Naughty or Nice.
Original music and lyrics by Ray Jessel with contributions by Cynthia Thompson. The Space. Adelaide Festival centre. Adelaide cabaret Festival. June 20. 2015
Reviewed by Peter Wilkins
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| Ray Jessel in Naughty or Nice |
I urge everyone to check out the
Youtube appearance ofctogenarian composer/lyricist, Ray Jessel, on America’s
Got Talent. It is not only a testament to this remarkable cabaret entertainer’s
wit and way with words, but an inspiration to all that you are never too old to
entertain , or get an amazing thirteen million hits on Youtube for his Penis Song. In his show, Naughty Or Nice,Jessel proves that a
wicked sense of humour, a flair for the ridiculous and startling originality
are the tools of trade of a master of the racy rhyme and deliciously cheeky
ditty.
The 85 year old with his splaying
shockof white hair and moustache spreading across his upper lip and whom many
still approach for late Albert Einstein’s autograph, shuffles to the piano, positions himself purposefully and within
seconds has his audience in an uproar of laughter at his original Short Term Memory Blues. With his sharp
and cheeky Jewish humour, the amazing Jessel tops his opening triumph with the
song that floored the judges on America’s Got Talent, She’s Got a Penis. And they just keep coming: Identity Theft , Naughty Or
Nice, a Kurt Weill send-up, dedicated to cabaret festival Artistic
Director, Barry Humphries and finishing up with The Shakespeare Tragedy Rag. Closing lyrics in homage to Shirley Temple sums up Jessel’s sanguine philosophy with a
final Oi Weh:
When things are dark and gloomy/I don’t let the dark get to me/But
instead I hold my head up high
I don’t wallow in self pity/Ijust sing this little ditty/Life sucks and
then you die.
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| Ray Jessel - victorious at America's Got Talent |
Songs are interspersed with
anecdote: “It’s taken me eighty five years to get from Old South Wales to New
South Wales.”. His struggle with producers when they asked him to write a score
for the film, Dennis The Menace is
told with wistful humour. Australian crooner, David Campbell has recorded his
song Whatever Happened To Melody, and
other songs have been recorded by such artsts as Michael Feinstein and Louis
Armstrong. Surprisingly, Jessel did not start performing his own songs until he
was 75 years old. He continues to write and record songs, often composed with
his wife Cynthia Thompson.
Some may compare Jessel to the
legendary satirists of song, Tom Lehrer and Alan Sherman, but Jessel is in class of his own and if you ever have the
chance to see him live, be careful not to laugh yourself to death.
