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James Bond Show for Edinburgh Hilton Launch

February 10, 2018 By Lisa Martin Leave a Comment

A James Bond show was the theme of the evening for the launch party of the new Hampton by Hilton Hotel in the Edinburgh West End.  I was delighted to be asked to perform my ‘Casino Royale’ show, which features a mixture of classic James Bond themes together with songs to suit a Vegas Casino theme night.

Hilton Hotel Edinburgh James Bond Casino night

Trying my luck before the show!

The West End of Edinburgh is becoming a fantastic area for new businesses, with the Fountainbridge area boasting a huge range of attractions, including multiplex cinema, restaurants, bowling alley, casino, and even a trampoline park.

I discovered that Fountainbridge has something of a connection with James Bond, as Sean Connery was born here.  Prior to becoming the original iconic Bond he had a slightly less illustrious job here – as a milkman!

Hampton by Hilton prides itself on its friendly service, and I must say all the staff at the hotel were the friendliest I’ve ever encountered.  They were so cheerful, and really couldn’t do enough to help.  Paul and Lauren were in charge of the night and they made a fabulous team, making speeches, organising the raffle, and mingling with the crowd throughout the evening to ensure everything ran flawlessly.

The hotel restaurant had been magically transformed into a James Bond style Casino, with soft mood lighting and pictures of various Bond movies all around the walls.  The guests had fun at the casino tables, magician ‘Pop’ was on hand to keep everyone entertained, and I performed music throughout the evening to set the musical backdrop.

Here’s a snippet of the famous ‘James Bond’ music, plus my rendition of ‘Skyfall’ by Adele:

I also performed a mixture of easy-listening background music while the guests were sipping their martinis and trying their luck at the casino – here are some of the songs I performed:

Many thanks to Tracey at The Entertainment Company for organising the acts on the night as expertly as always.

Las Vegas Tribute Show at Alea Casino Glasgow

July 11, 2017 By Lisa Martin 1 Comment

I had the pleasure of returning to the Alea Casino in Glasgow recently to perform at a glittering ‘Las Vegas’ style night.

The Alea is a great place in Glasgow for a night out, as not only can you try your luck at the Poker table or on the slot machines, but they also have a variety of live entertainment and tribute shows in their bars and restaurants.

Alea Casino prides itself on its Las Vegas style, located on the waterfront at Springfield Quay with stunning views of the River Clyde and the Glasgow skyline.  So it was the perfect venue for a Las Vegas style evening.

Las Vegas style entertainmentI performed classics from the 1950s and 1960s from stars such as Frank Sinatra (and his daughter Nancy!), Dean Martin, Judy Garland, Nat King Cole, and many others to keep us all in the Vegas mood.  The audience were really up for singalong after they enjoyed their dinner at the casino’s fantastic Face to Face function room.

Many thanks to Ford McGill at the Alea for organising such a stylish and fun-filled night.

 

James Bond Shows in Glasgow

November 21, 2014 By Lisa Martin Leave a Comment

I’ve been performing my James Bond shows in Glasgow over the past couple of weekends, in some marvellous venues.

 

The first was for a fundraiser ball at Oran Mor, a stunning building right in the heart of Glasgow’s West End.

 

Oran Mor is a converted church, and this is evident in its beautiful architecture and unique setting, including the celestial ceiling mural by Alasdair Gray, which is one of Scotland’s largest pieces of public art.

Unique ceiling at Oran Mor

Unique ceiling at Oran Mor

Top funk soul and disco band ‘Funk Nation’ were also on the bill, looking and sounding absolutely fantastic. Here they are in action (I got a bird’s eye view from the gallery!)

 

 

The evening was compered by Glaswegian comedian Alan Anderson, and we were also joined by the fabulous opera singer Lucy Kay, who you may remember from Britain’s Got Talent.

 

A big thank you goes out to resident Stage Technician Ross, and also to agents Freak Music .

 

My next James Bond show was at the very plush Grand Central Hotel, right in the middle of Glasgow.  This hotel can be accessed directly from Central Station, so I was able to travel to the gig by train, which made a nice change for me!

 

For this event I teamed up with Richard Knight, a wonderful tenor who specialises in Opera and West-End show songs, as well as James Bond themes.

