BABS WINN AT RODEO BAR

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If it’s a good ole honkytonkin' time you’re after, for the first or the hundredth time, you need look no further than the Rodeo Bar on the first Monday of each month. That’s where the fabulous Babs Winn and her super-talented gang of guys and gals park their horses on said dates. I had the pleasure of joining the fun at this past week’s show, in fact they had me up to warble a cocktail-laced medley!  The blonde and bubbly Babs is a terrific hostess, working the room before, during and after the sets making sure everyone was having as good a time as she was herself.

Speaking of the band, it included (in all their down-home, authentic glory) Marc Daine on guitar, Joe Henderson on bass and Brian Carter on drums. Rounding out a trio of radically diverse and gifted ladies, was Leslie Wagner on backup vocals and percussion (egg, triangle) and our very own Clare Cooper on piano and backup vocals. Clare is well known to cabaret audiences, having served as house player for several popular clubs over the years, and was the initial calling card here. Each of these women provided ample support for their star and each took a solo turn at the mic, treating us to a sample of what can be found on their own albums, available for sale on premises (Clare Cooper’s Northern Drive, featuring all her own compositions and Leslie Wagner’s Way Behind Schedule, which also spotlights originals and a lovely take on the often overlooked Carla Thomas gem “Gee Whiz.”)

Ms. Winn has a CD for sale too, and it’s a catchy and fun throwback to traditional 70s country, as is her show and persona. Indeed, the album is entitled Good Home Cookin’ and settling back at the Rodeo Bar, sipping a margarita or three, shelling peanuts and tossing the casings on the floor, one has the distinct feeling of visiting one of those late night diners or roadside bars along the interstate with Babs as the eager to please mistress of ceremonies. She is backed on her album by a fantastic group of  musicians ,while working her way through such charmers as “If it Didn’t Work Once (It Aint Gonna Work Twice)” and “Lead Me Not” (Into Temptation),. She tells us she can find it quite well on her own, thank you very much! Our lady carries off the rockers and the ballads with equal aplomb. Bringing back shades of my Kentucky upbringing, I will return to the Rodeo and holler, "let’s do that again!"