Two of Chicago’s premier jazz artists, singer Spider Saloff and pianist Jeremy Kahn, team up to perform “The Cool Heat of Peggy Lee” at the historic Baker Community Center, highlighting this year’s St. Charles Jazz Weekend.
Public health guidelines, including capacity restrictions, will be observed to assure concert patrons a safe and enjoyable experience. General admission tickets are priced at $25 and include two complimentary beverages, including beer and wine.
The Cool Heat of Peggy Lee
At her 100th birthday, Peggy Lee remains a music icon – singer, songwriter, actress, star of film and television. This program pays homage to the smoldering understated style of Peggy Lee, tracing her story from her humble beginnings through the glamour of the 1950’s and 60’s and her continued chart breaking recordings.
The concert includes Peggy Lee’s classic jazz hits as well her pop music classics. Saloff presents all of this with her unique comic wit and a contemporary twist that appeals to audiences of all ages.
This concert debuted in the summer of 2017 to sold out audiences at the Ravinia Music Festival. Its featured songs include Fever, Lover, Why Don’t You Do Right?, The Best is Yet to Come, Is That All There Is?, Black Coffee, He’s a Tramp.
“Peggy Lee, the superb jazz-pop singer, smoldered in concert and on record. Chicago singer Spider Saloff, a seasoned and admired cabaret artist, pays homage to Lee. Slyly sophisticated, easily accessible, Saloff stands as a kind of ideal.” – Chicago Tribune
About Spider Saloff
She’s been heard around the world as the host and star of the syndicated public radio series Words and Music, but for thousands the most familiar way to enjoy Spider Saloff has been through live performances. The Chicago–based jazz vocalist and comedienne has won accolades around the world for her introspective yet comedic approach to the genre.
Saloff is acclaimed as one of the great interpreters of the American Songbook. Saloff has composed multiple concert tributes to Cole Porter, Irving Berlin, Stephen Sondheim and many others. At the famed Chicago Jazz Festival, she performed to audiences of over 26,000 at Chicago’s Millennium Park as well as many other venues.
Saloff’s concert career includes recent performances at the Poznan Poland Jazz Fest, The Pheasantry in London, as well as Jazz at Lincoln Center, Overture Center, Ravinia Music Festival, The Auditorium Theater, and the Smithsonian Institution. Her major night club engagements included turns in Chicago at The Green Mill and Jazz Showcase and in New York at Birdland and Feinstein’s among many others nationwide.
Saloff is a national and international award-winning performer who has recorded nine acclaimed CD albums. Visit Saloff's website to learn more about her.
About Jeremy Kahn
Jeremy Kahn is one of Chicago’s busiest pianists, dividing his time between jazz venues, pit orchestras, and recording and teaching studios. A graduate of the New England Conservatory of Music, Kahn spent 12 years in New York, where he was a member of Vince Giordano’s Nighthawks, and was the pianist in the Chicago Jazz Ensemble led by Jon Faddis. He has performed on stage with Dizzy Gillespie, Joni Mitchell, Aretha Franklin, Branford Marsalis, the Chicago and Milwaukee Symphony Orchestras, and on screen with Madonna, Mary Wilson and Johnny Crawford.
Kahn has played at many of Chicago’s theaters, including the Oriental, Cadillac Palace, Shubert/CIBC, Auditorium, Chicago, Aurora Paramount, Drury Lane Oakbrook, Lincolnshire Marriott, Porchlight and Royal George for shows like Wicked, Spamalot, The Lion King, Les Miserables, Aida and Louis & Keely Live at the Sahara. He was also the pianist/conductor for productions of Hot Mikado and Pal Joey, and is currently a faculty member of Northwestern University and the Music Institute of Chicago.
He has been a featured performer at the Chicago, Hyde Park and Poznan (Poland) Jazz Festivals, and a featured guest on the radio shows of Studs Terkel and Marian McPartland.
“New York’s loss has been Chicago’s gain in the case of Jeremy Kahn, the splendid jazz pianist who (has) moved back to his hometown . . ." -- Howard Reich; Chicago Tribune
See Kahn’s website to learn more about him.
For informaton on St. Charles Jazz Weekend, visit www.stcalliance.org.