Get ready to be transported to France in the 1960’s. Folks it is time to don your béret, gather your favourite francophiles and roll up to the Jazz Ellington because they are presently the purveyors of YÉ-YÉ, YEAH! A show that has come just at the right time for you to dive into your 1960’s French-pop education. Order a Bordeaux, a cheeseboard and get there early for a booth seat because Sylvia Cornes and all of the other talented musicians onstage are about to weave their magic.
The performers are all very talented at their respective crafts and there are some performers that shine with their stage presence and engaging demeanour. From the moment Sylvia steps on stage you can tell she is channeling 60’s blonde bombshell with her seemingly original sequinned dress, white go-go boots and twiggy-esque makeup she is all charisma, humour and charm, the audience are in good hands with her steering this 60’s French-pop journey.
It is an 8-piece band with one (or two?) surprise guests so we say Bonjour to an incredible drummer who not only keeps time and cranks the beats but has great rapport with the rest of the collective that makes the performance fun to Watch.
Guitarist Matt and Bassist Alyssa are too cool for school as they play some killer French-pop riffs.
Multi-instrumentalist, Mark (fastfingers) Turner delivers on the guitar, saxophone and flute and throws out some smooth vocals reminiscent of dashing and very popular crooners, he is equally adept at all of the areas he turns his attention to - someone needs to tell this guy that having that much talent is getting to be just a little bit extra.
The “yeah yeah girls” don hairstyles congruent with the era and they swish, sing and go go dance on stage, Mickey and Tash are a great pair and have some sweet vocals that were almost drowned out a little by the powerhouse performance of Sylvie and the big-band sounds. I would have liked to see the sound levels adjusted to let their voices come through.
There are stunning solos on the keys, sax, drums and flute that carry the audience away and witty banter helps make the transition from song to song seamless. The lead shares the knowledge she had accumulated from this passion project and rekindles the music of Serge Gainsbourg, Sylvie Vartan and Françoise Hardy. You would think that this kind of performance would be quite niche but the interesting facts shared coupled with the talent of the performers and a witty repartee makes it accessible and enjoyable for any audience member.
People were swaying and toe-tapping in their seats and it was clear that the audience was feeling connected to the show and the music.
The stage was aglow with a purple wash of lights and the performance could have been enhanced through variety/changed lighting, however this is not always possible and the performance remained enjoyable throughout.
Sylvia’s vocals are confident, forthright and assured, her enunciation was refined and her French was very good. Her expressions made the show engaging and fun to watch.
Ventriloquist Glen Wallace surprised the audience and lifted the performance to new heights, punchy, dynamic music was complimented with his vocals and his high-rizz and French mod vibes helped to create French-pop magic.
This era is proudly kept alive by these talented performers and it is easy to see why it was so popular. Thank you for taking us back there for the night!