seismic instrument that's ideal for the complicated rhythms and melodies of Burt Bachrach. Spanning several decades worth of music including rarities like Your Eyes Are Blue from Promises, Promises and Fool Me Again from the film of Arthur, as well as popular favorite such as I Say A Little Prayer, Alfie and That's What Friends Are For,DeGennaro has put together a varied an interesting program that he sings magnificently. Slated for an engagement at The Metropolitan Room this fall, DeGennaro just has to relax and embrace the terrific performer he has become.

Look for Patrick DeGennaro and The Bachrach Songbook at The Metropolitan Room this fall.

David Hurst
Cabaret Scenes
July 24, 2006
http://www.cabaretscenes.com/

Stu Hamstra

I was back at THE METROPOLITAN ROOM for PatrickDeGennaro's 9:30 pm show, "The Bacharach Songbook" and wasutterly and totally awed by this young man's vocals and this most exciting show. Forget anything else I have written this year about any other cabaret male vocalist. Without a doubt, Mr. DeGennero is the most exciting, brilliant,amazing, delightful and talented male vocalist on the cabaret scene today.

No one does it better - and even more precisely, no one does it as well!
Just a $25 cover - and believe me, worth every penny and more so.

Kooky Tunes
ORIGINAL CAST RECORDING
Producer(s): John Yap
Genre: POP
Catalog Number: Jay Productions 1367
November 09, 2002

Keith Thompson is one of those New York theater mainstays whose only reason for not already claiming a Tony Award is the simple, inopportune luck of the draw. His Kooky Tunes has been circulating the New York cabaret circuit since 1998 and, at last, it has been committed to a live recording that truly delivers on his lofty gifts for both scripting and composing. Brought to life by four charismatic performers-Jay Rogers, Perry Payne, Patrick DeGennaro, and Vanessa A. Jones-Kooky whisks listeners through a melange of comic tales and tunes, staying true to the central theme that individuality may sometimes be funny as hell, but it's also endearing and the essence of humanity. Rogers, a tenor Harvey Fierstein, commands the funniest material, including the truck driver-profiling "Haulin' Happiness" and R-rated "Dresser Drawer Blues." Other shining moments: Payne's sitcom-worthy Southern caricature Crystal Powers, Jones' sexy, soulful "Gourmet Meal" and DeGennaro's bravado finale "What If." Kooky Tunes is a must-see, but it's also quite a visual trip on CD. This might be the first standing ovation you've offered from your living room.

-CT

IN THEATER
David Hurst

To celebrate the release of his new CD ONLY IN NEW YORK, Patrick DeGennaro gave three shows at The Triad which proves he’s a musical force to be reckoned with on the cabaret and recording scenes.
Opening with the CD’s title song, Ann Hampton Callaway’s driving, pulsating “Only In New York”, DeGennaro rocked the upstairs cabaret room at The Triad, expertly accompanied by a six piece band: Keith Thompson (musical director / piano ), Joseph Baker ( keyboards ), Gary Tillman ( drums ), Brian Hamm ( bass ), Kim Norton ( guitar ), and Mike Migliore ( sax ). The singer then segued into "You Anymore" by John Bucchino, an edgy rock tune about obsession which showcased hie effortless upper register. “You’re No Good”, featuring the extraordinary talents of Jennifer Heaney, Farah Alvin and Renae Morway, was followed by Keith Thompson’s lyrical “Silent Love” and his rollicking, blues-infused "Down By The River". Sandwiched between these two numbers , Thompson’s “Come To Me” displayed DeGennaro’s ability with a sultry R&B number, and featured a wrenching sax solo by Migliore. It was one of the shows highlights.
The most effective ballad of the evening was “Never Really Mine To Lose” by Callaway and Lindy Robbins. This song would seem likely to be picked up by one of our pop icons (such as Streisand, who included Callaway’s “At The Same Time” on her Higher Ground CD ); but DeGennaro’s performance may prove to be definative. The show continued with an Ella Fitzgerald-esque rendition of “Frankie & Johnny”, followed by “Why’d You Have To Do It So Good”, “The Music You Leave Inside My Mind”, and “Something Inside So Strong”. Encores included a stunning “New York City Is My Home” (by Rick Jensen), with DeGennaro accompanying himself on piano, and a tear –down-the-walls gospel number, “I Wish”.

