A Night In Pink Manhattan

On Saturday night I heard some really great live music. Sali Oguri and her band performed at Desmond's Tavern in New York City. Sali is a New York-based performer-perfumer: a singer-songwriter and keyboard player who has created Pink Manhattan: Sensorium of Song and Scent. Pink Manhattan is a six-song petit CD (Act 1) and a "Purrfume." (Act 2) The fragrance is a mix of Sali's interpretation of pink as a scent: fresh peach, pink hibiscus, gardenia, French vanilla, and sensual skin musk. I wore it yesterday and was very impressed. I think the inclusion of musk makes it the perfect Winter scent.

I got to Desmond's (a sports bar) almost a half hour before the show was scheduled to start, so I sat down at the bar, ordered a club soda, and promptly found out that my beloved New York Yankees had been eliminated from the playoffs. I was feeling much better as showtime approached however, thanks to Sali herself, who couldn't have been nicer. She handed out perfume samples and found a few minutes to chat with almost everyone who arrived to see her show.

Sali told me she loves creating perfumes but that her first love is music. She and her band (Sali: vocals and keyboards; Fred Kimmel: guitar; J Dibbs: Bass; and Patrick Carmichael: drums) played a 40 minute set, performing "Come On Up" from Pink Manhattan and other tunes. She describes her style as modern pop crossover. You can hear hard rock, hip hop, soul, new wave, and jazz in her repertoire. A glamorous bundle of energy, Sali danced around the stage in a cool, short sweater dress and calf-length high-heeled boots. A great performance but, way too short. Everyone in the audience, including me, wanted to hear more. Unfortuantely, we will have to wait until her next gig.

That gig will be on October 21st at Siberia, 356 W 40th Street (9th Ave), (212) 333-4141. Admission is $10.00. In the meantime, check out Sali's music and read her blog.

Buzzing off for now...