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KEVIN COLE:
Redefining Notions of the Popular
American Song
By Robert E. Martin
Back in the 1980s, on the strength of his interpretative instincts, Bay City's Kevin Cole sprang to international acclaim on the stardust of the late great classical composer, George Gershwin.
True to form, it was not through the
strength of Gerswhin's popular songbook that attentions of surviving
members of the Gershwin family were drawn to Kevin Cole's prowess, but
the manner of how he handled the 'unknown Gershwin' - material so
unfamiliar to the masses that the family swore George was actually
channeling himself through the fingers of this young protégée pianist
from Bay City.
While many laps around the sun have
occurred since Kevin began his journey to international acclaim, his
commitment to cultivating the legacy of such great American composers as
Cole Porter and Johnny Mercer has deepened.
Apart from releasing three respected
recordings, Kevin is also branching into the composition of original
material, one song to be included on his newest fourth release, A
Cole Christmas, which Kevin will debut live and in person on a
Steinway Concert grand piano at a series of upcoming fundraiser concerts
for the B ay City Players on December 16, 17, and 18th.
Perhaps the most significant trait of
this gifted artist lies in his knowledge & desire to bridge the cultural
divide that exists between Popular & Contemporary music.
"Things haven't changed that much since George Gershwin started his career," responds Kevin about his life since moving away from Bay City. "I've lived in Chicago, which is where I built my reputation as the musical director for the play Forever Plaid, and I've lived in San Francisco, where I was musical director for two summers with the Shakespeare Festival, but that's because musical careers have always been dictated by a few major cities."
"That's why George Gershwin's mother t
old him he needed a big coat and a top-hat, because it's what the
cultural avatar was, just like fashion and Paris Hilton are today. It
represents class and status and the same thing happened in music at the
turn of the century, because it kicked off the careers of a lot of
established critics."
"For someone like Gershwin with a natural
talent, many critics dismissed him because he could be accepted so
readily whereas other's more schooled could not. Schoenberg said that
Gershwin's gift for melody and instinctively being able to tune into the
emotions of his country. Believe me, you can do all the studying in the
world and not be able to teach that type of gift."
"Thankfully, artists such as Rod
Stewart have revitalized the popular American songbook," continues
Kevin. "And two people we also have to thank are Linda Ronstadt
for getting Nelson Riddle to record with her before he passed
away, as well as Natalie Cole and Harry Connick. Those
artists' recordings ten years ago all of a sudden created a situation
where it was cool to be under the age of 50 and like this type of
music."
For his own foray into composing, Kevin
is also working with director/writer and fellow Bay Citian Leeds Bird,
and Adrian Rosales, who is developing a libretto for a serious
historical dramatic musical work. And of course, Kevin is always
arranging musical material, whether for the Saginaw Choral Society
or the Royal George Theater.
Additionally, this spring Kevin is releasing yet another new disc that will introduce the world to him as a vocalist.
"I've been very fortunate to work with
Hugh Martin, the best vocal coach out there, reveals Kevin. "He's
the guy who wrote Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas and
The Trolley Song and Meet Me In St. Louis. He lives in California and is 91 years old and I've been his
friend since 1994. He just wrote an autobiography and is trying to find
a publisher and was Judy Garland's vocal coach for 15 years."
"I met him doing a show at the
Pasadena Playhouse when I was doing a Rogers & Hart Revue, and we
were using some of his original vocal arrangements that he did back in
the 1930s for Richard Rogers. It was a thrill meeting him. I
mean here's a guy that worked with Cole Porter and Jerome Kern,
you know?"
"Anyway, I started doing some archival
work for Hugh and we became friends and eventually he asked me sing for
him more and more. He said, 'Kevin, your piano playing is unquestionably
the best, but don't short change yourself as a singer. You can really
sing."
"One day when he was coaching me, he paid
me the most unbelievable compliment. He said, 'Kevin, I have three
favorite singers - Judy Garland, Mel Tome and Kevin Cole.
And of course, you're still living. But today, I only listen to two -
Tony Bennett and you.'
"I was like, please, stop - are you on
medication? What are you saying!' You can't be serious. But he said,
'No, I am serious. You've finally found your voice. When I listen I know
its Kevin singing to me, and you're not trying to be perfect, or sound
like anyone else.'
"That really floored me," continues
Kevin. "Over time he would make these suggestions, and Hugh knows how to
arrange songs so your voice has a nice natural ease and words just fall
out of your mouth. For too many singers, the keys are too high. I
remember once Hugh said to me, 'Remember Kevin, women fall in love with
baritones, not tenors."
So how does Kevin view his music as
evolving?
"My influences are the top tier - Berlin, Arlen, Gershwin - but after playing these guys all these years, it feels natural for me to write. I feel plugged into it. Some people are good at reading road maps, others are not."
"What strikes me most in my own
songwriting are the standards these composers set, which I use as a
guidepost. There always needs to be a wedding between the lyric and
music. Berlin and Porter knew what they were doing, because they wrote
both music and lyrics. Their songs feel different than when you have two
people like George & Ira Gershwin composing together."
"But what I love about these great
American songwriters is the direct approach they take to get you to the
emotion of a song really fast. Within a few measures, a few words,
you're there and they have you. I don't hear songs being written like
that today. Not that good songs are not being written, but it's the
stories they tell - they take you so long to get there, whereas with
Berlin & Porter, all it takes is a couple of lines before the arrows are
thrown into the emotions of your heart."
So does Kevin feel the old adage - they
don't write 'em like they used to - is true?
"Again, you write how you are
influenced," he responds. "If I took just the news as its reported today
on TV, as opposed to news from a paper where you have time to devour,
what kind of songs am I going to write? Sound bites don't connect or get
you anywhere. Every day we are being bombarded, so there is a shift in
sensibility."
"Also I think there's an innocence to
these great American songs, not that they're naïve, but the roadmaps are
simplified. When it comes down to it, love and hate are very primal,
simple emotions. If you're going to write a song about love or hate you
can gussy it up all you want in the verse, but when you get to that
refrain, it better say something. I ant to know you've been there, or
about to go there."
In terms of landmark performances, Kevin
references gratitude to David Allen Miller, conductor of the
Albany Symphony in New York. "Whenever he hears of a major performance
of Gershwin being done in some city, he lets the conductors know who to
get."
"He lined me up a performance at the
Hollywood Bowl and the first night 16,000 people attended, followed
by 18,000 the second night. I did my Gershwin medley as an encore and
the place went crazy. Afterwards, I was told by one of the members of
the Los Angeles Philharmonic who had performed with them for 40 years
that he could count on one hand the number of times an audience at the
Hollywood Bowl stood up."
"Obviously, that was one of the most
thrilling experiences in my life," states Kevin. "At the time all I was
thinking of were artists like The Beatles and all the great
performers that had stood on that stage. It was spooky - you absolutely
feel the ghosts of those performers like sensations flowing through
you. And all I could do is ask, 'How does this happen? How does a
little guy from Bay City, Michigan, who's doing okay with his music and
paying the rent suddenly play the Hollywood Bowl?"
Apart from the release of his original
projects, 2006 promises to be a big year for Kevin Cole, also on the
agenda is a performance with the Lisbon Opera in Portugal for five
weeks, and he is also going to Canada to perform with the Edmontown
Symphony.
"I'm never worried if somebody likes what
I do or not," concludes Kevin. "But the importance of all this music and
my involvement with it boils down to one simple goal - helping people
realize through this music that no matter where you are living, life
isn't really so bad."
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