Even more real than the musty smell and welcoming beckon of this jazzy spot was the performance of Nicky Schrire plus 4. London-born, South African-raised and New York City-based Schrire completed her Master's degree at the renowned Manhattan School of Music and has been singing up a storm ever since. She is currently on a whirlwind tour of South Africa until the end of March and it is resoundingly worth the effort to attend one of her performances.
At The Mahogany Room it is really all about the music and with talented artists like Schrire accompanied Kevin Gibson (drums), Shane Cooper (bass), Bokani Dyer (piano) and Darren English (trumpet) there is little need for anything more than a bar, a stage and a place to sit. Schrire has a very warm and sincere stage personality, and she quickly enthrals the audience with her antics. She literally made us feel at home as the instrumentalists worked their magic with brilliant playing, almost stealing the show.
Schrire's voice is sultry and unexpected, but it is her imaginative compositions and arrangements that really impress, leaving you yearning for more. Her fresh take on old favourites was outstanding and the audience especially enjoyed her arrangement of Coldplay's Paradise. It seems as though there is no genre that this young vocalist/composer/arranger cannot mould into her distinctive style and she even had us bobbing our heads and tapping our feet to Happy Talk, a show tune from the 1949 musical South Pacific.
Schrire's debut album "Freedom Flight" was released at the beginning of this year. Buy, listen, enjoy. This is just the beginning of a bright young star in the making. Go to her website www.nickyschrire.com for more information on her March performances in South Africa.
Article previously published on www.whatsonincapetown.com
