Sometimes, when I'm in a certain kind of mood, I want my entertainment to be BIG.
Dancing. Comedy. Singing. Bright lights. Elaborate musical orchestrations. Poised, top shelf performances. I'm not talking any of this rap stuff or rock and roll grungy crap. I want a swig of the big time, baby, the type of show that was linin' 'em up when high rollers like Frank, Dino, Sammy, Joey and the pack were in the drivers seat. Yeah, when the crazy showbiz bug is bitin', this cool cat doesn't have the time to waste on some half-steppin' steppin' out. It's gotta be tux n' tails, Dom Perignon, Mercedes limos and filet mignon so thick that one look at it makes your arteries harder than Mel Reynolds at a CYO retreat.
So when I read that Steve Lawrence and Eydie Gorme were appearing at Trump Castle in Atlantic City, I burst into my living room and told the little lady, "Baby, kick off those sneakers and slip on your pumps - it's showtime in A.C., and you and me are Parkway bound!"
From a journalistic point of view, I was curious to see whether Steve & Eydie possessed the same twentysomething appeal that is rejuvenating the careers of veterans Mel Torme and Tony Bennett, netting them a significant following of youthful, enthusiastic fans. I considered Mel's zany Vegas-based Mountain Dew commercial as well as his appearance on an episode of "Seinfeld" and Tony's successful MTV "Unplugged" LP. Perhaps the notion of Steve and Eydie shilling for Fruitopia, guest starring on "Martin" and touring with Smashing Pumpkins is within the realm of possibility.
Personally, I was intrigued by the showbiz myth of Steve and Eydie. The Trump Castle news release hawking their weekend of gigs kicked off with the quote "'If Steve Lawrence and Eydie Gorme don't entertain you, then no one can entertain you!' says television talk-show host Larry King" (and if Larry King doesn't dredge up an obtuse, hackneyed endorsement for you, then no one can dredge up an obtuse, hackneyed endorsement for you!). According to the release, the duo won a Grammy for their LP "We've Got Us." Their television specials, "Steve and Eydie Celebrate Irving Berlin" and "Our Love Is Here To Stay," a tribute to George and Ira Gershwin, both garnered multiple Emmy awards. They received a Lifetime Achievement Award in May 1995 from the Songwriters Hall of Fame and in October 1995 they celebrated their 35th anniversary as one of music's "most beloved and popular singing duos."
My own memories of Steve and Eydie were vague and eclectic. Their signature tunes, such as the shamelessly enthusiastic "This Could Be The Start Of Something Big" and Steve's painterly, open-hearted "Portrait Of My Love," were 1970's staples on radio stations that featured the innocuous "beautiful music" that was played ad nauseum in my house at the time. From sunrise to bedtime, a velvety, elevator-ready swirl of Ferrante and Teicher, Andy Williams, Andre Kostolanetz, The 101 Strings and Mantovani was introduced by disc jockeys whose voices were blessed with a mellifluous, lobotomy-inducing tonality. The result was an auricular anesthetic that, while soothing to the ears of adults, triggered a relentless brain torture in pre-teen males.
But still, there was an indefinable permanence about Steve and Eydie, some cryptic metaphysical constancy about their careers that I couldn't quite comprehend. How, without having appeared in the pop charts for almost thirty years, did they still consistently attract enthusiastic, SRO crowds to their concerts? While so many other seemingly unstoppable musical stars have come and gone, what makes possible Steve and Eydie's Herculean resilience to the dynamic whims of popular taste?
