Friday, Sept. 13, 2002 | 9:15 a.m.
Jerry Fink's lounge column appears on Fridays. Reach him at [email protected] at (702) 259-4058.
Sadly, a milestone will be reached Oct. 7 with barely a ripple.
The Sahara will turn 50.
How is the hotel that helped establish Las Vegas as the Entertainment Capital of the World going to celebrate its golden anniversary?
What homage is going to be paid to the likes of Ray Bolger, Mae West, Tony Bennett, Tina Turner, Mel Torme and countless other legends who have graced the stages of the Congo Room and the Casbar Lounge?
There will be a press conference, followed by cake and beverages for the public from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m.
I don't know if I can stand the excitement.
Has Vegas grown so old and stodgy, or so jaded, that it can't get up enough enthusiasm for a proper celebration?
Perhaps the lack of fervor is symptomatic of a larger issue -- the corporate attitude toward entertainment that is pervasive in Las Vegas. It ranges from the MGM MIRAGE's total commitment to The Venetian's laissez faire mentality.
As Sweet Louie of The Checkmates once said, "Steak and eggs get top billing on the marquees these days."
In all fairness to the Sahara, it does have a commitment to entertainment -- it built a multimillion-dollar theater for magician Steve Wyrick. And Charo is in the Congo Room, where she was a headliner in the 1970s.
And the Casbar Lounge is busier than ever, with four bands keeping the 120-seat room jumping.
The Sahara's lounge has a rich entertainment tradition -- it's where Louis Prima, Keely Smith and Sam Butera joined forces in 1954 and exploded the Las Vegas lounge scene.
Among those who performed in the lounge were Blackie Hunt (when he was with the Characters) and Sonny King, who now performs in "Off the Cuff" at the Bootlegger Bistro. Also, Freddie Bell and The Bell Boys, Little Anthony and The Imperials, Norm Crosby, Billy Eckstine, the Mary Kaye Trio and too many others to mention.
The groups now working the lounge are keeping the entertainment tradition alive, making it one of the busiest venues on the Strip.
Three bands -- Smooth, Chyna and Forward Motion -- rotate performance dates at the club inside the Sahara. A fourth, Area 51, holds down the late-night spot, performing from midnight to 4 a.m. Thursdays through Mondays and 9 p.m. to 1 a.m. on Wednesdays.
Each group has its area of expertise and its own following.
Smooth plays R&B from the '50s through the '90s. Chyna is a funk-and-soul ensemble that throws in pop and jazz. Forward Motion does everything from big band to disco. Area 51 is a six-piece party-dance band that performs R&B, disco, pop, rock and classic rock.
The Casbar seems able to weather any storm -- whether it be age or disaster: vocalist Kenny Ransom, with Smooth, says Sept. 11 almost put the groups in the lounge out on the street.
"They were getting ready to give us our walking papers," Ransom said. "They were only going to keep one group."
Instead, it was decided to cut the groups back to three nights a week.
"We were on a part-time schedule for about six months," Ransom said. "We're back on a full schedule now."
Smooth has been at the Casbar for two years.
"The Sahara's been very good to us," Ransom said.
If the group is around for 50 years, cake and a beverage awaits.
Lounging around
A tribute to legendary trombonist Carl Fontana will be held the evening of Sept. 23 at the Bootlegger Bistro. Fontana suffers from Alzheimer's disease. Keyboardist Gus Mancuso, a close friend of Fontana's, is hosting the event. A trombone will be placed in the middle of the stage and Mancuso says if Fontana comes and wants to play, he is welcome.
Meanwhile, Mancuso will mix music with reminiscing about the man considered to have been one of the greatest trombone players in the world.
The Kitchen Cafe will feature Grammy-winning violinist Jamii Szmadzinski and guitarist R.J. Fox in Thursday-night gigs beginning this week. The two musicians will join keyboardist Dennis Mellen.
Poppermost, a '60s- and '70s-style alternative pop-rock group, will perform from 9 p.m. to 1 a.m. Saturdays during September at the Thunderbird Lounge, 1215 Las Vegas Blvd. South. On Oct. 4 they will be at the Iowa Cafe, 300 E. Charleston Blvd. from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m.
Butera helped celebrate the grand opening of the new lounge at Santa Fe Station. The Green Room replaces the 137-seat Lizzard Lounge. Kevin Kelley, the Santa Fe's general manager, said, "We wanted to recreate the classic, elegant Las Vegas lounge." Kelley also said there will be a variety of entertainment in the remodeled venue -- from old-time rock 'n' roll to jazz to the latest in contemporary music.
Woody Woods (author, musican, composer) will unveil a new smooth jazz album ("Street Dance") and a new book of prose and poetry ("Can You Imagine") during a show Sept. 24 at The Orleans' Brendan's Irish Pub. Woods and his ensemble will perform from 6:30 p.m. to 9 p.m.
No joke, even Dylan's (country dance club on Boulder Highway) is getting into the local burgeoning comedy scene. Thursday nights it features "Comedy Jam" (times vary).
Chef Joe Romano is getting into the bar business. On Sept. 20 he will open JW's Tavern at The Rio, featuring more than 100 beers from around the world. The pub atmosphere will include a variety of "comfort foods," such as chicken pot pie, fish and chips, marinated flank steak with onion rings and other delicacies.
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