Grand Rapids jazz and soul singer Kathy Lamar: Captivating audiences with music ‘from the heart’

With a new album on the way, the singer has re-established her music career in West Michigan after a long and successful run in Las Vegas. She plays One Trick Pony on Saturday. (Story, podcast, video)

 

As jazz, soul and pop singer Kathy Lamar puts it, she went for a two-week vacation in Las Vegas “and stayed for 30 years.”

During that time, the Grand Rapids native cut her teeth in that city’s bustling music scene, not only performing as a backing singer with stars Wayne Newton, Gladys Knight and Lola Falana, but playing with her own band and packing piano bars with enthusiastic fans.

“When I first arrived it was just a blast,” Lamar says of experiencing Las Vegas and its vibrant, diverse music scene at age 18. “That was just the best. Music really meant something and they treated musicians with a lot of respect, and musicians would hang out after their gigs.”

Playing stages at Caesar’s Palace, The Mirage, Stratosphere and elsewhere with major acts was a life experience unlike anything else.

“You learn something. You learn things to do and what not to do. I learned a lot,” she concedes. “It was just good singing and watching so many people enjoying what you do. No matter who it was, the audience loved what we did.”

RETURNING TO WEST MICHIGAN AND WOWING FANS

Audiences still love what Lamar does, only now it’s at venues in the Grand Rapids area.

After a successful career in Las Vegas, Lamar returned to West Michigan in 2009 when her mother became ill with cancer and she’s since established herself as an in-demand vocalist, performing regularly with musicians Bob “Gus” Van Stee, Steve Talaga, Paul Lesinski, Mark Kahny and many others.

On Wednesday, she dropped by the studios of News Talk 1340 AM (WJRW) to reflect on her career and perform a song, “All Blues,” with pianist Steve Talaga. Listen to the full podcast of the show here, and check out a video of the duo’s performance below.

Lamar’s upward trajectory as a performer began as a singer in the youth choir at Grand Rapids’ Messiah Baptist Church and soared from there.

“A bunch of my friends would work in bands and play in bands around town and I would just kind of go and sit in with them, and didn’t really take it seriously, just having some fun,” recalls Lamar, who cites gospel great Mahalia Jackson as a major influence, among others.

But when a musician friend and Hope College alumnus, Tex Richardson, moved to Las Vegas and invited her for a visit, everything changed.

“I went for two weeks and stayed for 30 years. Something worked,” she jokes. “I didn’t know they tip you $20 to sing a song. I thought, ‘Golly, I can do this.’ ”

She does it with a powerful, emotion-drenched voice that captivates audiences almost instantly, whether she’s interpreting songs by Aretha Franklin, Ella Fitzgerald or Nina Simone.

Lamar recently completed a new studio recording at Grand Rapids’ Goon Lagoon, “Songs for Elsa,” that features Talaga, bassist Warren Jones and drummer Scott Veenstra joining the singer to perform “jazz standards with a twist.”

The album was inspired – and funded, in part – by Elsa Fierens, a “dear, dear friend” who urged Lamar to record some of her favorite jazz tunes. “So, we took these songs and did what we wanted to do with them,” says Lamar, noting they don’t sound like typical versions of these jazz standards.

MAKING ‘PEOPLE FEEL SPECIAL’ WITH A GOD-GIVEN GIFT

Although the recording has been completed, Lamar is still trying to raise money through a Kickstarter campaign to cover packaging costs. If she can raise the necessary funds from fans, she hopes to release the album before Christmas.

For Lamar, the album represents her continued efforts to “make people feel special” with her God-given talent, something she watched singers such as Newton and Knight accomplish every night in Las Vegas.

“I’m supposed to be doing this. … It’s just a gift and you sing from your heart,” Lamar says of entertaining audiences. “You make them feel comfortable and you make them feel welcome and you make them happy. I’m not just saying that to be goofy. … You sing from your heart and you can reach people that way.”

Lamar plays One Trick Pony in Grand Rapids at 8 p.m. Saturday with Van Stee on piano, Mark Weymouth on drums and Tom Lockwood on bass. Admission is free; call 235-7669 for reservations. She plays The B.O.B.’s “Will Play for Food” series with Lesinski on Nov. 6.

Get more information about LaMar and her upcoming album on her Facebook page.

Copyright 2014, Spins on Music LLC