Suzanne Vega in-store performance

I snuck out at lunchtime to see Suzanne Vega perform a few songs at a bookstore downtown. Our local radio station partners with the bookstore to bring in some national acts. The musicians usually perform a couple of songs live for a radio broadcast and then play a few more just for the audience at the store.

Suzanne Vega just released Beauty & Crime, her first new CD in almost six years. She arrived sporting bright red lipstick that matched the color of her hair and wearing a purple knee length blouse with black leggings. Vega shared the small stage (in the cookbook section, go figure) with a bass player and a keyboardist who also played the violin.

Once introduced, Vega and her bandmates started to snap their fingers and invited the audience to join in. They opened with an a cappella version of Tom's Diner. The audience sang the choruses of da-da-DA-da-da-da-DA-da...

Vega then sang a few songs from the new CD, including my favorite, Frank & Ava, which she wrote after reading an Ava Gardner biography. The song is about a fiery, doomed relationship, inspired by Gardner and Frank Sinatra. She also sang New York is a Woman, which was a hit with the crowd.

"And she's every girl you've seen in every movie
every dame you've ever known on late night TV
in her steam and steel is the passion you feel
endlessly
New York is a woman she'll make you cry
and to her you're just another guy."

Vega's voice is soft and airy, almost girlish, which works as a counterpoint to her adult, sometimes suggestive, songwriting. If you only know her because of her hit single, Luka, you're missing out.

Recommended:

Beauty and Crime
Songs in Red and Gray
Nine Objects of Desire