Officially a Jazz Singer

I DID IT!!!!!I DID IT!!!!!I DID IT!!!!!I DID IT!!!!!I DID IT!!!!!I DID IT!!!!!I DID IT!!!!!I DID IT!!!!!I DID IT!!!!!I DID IT!!!!!I DID IT!!!!!I DID IT!!!!!I DID IT!!!!!I DID IT!!!!!I DID IT!!!!!I DID IT!!!!!I DID IT!!!!!I DID IT!!!!!I DID IT!!!!!I DID IT!!!!!I DID IT!!!!!I DID IT!!!!!I DID IT!!!!!I DID IT!!!!!I DID IT!!!!!I DID IT!!!!!I DID IT!!!!!I DID IT!!!!!I DID IT!!!!!I DID IT!!!!!

I am sooooo relieved & so happy! But let me start from the begining.
3 weeks ago my booking agent called me up. A potential client had seen me perform and wanted to book 'Lady Grey' for the 21 of December with a Jazz Combo. Now booking The Lady Grey act is no problem, but I didn't have a Jazz Combo. Still, my agent confidently told the client that it would be no problem to book Lady Grey with Jazz Combo for the 21st of December if she was was not committed elsewere. So Carola (my booking agent) calls me up and asks me if I'm free the 21st (I was) then ever so carefully adds that I've been booked with a Jazz Combo. We both new I didn't a Jazz Combo, and after a streched silence in which I wondered how on earth was I going to get a Jazz Combo together in 3 weeks to play at this gig (at that time I thought it would be a gig of an hour.... little did I know...), I let her know we'd arrange it some how.
So I started calling all the people I wanted to work with, that liked Jazz and would enjoy the gig, but EVERYONE was busy, no one could make it. Then I got nervous. this meant I had to go up a notch... I had a few people I could call, but these were astablished guys. I knew I could call them if I'd do my own thing, but for a cover gig I wasn't sure. I started with the easiest aproachable person, Richard Heijerman. His a drummer I worked with in the Blues Brothers. He plays a lot and is very good, but still easy going. I called him, and he was all for it. Then I let him know who else I intended to call. See the threshold wasn't only the fact that I looked up to these people, but that they had to know Jazz. A few people in a jazz setting would turn it in to rock or soul and loose the Jazzy feeling I needed to create. I had a bass player in mind the only one I know that plays a Doublebass, turns out Rich plays with him all the time, so I called him. He loved the idea! He also recomended a piano guy he loved playing with who loves Jazz, so my Combo was together. After that I had to break the news to them that it was 3x40 minutes and not just an hour, but they didn't mind (too much).
Seeing as 3x40 is a lot of songs, I wanted to make it as easy for them as possible, so I made a list of every Jazz song I had on CD and sent it to them saying: "I can sing this, let me know of these songs what you can play, and we'll take it from there. Turns out they knew about 33 songs on my list, so they were set. I sent them the songs on a CD as an extra refrence and added al the sheets that I had too. Then the learning began. By the time I had every thing aranged, I had 4 days to learn 33 songs. Fortunately I'd selected songs that I always liked the sound of, or always wanted to be able to sing. About 7 I'd sung before but that left me 25. My hubby was an angel during these days. He must have heared my rehearsing CD a gazillion times, but he never complained. (He did at some point start drilling in the wall, but it wasn't out of frustration)
On the day itself I still had 4 songs to go, so I was working on them in the car. When I got there I felt nervous, but confident. I'd learned all the songs, so now I just hoped I wouldn't get a blackout on stage.
The guys were very supportive. I'd never met musicians that easy-going, and yet professional at the same time. The made me feel so relaxed, and they were SO GOOD!!!!
As a result, the show was teriffic. I sang so freely that I suprised myself, I even scatted on some of the songs. It was a great success all round. The piano guy (Guus) even told me he'd recognized Ella in my singing!!!!!! That blew me, cause I LOVE the way Ella sings. I think I've never sung better Jazz in my life. So I now officially regard myself a Jazz Singer. And it feels sooooo goood!!!!!!

Happy Joy Joy Moments...

1) It's official, I need not have an operation (no 6 weeks doing nothing with heavy belly pains)
2) It's official, We have the key to our new home. We started moving yesterday (Little things)... It looks really cozy already...
3) It's official, My Hubby's a reader... Terry Goodkind tickled his fancy, so now he's reading his first fantasy series... If it's good, I'll start it in English too, so we can chat about it before going to bed.
4) It's official, 'The Secret' has grabbed and changed more lives within my family than just my own.... I'm not the sole believer in the 'Law of attraction'.
5) It's official, my little brother will be the opening act of GOLDEN EARING!!!!!!! on the 15th of december. Unfortunately I have a gig myself that day, and can not be there to make pictures and support him, but I'm Sooooooooooooooooooooo proud!!!

:)