The Bryce Edwards Frivolity Hour
THE TOAST OF VARIOUS VARIETY SHOWS, OPEN MICS, PARK BENCHES AND STREET CORNERS, BRYCE EDWARDS IS A MUSICIAN AND CABARET ARTIST REVIVING TRADITIONAL JAZZ AND POPULAR MUSIC FROM THE EARLY 20TH CENTURY.
A VAUDEVILLIAN TROUBADOUR , EDWARDS IS A UNIQUE VOCALIST THAT TAKES EQUAL CUES FROM THE CROONERS AND SOFT SINGERS OF THE LATE 1920’S AND EARLY ’30’S AND FROM THE BOMBASTIC VOICES OF THE ACOUSTIC PHONOGRAPH ERA, AS WELL AS AN INSTRUMENTALIST WHO PLAYS, BANJO, UKULELE, TENOR GUITAR AND MANDOLIN IN THE MODERNISTIC JAZZ IDIOM. LEADING A HOT COMBINATION FEATURING THE TALENTS OF EXTRAORDINARY JAZZMEN SCOTT RICKETS (CORONET) AND GRAMMY AWARD WINNER CONAL FOWKES (PIANO, UPRIGHT BASS), EDWARDS REVELS IN THE IDIOSYNCRASIES AND ECCENTRICITIES OF THE SWEET AND RAUCOUS MUSIC OF THE 1910’S, 20’S AND 30’S; BRYCE BRINGS HIS SINGULAR VERVE AND SENSIBILITY TO SONGS MADE FAMOUS BY GREAT ARTISTS SUCH AS CLIFF EDWARDS, GENE AUSTIN, JACK TEAGARDEN, RUDY VALLE AND BING CROSBY.
“Mr. Edwards’ abilities are unblemished. He can croon, he can belt, he can purr, he can whisper, and he, most adequately, can reproduce the sound of a trumpeter’s horn with his voice. He yodels. He scats. He holds nothing back in his attempt to honor the artists living in his heart and his quest to put them and their artistry in the hearts of others. With his “garage sale” of musical instruments (Banjo, Tenor Guitar, Ukulele, Mandolin, Songophone) he demonstrates musicality of an almost unbelievable nature (the banjo work, alone, is gasp-worthy), and his appreciation of his fellow musicians (Conal Fowkes on Piano and Bass, Scott Ricketts on Cornet) is so respectful and ardent as to be an envious look at how all work partnerships, artistic or otherwise, should be. Layer in a dry, tongue-in-cheek humor, and an encyclopedic memory of historical facts and trivia, and the spoken portion of Mr. Edwards’ show almost rivals the musical on the enjoyment meter, which is saying a lot because Mr. Edwards’ performances of “Everybody Loves My Baby,” “Everything Is Hotsy Totsy Now” and “If I Could Be With You One Hour Tonight” were, quite literally, off the charts. Members of the audience gasped, some hooted, some hollered, and some merely shook their heads and threw their hands in the air. And everyone smiled, ear to ear, for the entire duration of the program.”
-Stephen Mosher, Broadway World