Gene Carne’s show at “The Black Academy of Arts and Letters

Gene Canre put on a superb show at TBAAL.  Her Show and new CD is “Divas, Voices of My Life”.  Billie Holiday's classic rendition of, “Bless the Child” also covered by Blood Sweat and Tears, was her first number, then moved down through the list of divas who only need one name, Aretha, Barbara, Rosemary Clooney, who's name comes out as one word, Lena‘s “Stormy Weather”, and Gladys’s “Midnight Train”. Ms, Carne’s rendition of Etta James's, “At Last” showcased her raw, edgy, emotional 7 octave vocal range, while the crowd became as quiet as a  tomb. Only to resurrect itself in the form of a standing ovation, and finally releasing my involuntary motor function so I could breathe again.   It gave me goose bumps and had me holding my breath.  Of course during all this the band, consisting of, Gary Glimpse, Dizzy Gillespie’s cousin on piano from Washington DC by, and local musicians Lawrence Peabody from Ft. Worth on drums, Rick Rigsby from Dallas on the keyboards, and Eric Willis on bass, performed with dynamics and subtlety rarely found these days proving once again simplicity done will is art in itself..  All in all her show seemed to come to a close about 20 minutes, although it  was filled with numbers like, Sara Vaughn’s, “I Got it Bad, and That An’t Good.”,  Dinah Washington's “What a difference A Day Makes” or “Someone to Watch, Over Me”. Looking at my watch I realized I had spent 90 minutes, lost, in a world of soulful loving bless. You know, like the feeling you get when sitting close to the love of your life, entranced by the beauty, intoxicated by you senses, where time does not have any meaning! So toughly spent I glided to my car, lit a smoke, let my mind free flow, and drove home. Wondering how long it was till Ms. Carne would visit again.

By Tom “Axle” Allen
dallasmusic staff