When she was working the Black Knight room in the basement of the Royal York Hotel in Toronto two decades ago, Carol McCartney used to sneak upstairs between sets and catch the main acts in the Imperial Room, with the assistance of another Mississaugan, maître 'd Louis Jannetta.
She saw Rita Moreno, Lola Falana and Miss Peggy Lee among others.
Monday night, McCartney — the under-appreciated jazz singer from Port Credit whose A Night in Tunisia CD is one of the best jazz releases of the year — was one of three singers who paid tribute to Lee as part of JAZZ.FM91's annual concert series.
One of the songs McCartney did was the gorgeous Jerome Kern-Oscar Hammerstein ballad The Folks Who Live on The Hill.
As McCartney pointed out in her introduction to the song, Lee's life wasn't anything like those of the protagonists of the song, who watch events unfold slowly and leisurely over the years from their perch in the middle of town.
Lee led a tough life, from watching her house burn down at five-years-old (as she references in her autobiographical song Is That All There Is?) to four marriages and a ton of health problems.
One of Lee's favourite writers was Ralph Waldo Emerson. She was fond of quoting his line: "God will not have his work done by cowards." She translated that into, "don't let your personal problems get in the way of your life's work."
Paying tribute to a singer like Lee is a tricky business because of her signature style. As McCartney said "she really had a way with a lyric and a melody." Lee combined an incredibly rhythmic style with a sexy purr of a voice.
She started singing more quietly in clubs in her early days so people would stop yapping and listen to her (still a major problem for all musicians) and it became a signature sound.
Lee was incredibly talented, co-writing several standards such as It's a Good Day, There'll Be Another Spring and I Don't Know Enough About You, acting in movies and even earning an Academy Award nomination for her role as an alcoholic singer in Pete Kelly's Blues (1955.)
She is best known, of course, for batting her phony eyelashes at you while wearing a long, shiny, slithery form-fitting satin dress and purring Mae West-type innuendoes as she undersings hot numbers like Hey, Big Spender or Fever.
The latter signature Lee number was what McCartney, Kinga and Irene Atman finished their very satisfying concert with Monday night at The Old Mill. Of course, there are always quibbles. Would have loved to hear Black Coffee (another Lee composition) but all in all, it was very Peggy and very nice.
The backing trio was in absolutely fine form, with the sizzling Robi Botos on piano (who played the Oscar Peterson Public School tribute last year) his brother Frank on drums and Mississauga's own rock of rhythm, Kieran Overs, on bass.
By the way, Kieran's wife Nancy Walker produced one of the country's best albums this year, according to Canada's jazz magazine CODA. On his list, critic Len Dobbin cited her Need Another CD as one of the top 10 in the country for 2007.
Mississaugans have an upcoming rare chance to see both Walker and McCartney on the same night in their own backyard as part of the outstanding lineup at the Feelings From the Heart Oscar Peterson tribute at the Living Arts Centre Valentine's Day. Peterson's daughter Celine, will speak on behalf of the family.