THURSDAY 1/3
MONTY BANKS & THE HIGH ROLLERS, DJ LESLIE
(Sunset Tavern) Lounge king Monty Banks started playing his old-school-singer
& ivory-tickler stylings around here back in '91, well before the
cocktail nation craze, and now finds himself mostly working down in
entertainment's vast holy land of Las Vegas. To those many Seattleites
fortunate enough to have celebrated life with Monty, it is surely of
little surprise. The man is made for the Strip. For starters, he's got
the art of the entrance/exit down pat. A couple of years ago (or was
it a few?) at a swingin' Owl 'n' Thistle, my saucy eyes swore they saw
a spotlight on Monty as he waltzed in. His smile gleamed as he winked
at the stage, grabbed the mic, sat himself up on the organ, and swiftly
kicked into a Fabulous Baker Boys routine that included not only
the requisite Michelle Pfeifferish writhing about, but also a frenzied
falling-down-drunk finale, à la Beau Bridges. Continuing to joyfully
ham it up while lying among a pile of twisted chairs, and rising with
the graceful aplomb of a trapeze artist as the audience raced to right
him, Monty carried himself with the irresistibly disarming "I meant
to do that" confidence found only among true professionals. JAMES KIRCHMER
|
