Retro Singer

Professional vocalist, vintage wedding entertainment, music, functions, events

James Bond Show for Edinburgh Hilton Launch

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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.

Corporate Entertainment in Edinburgh

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The Balmoral Hotel provided a beautiful setting for my show recently, where I provided some corporate entertainment in Edinburgh.  I was booked to perform a surprise James Bond tribute show at the Chaine Des Rotisseurs Gala Dinner.

The Balmoral has been a landmark in the heart of Edinburgh for over a century, beginning life as a grand railway hotel and now remaining a striking feature of Princes Street with its historic Balmoral Clock and kilted doormen.  It was a good choice for a James Bond tribute show, as everyone’s favourite ‘Bond’ – the one and only Sean Connery – officially re-opened the hotel in 1991.

J.K. Rowling is also a fan of this hotel, and obviously found it inspirational, as she stayed here to finish ‘Harry Potter and the deathly hallows’, making the Balmoral something of a pilgrimage for Harry Potter fans.

Did you know that the Balmoral Clock has traditionally always been set three minutes fast, so the people of Edinburgh don’t miss their trains?!  How thoughtful!  It is set at the right time just one day per year – and as you can probably guess, that is at Hogmanay (New Year’s Eve), so nobody gets confused as to when to set their fireworks off!

The Chaine Des Rotisseurs are an international gastronomic society who celebrate fine food and wine around the world.  By the looks of the sumptuous dinner they were served at The Balmoral, they were certainly well catered for in Edinburgh and shown some of our famous Scottish hospitality.

My James Bond / Casino Royale show is perfect for these sort of corporate functions, as it is a show that people can just sit back and listen to.  Featuring all the great theme songs from the movies, it includes classics from the 1960s right through to modern day favourites such as Skyfall by Adele, so it has something for everyone.

And here’s Dame Shirley Bassey with a couple of all-time greats that I always make sure I include in the show!

James Bond Show at The Angus Hotel Blairgowrie

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James Bond casino showA sunny and scenic drive up North took me to the pretty town of Blairgowrie in Perthshire last weekend, to perform my James Bond Theme/Tribute Show ‘Casino Royale’ at the Angus Hotel.  I was met by Noel, the friendly and helpful assistant manager, who showed me around then proceeded to demonstrate his vast knowledge of James Bond movies and theme tunes!  The pressure was on – I knew I would have to get all my Bond facts right tonight, with such a huge fan in charge of the proceedings!

I performed my show after dinner to a very smart-looking audience – many of the men had come ‘dressed to kill’ in tuxedos and the ladies would have made any Bondgirl proud with their elegant dresses.

The audience at the Angus were a real hoot, and they certainly took the Bond theme to heart.  If I asked any of the guys their name I received an answer such as ‘James’ or even ‘Scaramanga’!

There were a couple of 60th birthday celebrations in – one male and one female – so of course I couldn’t resist the temptation to get both birthday boy and girl up to play the part of James and his Bondgirl.  They proved that 60 is definitely ‘just a number’, as they really got into the swing of things and started improvising to great comedy effect.  Many thanks to Hazel and Tam for entertaining us all!

Later on in the evening I performed a mixed set of songs from the 60s to the present day for everyone to dance to.  I was most impressed by the standard of dancing – from ballroom to disco, everyone filled the dancefloor and seemed to be having great fun.

A big thank you to all at the Angus Hotel for giving me such a friendly welcome on my first visit here – may there be many more to come!

James Bond Tribute and Best of British Music at Berwick

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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

 

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

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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 London

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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!