In the 1940s, bandleader Louis Jordan pioneered
a new kind of music. A mix of jazz, blues and jive-talking humor,
Jordan’s music became wildly popular.
Jordan was a singer, saxophonist and bandleader whose specialty
was jump blues with a danceable beat accompanied by an antic
humor. With his Tympany Five, Jordan produced such hits as "Ain’t
Nobody Here But Us Chickens," "Choo Choo Ch’Boogie,"
and "Saturday Night Fish Fry." These songs jumped,
rocked and swung; and eventually led to the birth of rock ’n’
roll through the likes of Bill Haley and Chuck Berry.
On Feb. 17, the Brooklyn Center for the Performing Arts will
pay tribute to Jordan with the Irving Street Repertory’s revival
of "Five Guys Named Moe." The review is being produced
by A. Curtis Farrow and Ron Lucas; directed and choreographed
by Farrow; and stars Lucas as "Four Eyed Moe," Kwane
Remy as "Eat Moe," Derrick Baker as "No Moe,"
Avon Chandler as "Little Moe," Kevin Neil Chatham as
"Big Moe," and Terrin Carter as the drunk and lovesick
"No Max," who, dumped by his girlfriend, imagines the
five Moes emerging from the radio to advise him about love.
"They help him get his act together through song and dance,"
said Farrow.
Indeed the five Moes harmonize, croon, wail, tap and joke their
way through 27 Jordan songs. Dressed in multicolored zoot suits
they light up the stage and make it sparkle with their energy
and enthusiasm.
According to Lucas, the "Five Guys Named Moe" theme
song was originally composed by a fan who called the group "Five
Guys Named Moe" when he couldn’t remember the name of the
band he had just seen. Later he composed the song and sent it
to Jordan, who liked the tune so much, he made it into his signature
song.
Despite Jordan’s popularity and influence on the rock ’n’ roll
of the ’50s, Lucas said, "Nobody really gave him credit
for being one of the creators of rock ’n’ roll. Jazz people didn’t
care for him because they felt he’d sold out. Rock ’n’ roll people
didn’t like him because he was ethnic and they couldn’t book
him."
But if Jordan’s name is largely forgotten, his music lives on.
"You can’t imagine how many Louis Jordan songs you know,"
said Farrow. "Once you hear them you say, ’Hey, my parents
sang those songs.’"
Farrow calls "Five Guys Named Moe," "the most
audience-pleasing show I’ve ever done." It played up and
down the West Coast and in Florida, Pennsylvania and Connecticut
before coming to Brooklyn; and Farrow said that when the show
plays for a few weeks "people come back and bring their
entire families."
"The first act ends in a conga line with audience participation.
The cast gives out leis, whistles and horns. It’s very energetic.
There’s a lot of choreography. It’s a fun, rollicking show, and
it’s very family oriented," Farrow said.
Irving Street Repertory, based in Newark, N.J., is a black theater
company Farrow founded in 1991. The company produces mostly musical
reviews, but also some straight drama and original work for college
tours and regional theater. Other productions include "Ain’t
Misbehavin’," "Your Arms Too Short To Box With God,"
"The Elegance of Ellington," the "Nat King Cole
Songbook" and the original works, "Rhythm" and
"Gospitality."
Farrow is particularly pleased to be bringing this show to the
Brooklyn Center.
"It’s a great place to do a show," he said.
Among its attributes, the Brooklyn Center has a professional
staff, and a large, comfortable and well-proportioned space with
a stage that can be seen from every seat. And, of course, great
audiences.
"Brooklyn audiences give you the same energy as if they
were seeing a Broadway show," said Farrow. "If you
do a good job in Brooklyn, they’re not going to give you a Bronx
cheer."
Irving Street Repertory will present
"Five Guys Named Moe" on Feb. 17 at 8 pm. Tickets are
$32 and $37. All performances presented by Brooklyn Center for
the Performing Arts take place in the Walt Whitman Theater, on
the campus of Brooklyn College (one block from the junction of
Flatbush and Nostrand avenues). For tickets, call the box office
at (718) 951-4500.
