The
Blue Note and PeaCanz Productions
Present Something to Sing About:
A Singers Celebration
New York,
NY - March 9, 2001: Thirty of New York City's finest vocalists gather
to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the signing of the Cabaret Amendment,
on Saturday, March 31st at the BLUE NOTE (131 West 3rd Street, NYC
- 212-475-8592). Doors open at noon, sets are 12:30 pm, 2:15 pm, &
4:00 pm, $15 cover, no minimum.
Thirty years
ago, one woman fought City Hall and won, reclassifying singers as
musicians and opening countless venues to countless vocalists who
previously were barred from singing in all but a handful of New York
City clubs. On March 31st, Thirty of New York City's top vocalists
will sing in celebration of the 30th anniversary of that day and to
acknowledge the vocalist who made it happen, fabulous Phyllis Lynd.
Michael Bourne
from WBGO's Singers Unlimited, WBAI's David Kenney, and other distinguished
members of the jazz community will MC the event. The following vocalists
are scheduled to perform with the Tedd Firth Trio:
Toby Altman
- Fredrick Bush - Linda Ciofalo - Mary Foster Conklin - Deborah Davis
- Peter Eldridge - Dena DeRose - Giacomo Gates - Miles Griffith -
Leslie Gwin - Melissa Hamilton - Val Hawk - Diane Hubka - Pucci Amanda
Jhones - Sheila Jordan - Laurie Krauz - Marya Lawrence - Amy London
- Trudi Mann - Sue Maskaleris - Kate McGarry - Mary Pearson - Cynthia
Scott - Nanette Scott-Jones - Rich Siegel - Barbara Sfraga - Kendra
Shank - Joan Stiles - String Of Pearls: Sue Halloran, Jeanne O'Connor,
and Holli Ross - Gabrielle Tranchina - Roseanna Vitro - Carla White
- Andrea Wolper - and Guest of Honor Phyllis Lynd
(artists subject
to change)
All profits
from this event will be donated to the Society of Singers, Inc., a
501(c)(3) non-profit organization that provides relief to professional
singers experiencing hardship.
Producer:
Arkadia Jazz recording artist Mary Pearson
Co-producers: Barbara Sfraga and Linda Ciofalo
The Cabaret
Amendment, which opened the door for singers in New York on March
31, 1971, was the result of a long battle between Phyllis Lynd and
City Hall.
For decades
prior to the amendment, only restaurants with cabaret licenses were
legally able to hire singers. Most restaurants were unwilling to undergo
the red tape and expense to obtain a license, so hundreds of eating
establishments were limited to instrumentalists, usually a non-singing
pianist or guitarist.
When Phyllis
Lynd, an international cabaret singer, returned to her native New
York, she was hired to sing in a new, elegant midtown restaurant called
The Camelot. She arrived on opening night only to be greeted with
the news that the police came in that afternoon telling the owner
that his liquor license would be revoked if he employed a singer.
Outraged,
Ms. Lynd called the mayor's office and threatened to sue the city
for restraint of trade. She had just registered for her master's degree
at the Manhattan School of Music and had to work in New York. Mr.
Tyler, the licensing commissioner, called her back to say there was
nothing he or the mayor could do. "Go fight City Hall," he said.
Which she
did. Through councilman Ted Weiss, and after four years of effort
and persistence, the cabaret amendment was passed. As a result, RENO
SWEENEY'S, THE BALLROOM and several other venues opened and thrived.
Excerpts from
press circa 1971 singing the praises of Phyllis Lynd.
"Bravo to
singer Phyllis Lynd for pressing the cabaret amendment permitting
NY restaurants finally to hire singers."
--It Happened
One Night, Earl Wilson, New York Post, Tuesday, March 16, 1971
"... Phyllis
Lynd brightened the usually somber City Hall Blue Room with a few
tunes yesterday as Mayor Lindsay signed into law a bill relaxing city
cabaret licensing requirements. The bill, effective immediately, permits
eating or drinking establishments to employ singers with up to three
accompanists without having to obtain a cabaret license. It paves
the way for the possible hiring of thousands of vocalists each year
in more than 500 city bistros."
--Music Added
To the Menu, NY Daily News, Thursday, April 1, 1971
"A routine
hearing at City Hall was livened briefly when a folk singer, strumming
a guitar, sang two songs for the Mayor -- "As Years Go By" and "I
Think of My Darling."
After Mr.
Lindsay had determined there was no opposition to the cabaret bill,
Councilman Theodore S. Weiss introduced the singer, Phyllis Lynd.
The Mayor suggested a song, Miss Lynd dashed to the rear of the room
for her guitar, then sang. The Mayor then said, "I won't sign this
bill unless you sing an encore."
"Have you
a favorite?" she asked. The Mayor replied, "I like anything you do."
"I like anything
you do, too." Miss Lynd said, and sang "I Think of My Darling."
--The New
York Times, Thursday April 1, 1971
"Following
an impromptu concert in the rotunda of City Hall by ... Phyllis Lynd,
the committee approved legislation relaxing cabaret licensing requirements
to enable Phyllis and other singers to warble here.
--Alfred Miele
, NY Daily News, Friday, March 5, 1971
"With a musical
assist from ... Phyllis Lynd on the steps of City Hall, Councilman
Theodore Weiss (D-Manhattan) said yesterday he would introduce legislation
relaxing cabaret licensing requirements to enable Phyllis and a thousand
other singers to do their thing here.
It was Miss
Lynd who launched the cause three years ago to ease night spot working
rules for vocalists. Yesterday she sat on the front steps of City
Hall, in her Chinese red, bare-shouldered dress, played guitar and
sang lyrics of her number, "Against the Law." It describes how topless
waitresses can ply their trade in New York's restaurants but singers
can't sing. The council bill with five co-sponsors is expected to
pass this fall and would allow the city's 1,108 cabarets and dance
halls to hire a singer and accompanist without a license or fee. The
present cabaret law requires a $150 license if more than three musicians
play or a vocalist sings."
-- Owen Fitzgerald,
NY Daily News, Saturday, August 1, 1970
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