Soul Sounds, an award winning all-girls choir with international status, decided to try something new. ‘All That Jazz’, a concert held at Barefoot Café on the 6th of March, celebrated the ten years that Soul Sounds have been together. The concert, their first jazz attempt, started off by paying homage to the ladies of jazz and was a rousing way to begin. The first solo of the night was a well-sung but undeniably chaste version of ‘Fever’, followed by a charming rendition of ‘My Funny Valentine’ that featured a sweet solo and lingering phrases from the choir. ‘On The Sunny Side of The Street’ was perky and fun. ‘Love Me Tender’, a version of Nora Jones’s cover of the Elvis hit, was consistently wonderfully sung, imbibed with a simmering passion that was lovely to hear. ‘The Girl From Ipanema’ was a solid tribute to bossa nova, and I just wanted to get up and dance at this point. ‘The Lady Is A Tramp’ was my favourite of the night, really getting the swing going with cool cat vocals.

The evening was interrupted by rain, however that did not affect the singers who kept going even when people were darting out of their seats to find shelter, and that was admirable. The rain inconsistently poured down but the concert went on, each brave performance meeting with appreciative applause from the audience, who listened from wherever they could. They were themselves thanked at the end, the choir calling out to them as the ‘people who keep us going’.

There was a brilliant flutist and violinist, and other instruments in the line-up included the clarinet, piano (brightly played), drums and electric guitar. The live music certainly contributed to the atmosphere of the event.
Overall the concert was very enjoyable, the informal aura of Barefoot Café lending itself well to the jazzy swing that Soul Sounds wished to exude.

Comments from the audience

Willie and Chantelle: We found it very good, it was lovely. At the beginning they were a little shy, but with the rain, the swing came in and got better.

Shyamala: It was fabulous, really good. Different people related to it, and also the fact that it was done in a different location to what they’ve done before.

Margie: This was absolutely fabulous. I have been following them and going for all their concerts because I like them.

By Marissa van Eyck
Pics by Waruna Wanniarachchi