After a music-fuelled weekend and a gig at the Richmond Night Market to cap off the summer season, Sweet Scarlet is full-steam ahead (nod to Old Toy Trains, one of our favourite Christmas tunes!) learning our Christmas repertoire. However, instead of plugging our upcoming Christmas Concert in this blog (Dec. 13th, 2:00pm, St. James Hall – put it in your calendars!), we decided to focus on a question we are often asked by our audience – how do you choose your repertoire?
The Song: Call Me
Who made it famous: Blondie
Who does a wicked cover: Sweet Scarlet (of course!)
It was a cold winter’s evening when Sweet Scarlet sat down for what is dubbed in Sweet Scarlet Land, “The Music Listening Party.” At this party, each Scarlette is responsible for bringing song selections that they feel would be a good fit for the group’s sound and style. We eagerly sit in the living room and listen to each member’s song selections – many sourced from the internet or other vocal groups spanning the globe- and then we vote on each piece. The votes are tallied on a complicated and sophisticated chart (YES/NO/MAYBE) and we go from there!
It can be quite the party as we all listen to each other’s selections – some getting rave reviews while others get giggles and phrases like, “You’re kidding….right?!” (ahem….Heather….) (But we love you, Heather!). Well, it was Eran’s turn to share her selections for the up-coming spring season and one of her songs, “Call Me”, was instantly put into the YES category.
The arrangement of “Call Me” won us over with it’s intricate harmonies and rich-sounding back-up vocals paired with an emotionally-charged solo line. This particular arrangement is by Deke Sharon, who did the incredible musical arrangements on both Pitch Perfect movies, making him an A+ in our books. When Sweet Scarlet sat down to learn this piece, we had to decide on which member would be singing the sassy solo. It was a no-brainer: JUNE! She is the only member that can belt those high notes while really conjuring up the sultry nature of the song. When learning this piece, we are all guilty of completely losing track of what we were supposed to be singing because we are so fixated on June rocking the lead line. (Call me, June!)
In the spring of this year, Sweet Scarlet co-presented a show with The Squares barbershop group and “Call Me” was performed for the first time in front of an audience. It was an instant success and we’ve loved performing it at our gigs for the rest of the season.
And so, without further ado, here is Sweet Scarlet performing “Call Me”:
We look forward to seeing you during our winter season and would love to know which songs are your favourites so we can spotlight them next time!
Love,
Katy & the Scarlettes xox