Sounds Like ...

October 10, 2005

I get caught up in conversations at work all of time – people talking about what they did over the weekend in Savannah, Beaufort, or Charleston. And they ask me if I’ve been, or start providing directions to places I have never heard of. I nod along as if I know what they are talking about. Eventually though I shamefully admit that since I moved here, I haven’t left the Bluffton/Hilton Head area (minus two trips to the Savannah airport).

I am enjoying my new home but even I will admit - I need a life. So we changed out of our t-shirts and shorts and we trekked to the Island for a Saturday night at the Jazz Corner.

I am “voice person.” By this I mean that I love a unique voice – tone, dialect, accent. I don’t know why but all of my Hollywood crushes (y’all have them so don’t snicker at me) have to do with the voice. Mark Ruffalo, Josh Lucas (who, by the way went to elementary school in Sullivan’s Island, SC), Matthew McConaughey, Harry Connick, Jr. - you get the picture.

My point in all of this is obviously that I am a great listener. And, listen we did. Eight of us converged upon the Jazz Corner at about 7:30 p.m. on a Saturday night. We were led to a table that was tightly wedged between all of the others – good thing we went to the bathroom before we left house (mom taught us right!).

Shortly after ordering our drinks, the lights dimmed, and a round of “shushing” began. At this point we noticed that the tables had little cards on them that asked us to be quiet during the performance – we were a bit surprised by this but whispered our dinner order to the waitress and focused on the stage.

The “shushing” was worth it – The Noel Freidline Trio - plus two - took the stage. And then I heard him – my newest “voice crush.” If listening was the only sense employed that evening, you would have thought Harry Connick, Jr. himself was on stage. Noel had a great sense of humor and served as narrator and pianist for the evening. His trio was actually a quintet that night and included an eclectic mix from around the country – a Tar Heel, a Mountaineer, a Floridian, a former Miss Indiana and our Kansas boy, Noel.

I don’t know much about music and having never been to a jazz club, I wasn’t sure what to expect but I was definitely pleased by their repertoire. We heard fabulous renditions of Moondance, Mrs. Robinson, and At Last. Of course I am still unclear as to what “jazz” is since I’m pretty sure Van Morrison and Simon and Garfunkle don’t fall into that genre.

The crowd was just as eclectic as the music as folks in their twenties through seventies and even a couple celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary quietly chatted, tapped their toes and enjoyed the atmosphere.

The menu was compelling and I would definitely suggest you try the shrimp, scallop and blue cheese egg rolls as an appetizer and the tiramisu for dessert. A great beginning and end to the evening.

We were back at home and in shorts and t-shirts by 11:00 p.m. – still enough time to sit out back, and enjoy our new home.