"Audrey Appleby’s Life a Seduction Tour"

Seduction at Pangea

Life… A Seduction Tour
Pangea, 178 2nd Ave.
Reviewed by Paulanne Simmons November 2, 2024

Audrey Appleby. Photo by Dustin Freberg.

There was a delightful international flair to Audrey Appleby’s "Life… A Seduction Tour," which the singer/songwriter presented at Pangea on November 2.

Appleby sings in French, Spanish and Italian. She supplies the English translations to Bruno Brighetti’s Italian lyrics in “Estate.” And in one case, Kiara Duran translated Appleby’s English lyrics for “Bailo” into Spanish.”

Many of the songs Appleby wrote herself speak of faraway places, most particularly Paris: “Paris Heart Rio Soul,” “To Paris.” Appleby’s love for Paris even extends to Picasso, an artist who lived in that city for many years. She describes aging with humor and poetry in “Picasso Woman,” a song she wrote with composer Shelly Markham.

But Appleby doesn’t have to go abroad to be seduced. Even Miami cast a spell over her, which she reports in “Miami Mosaic.” And she doesn’t have to venture far to find people to love. “Beyond the Curtain” was written for her late husband, Jim, and “Lay Lay’s Lullabye” to her daughter.

With music director Daryl Kojak at the piano, Sean Harkness on guitar, Sean Conly on bass, Jack Bashkow on saxophone and flute, and Dan Aran on drums and percussion, Appleby sang a mix of jazz standards, original songs and funk.

Appleby’s voice is not suited to power ballads, and fortunately she does not attempt them. But she does well with a quiet, thoughtful mood where style triumphs over vocal limitations.