Evening star., 1944-01-13
After Dark
News and Comment OF the Night Clubs
Trade Mark REGISTERED o. B. Patent omes.

Va AluSlCldIlS pcIIlltS CQcSe DAYS.
Tschaikowsky's Piano Concerto
once again.
Grieg's Concerto has long since
passed away it seems; and Moon
Love-" eReverie" and most Of the
others. But Tschaikowsky is with us
still, in the rakish garment of the
fox trot, to be sure, but as plainly
in evidence as ever before.
1t makes us sick, and we dare say
1t has the same effect on the aver
age patron, unless he has received
the tetanus anti-toxin at regular
intervals since Freddy Martin dis
covered Tschaikowsky could be as
useful in saloons as in Steinway
Hall.
It was then, with considerable sur
prise and virtually boundless delight
to hear q pianist turn over a new
score in Olmsted's Night Club the
other night. Hal Yates was he. He
had just delivered himself of the
Tschaik. and Rachmaninoff's cele-
brated "Flatbush" Prelude (the c
Sharp Minor) when it occurred to
some one that maybe Mr.. Yates
knew or at least had heard of, the
Rachmaninoff Concerto.
"Naah!" snorted a skeptic, pulling
himself up from the floor to his
chair. Nobody ever hearda that
in these places except Max Lowe
and Rocky himself, If he ever went
in these places. Betcha five bucks
Make that four bits and it's a bet"
Mr.. Yates was consulted. And
instead Of looking embarrassed and
sounding various phrases of apology
he beamed. Without word he re-
arranged himself on the piano
bench-and there was Rachmaninoff
booming and rolling melodiously
from the keyboard, not as Freddy
Martin may have conceived it,
either.
1t was too much; nor was Mr..
yates content to sit there plucking
from memory. A quick trip to the
Office and he had the whole score
before him.
This doesn't usually 60 over" he
murmured behind his hand. But it
was going over before the near
closing-time crowd.
In fact, this sort of musical new
deal might stand an odds-on chance
OF going over universally. Might
even lay four bits on the courageous
night club lads willing to try it.
~ II -
On the subject of classical music
Gas opposed to swing, samba, 1--WE
and square dance the Millers of
the Neptune Room afford something
OF a minor spectacle themselves
While the knives and forks of the
patrons were purposefully slashing
the air a couple of evenings ago, the
|piano-organ combination burst into
a full-length and decidedly long
hair Interpretation of Mendelssohns S
"Rondo Capriccioso." This was i'm
mediately followed by Lecuona's s
'Malaguena," a relatively ambitious
piece in its own right. Pause; and
then Meade Lux Lewis styling of
"Honky-To Train Blues" The
abrupt change of mood was enough
to halt many patrons down.
swooping blade.
One Of the hired help in the
kitchen was pretty much taken
aback, too; but for even less mo-
|mentarily.
"Yassuh!" she exulted in a voice
clearly audible over the kitchen
counter. That's my mani" And
she went into one of the neatest
demonstrations of i1npromptu shag-
ging we have seen in q month OF
black-and-tan Sundays.
Wonderful things, these amateur
nights at the 400 Among the vel
ter Of singers and instrumentalists
of astoundingly varying degrees OF
competence, you never know who or
what is apt to turn up. Monday
night there were, in addition to the
usually preponderant number of
crooners and those who sing Chloe, u
a female trumpet-player and a fel-
low named Raymond Massey. Last
time out, it was a couple OF very
young ladies doing hill-billy songs
and skits replete with costumes.
They won that night; Mr.. Massey
was chosen this week by panel of
judges doubtless romantically asso-
ciating the lad with the Raymond
Masseys of Illinois.
AS yet, our two-headed brother
from Rocky Mount, N. c., hasn't
even come close.
On the advice of 1t. Comdr. v. ].
Gallagher, who owns the place, we
sauntered breathlessly into the King
Cole Room to hear the new chan
teuse, Joan Stanton. 1t. Comdr
Gallagher had talked about the
young lady's qualifying test. "She
qualified easily on the first leap
clearing the bar with 6 inches to
spare, landing gracefully in the ice
tray behind it. She showed her
wide professional experience by 60
ing at once into White Christmas,
then climbed smoothly back upon
the counter grooming something to
the tune of Slip of the Lip" Fan
ciful lad, the King Cole Room
prexy; but If you think the art OF
how to clear bar is easily mas
tered you are taking the lieutenant
commanders fancy too earnestly.
Miss Stanton did a masterful jot
of 1t the other night. OF course
the better r-than-6-foot height she
measures is of no small importance
in this undertaking, but even dis
counting that Miss Stanton was
grace itself. She Is also blond. She
also sings throatily and well.