The singer’s voice has a warm creamy sound which seems to combine the best of Steve Perry, Kenny Loggins,and Billy Joel. My only criticism of his show at The Triad is that DeGennaro could open up further in his patter; the few anecdotes he relayed were charming, and a few more of the same would allow the audience to get to know him better. Additionally he might give us a little more in terms of dance or movement , but these are minor quibbles.

If you’re looking for Christmas stocking stuffers , I heartily recommend DeGennaro’s new CD. And don’t miss him the next time he sings live—it’s a thrilling experience.

For the Boys
Bistro-winner and MAC nominee for Outstanding Pop/R&B Vocalist, Patrick DeGennaro recently performed a series of shows at Eighty Eight’s that proved to be his finest to date, He is a first-rate pop vocalist who’s paid his dues, moved way up the ladder, and seems ready for bigger venues. DeGennaro eschews the usual cabaret fare of show tunes, cutesy ditties, and slit-your-wrist ballads. Rather, the pop tenor concentrates an some powerfully delivered music with a strong rock edge, such as Lindy Robbins’ ”Why’d You Have to Do It So Good and the driving rock stylings of ”Run to You He carries it all off with assurance, a sense of individuality, and humor, without being self-indulgent. I’ll be honest In the past, always a strong vocalist, he has not exuded the ease and confidence in delivery he now radiates in spades, With a penchant for contemporary songs by New York-based composers, he shows passion, yearning, and verve that create an atmosphere that is contagious, In a duet with Lina Koutrakos on ”Something Stupid,” DeGennaro proves he can glide effortlessly through comic riffs. This ’60s relic, once sung by Frank and Nancy Sinatra, shows off a wacky edge that scored as one of the show’s high spots. The risibles continued with the Lindy Robbins-Ann Hampton Callaway bluesy ode to tragic lave ”Never Really Mine to Lose,” DeGennaro’s best moment came with the Beatles’ ”Paperback Writer,” giving the set a gentle, optimistic button. Accompanied by his five-piece band, deftly led by Keith Thompson, DeGennaro made the hour fly and got a lot of cheers from the crowd His patter was focused and fun, and was kept to a minimum (hint, hint), making this one of the better sets by a male singer in cabaret in a long time. With proper management and marketing, he’ll get the recognition he deserves after years of hard work.

NEW YORK POST
LATE City Final

PATRICK DeGennaro, who’s currently singing Fridays at Eighty Eight’s, has unusually eclectic tastes But his belief in the material he has chosen, 16s ability to put across stylistically diverse numbers with a natural air .of confidence and conviction, make hie show surprisingly effective.
Singing ”Peaceful Easy Feeling, which was a hit . for the Eagles in 1973, he projected an appealingly centered, whole, serene sensibility, which he sustained as he went grace- fully into ”The Nearness of You,” a Hoagy Carmichael-Ned Washington ballad popularized by Glenn Miller in 1940. He made those two songs, written in two very different eras, seem almost like a continuing narrative. After setting it up smartly witch an amusing reminiscence from his youth, he put a slightly sexy, hip swinging spin on Little Anthony’s 1960 novelty hit ”Shimmy, Shimmy, Ko-KoBop.” The sexual overtones in DeGennaro’s work be- came more overt as he moved on to a taut, smoldering original created for
him by a friend, Keith Thompson (currently the conductor of ”Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat" on tour) ,"Come To Me."
One of the rewards of going to cabarets is hearing the occasional new song that you11 hear nowhere else, interpreted by some- one it’s just right for. And DeGennaro made this song of passion a highlight.
I also enjoyed hearing
him put over "Frankie and Johnny," a 19th-century number that has been successfully recorded in many variant versions by every one from Mae West and Ted Lewis to Sam Cooke, Sammy Davis, and Elvis ’ Presley. DeGennaro’s version doesn’t include all of the best available verses, but it’s fun hearing none- theless.
His show is called ”Don’t Forget to Dance” (sound advice for dealing with life), and his final song, Garth Brooks’ "The Dance," pro- vided such a perfect close to the program that – much as I was enjoying DeGennaro’s sincere voice – I al- most wished he didn’t come back for an encore.

Don’t miss him the next time he sings live- it’s a thrilling experience.
One of the best pop voices in town / There is no conflict between art and entertainment, and DeGennaro proves it.
The powerful pop singer can belt the funky blues as well as caress a beautiful ballad.
Sexy… Smoldering... Passionate…