 

Richard has to be one of the most hard-working acts I’ve ever worked with.  He managed to look cool, calm, and collected, and remained in true charming ‘007’ style throughout the evening, despite having spent all day travelling all the way from Bournemouth to Glasgow.  He kept the audience thoroughly entertained from start to finish with his fast-paced show, and didn’t rest until he had the whole crowd up on their feet singing and clapping.  What a star performer!

 

It was nice to hear some happy feedback from the clients too:

 

“Dear Lisa & Richard

Just wanted to say a great big thank you to you both for a fantastic night.  I have feedback from other guests and people have said what fun they had – they loved your singing and the fact they could dance and sing along too.  Thank you once again and I hope we see you again soon.

Best wishes

Gillian, Colin & the team”

 

Big thanks to agents Masquerade Productions.

 

James Bond Tribute and Best of British Music at Berwick

May 18, 2013 By Lisa Martin Leave a Comment

Last weekend I nearly made it back onto English soil; travelling down to The Borders to perform my James Bond tribute show ‘Casino Royale’ at Berwick Holiday Park.  They put on a special ‘Best of British’ themed night for the owners’ party – so of course ‘Bond’ fitted the bill perfectly!

The team at Berwick did a great job in decorating the room in true British fashion, with plenty of bunting and balloons to add to the atmosphere.  The crowd were obviously up for a party and many had come in fancy dress (including one very inventive ‘postbox’ from Newcastle!) so I added into the set some uptempo pop songs from British favourites such as Emili Sande, Jessie J and Amy Winehouse to keep them on the dancefloor.

I was appearing with top Elton John Tribute Act Joel Coombes.  What a great performer this guy is!  He not only looks and sounds the part, but he is also a fantastic musician.  A true professional and a pleasure to work with, he really got the crowd going with all the popular Elton John classics such as I’m Still Standing, Rocket Man, and of course the classic Candle in the Wind.

Joel Coombes Elton John Tribute

Joel Coombes as Elton John

 

Autotune – Handy Studio Tool or Singer’s Curse?

April 14, 2013 By Lisa Martin Leave a Comment

I was doing some session work the other day and was having a bit of a lively discussion (!) with the producer about pitch correction devices such as autotune.  He seemed to think that autotune was just another editing tool that could be used in the same way that reverb and other effects might be added to the vocals, and made the point that even legends like Frank Sinatra had their work edited.

I feel quite differently; it’s one thing to ‘cut and paste’ the best parts of a performance during a studio session – but to change the actual notes that a singer decides to sing interferes with the artistry of singing, in my opinion.  When a machine is used to alter these notes by measuring and gauging whether they are perfectly ‘in tune’, I think we can run a real danger of removing some very important nuances of the singer’s performance.

Pitch correction software such as melodyne shows each vocal note on the screen.  Every little ‘flaw’ is made visible, making it very easy for producers to ‘pull’ the errant note back into perfect pitch; effectively editing with their eyes instead of with their ears.

But why this need for everything to be so ‘perfect’? 

Some of my favourite songs are full of ‘imperfections’ in terms of pitch.  In fact I think those very imperfections are what makes them so unique.  Take Billie Holiday’s ‘The Very Thought of You’, or Marilyn Monroe’s ‘Diamonds are a girl’s best friend’ – two very different styles of singers – but it would be a travesty to change a single note of either of these performances, in my opinion.

When I compare Marilyn’s version of ‘Diamonds are a girl’s best friend’ with the more modern ‘Glee’ version, I am in no doubt as to which one I prefer.  I would much rather listen to a performance with pure heartfelt emotion, as opposed to a technically perfect, but soulless version.

Imagine iconic moments such as Audrey Hepburn’s rendition of ‘Moon River’ in the film Breakfast at Tiffany’s, taken and hacked neatly into submission by a pitch correction machine… would it remain such a poignant and unforgettable piece of movie history?  I personally don’t think so.

Now, I don’t completely disagree with producers who claim that autotune is a vital time-saving piece of studio equipment; used judiciously I agree that it can be a useful addition to the producer’s toolkit, especially in time-limited situations.  However the problem arises when people get ‘lazy’- doing a couple of quick takes and leaving the rest to the ‘post-production magic’.

Pitch correction software first came out in the mid 1990s, and ever since it has become more and more ubiquitous in the world of popular music.  Like it or not, it seems it is here to stay.  Just like when we see models with flawless complexions in the pages of magazines, we will never again be sure that we are faced with the ‘real’ thing, or a technically altered version.

