"New highs in the glamorous lounge song."
- Carol Caldwell (SNL, Rolling Stone)
Tallgirl rocker Marshall Chapman cuddles with Tupper
Tupper with Rhinohandmade "Brilliant Colors" producer Andy Zax
Part of Chocolate Orchid's enthusiastic audience
The Chcolate Orchid by sculptor Doug Finke
Charlene Barrett (Savannah's Piano Bar Queen) travelled the distance to catch the premiere.
Grimey (owner/rocker Michael Grimes) chats with fan.
Saussy's producer Warren Pash between two Nashville songwriters.
Photographs by Lisa Jane Persky
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"I've never seen anything like it," said Michael Grimes, owner of The Basement At Grimey's, one of Nashville's most serious listening rooms. "Everyone from metal fans in their twenties to millionaires in their 80s were here." The standing-room-only crowd had come to see Grammy-nominee Tupper Saussy's first performance in more than 30 years. The Chocolate Orchid is an imaginary piano bar where Saussy, accompanied by violist-guitarist-bassist John Darnall, performs more than 23 original songs. Among Saussy's fans were numerous music industry notables. Ed Salamon, CEO of the Country Radio Broadcasters, marveled at the timeless quality of Saussy's songs. "His repertoire reminded me of Dick Clark’s first introduction of The Skyliners on American Bandstand," Salamon said. "Dick referred to the song they had just written, 'Since I Don’t Have You', as an old standard because that was his assumption based on the classic beauty of the song. Tonight I heard Tupper Saussy perform pop standard after pop standard, none of which I have ever heard before." Warren Pash, Saussy's producer, a rock performer in his own right (Plastic Rulers), was pleased with the audience's attentiveness. "At both the dress rehearsal last night and the premiere tonight, the audience seemed spellbound," Pash said. "We were hoping for quiet, but of this magnitude was undreamed-of. I think it's because of Tupper's playing and singing, and the songs invite you into them, demand your attention." The Chocolate Orchid Piano Bar is scheduled for recording sessions at Buzz Cason's Creative Workshop in Nashville. And plans are being made for a return engagement at Grimey's Basement in July.
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