I just count my blessings that this kind of technology was not around in the days of Billie, Ella, Frank, Nat, Judy, and all the other legendary singers whose artistry we are fortunate enough to be able to listen to in unadulterated form.

1940s, 1950s and 1960s tribute shows at Nardini’s, Largs, Scotland

March 22, 2013 By Lisa Martin Leave a Comment

Lisa Martin 1950s showI recently appeared at a great venue on the West coast of Scotland called Nardini’s.  This famous Scottish landmark was first opened in the 1930s, and it still retains its ‘retro’ art-deco style – perfect for me of course!

I was booked to perform 3 tribute shows in one night – starting with my 1940s wartime show, then my 1950s show, and finishing off with my 1960s show, plus some lively modern songs to keep everyone dancing.

I really enjoyed my first visit to this fabulous restaurant.  The staff were very friendly and helpful, and the audience were ready to enjoy themselves.  A big coachload of ladies from Ardrossan ensured that I was kept as entertained as my audience – they were really up for a laugh and enjoyed dancing and singing along to all the old favourites.

 

James Bond Tribute Show at Gleneagles Hotel

February 9, 2013 By Lisa Martin Leave a Comment

Last week I appeared at a function in the world-renowned Gleneagles Hotel in Auchterarder; a beautiful town within the magnificent Perthshire countrside, deep in the heart of Scotland.  I was booked to perform my James Bond tribute show for a multi-national group of business people.

Also appearing were Sean Connery, Daniel Craig, Kate Middleton and Our Majesty the Queen.  Well, not quite – they were all lookalikes – but very convincing nonetheless!  It was a lovely night with a very friendly audience who were really enjoying themselves.  The organisers really took care of every detail, with a lavish dinner, lots of great entertainment (including the fantastic showband Stax of Motown), and even some Knighthoods by Our Madge!

Gleneagles Hotel

New Year Dinner Dance at Seamill Hydro Hotel

January 6, 2013 By Lisa Martin Leave a Comment

Lisa Martin wedding singerMy first booking of 2013 was on New Year’s Day for a dinner dance at the beautiful Seamill Hydro Hotel in West Kilbride.  This is the first time I’ve been to this hotel – or to West Kilbride for that matter – and I must say I was very impressed, both by the lovely setting, and the friendly helpful staff.

The Seamill Hydro is set in a stunning location – it was dark when I got there, so it wasn’t until I looked out of my window the next morning at magnificent views over the Firth of Clyde that I realised it is right on the seafront.

There were a lot of families staying at the hotel over New Year, and it was obvious the hotel catered for them very well, with a fun kids’ club, and even an old-fashioned Carousel outside in the gardens.  Not to mention all the great leisure complex facilities for the mums and dads!

I was performing alongside the fantastic DJ ‘Cheeky D’ of Cheeky Entertainment.  A true professional, he played all the right songs, and did a great job in getting the crowd up to party on the dancefloor.

All in all, it was a great start to the New Year.  It was quite a mixed crowd in terms of age-range, so I sang a mixture of modern pop songs and older classics, to try and include something for everyone.

Here’s one of the songs I performed on the night; the Nat King Cole standard ‘Let there be love’

 

James Bond Tribute Show London

December 5, 2012 By Lisa Martin Leave a Comment

James Bond casino showLast weekend I performed my James Bond tribute show for a corporate Christmas function at the beautiful Grand Connaught Rooms  in London. As it turns out, they only needed a short performance, so I flew all the way from Glasgow to London to sing for 20 minutes! Still, it was a great night, I was made very welcome, and it was lovely to revisit London – it’s been a few years since I was last there.

Even  though it was a short show, I managed to fit in all my favourite James Bond songs, including Goldfinger by Shirley Bassey, Nobody does it better by Carly Simon, You only live twice by Nancy Sinatra, plus the latest Bond theme song Skyfall by Adele.

Of course, no James Bond tribute show would be complete without the classic song Diamonds are forever – so here it is!

Lisa Martin Retro Singer

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About Lisa Martin

Lisa Martin retro singerLisa Martin is a professional singer based in Glasgow Scotland who specialises in classy vintage style shows.. Read More…

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