California Mata Hari
The Double Life of Chris Bennett

You think you know who your neighbors are, and in a crazy place like Los Angeles, it’s almost never true.  So you live a little west of the madness and clear your mind from time to time with the Pacific breezes off the coast of Venice Beach. You settle in nicely with the earthy community of old surfers, ex-hippies and starving artists that thrive on the fringes of the L.A. Arts scene. You blend in smoothly like paint strokes on canvas and get to know the folks that live nearby.  You have coffee together, sneak a cigarette on the canals, meet for drinks at ‘Lily’s,’ and, sometimes, in whispers, you learn about the people who really live in Venice.

Take the yoga teacher down the street, a pretty woman in her prime with a dancer’s stride. They all call her Chris. Looks you in the eye when she says ‘hello’ and means it when she asks if you’d be her guest at an intimate jazz concert that she’s giving tonight at the hotel on the beach. ‘Sure thing, see you tonight Chris,’ and it’s agreed. She’s really a gorgeous woman up-close. Charming, with just a sizzle to her silky talk. A jazz singer? Could’ve been a cover girl, you think

The evening’s warm, the moon is full and it pulls in the tide, the lovers and the lovelorn to Venice Beach.  The mood is perfect for jazz.  You wander through the lobby of the crowded hotel and follow the echoes of piano music emanating from the lounge where Bill Augustine is already pounding out a hot number to warm up the velvety cluster of low whispers and tinkling glasses seated in the dark.  You settle in and as the tune ends, order a martini, and just overhear the M.C. announce the lady to the stage. People applaud. You look over and almost drop the icy glass that the cocktail hostess hands you.

It’s Chris Bennett, the beautiful blonde who posed nude on the cover of the Munich Machine disco album you bought just for the cover more than a few years back. Chris Bennett of ‘Giorgio & Chris,’ the only duet album recorded by Giorgio Moroder. He chose her to sing with. Chris Bennett, the singer and writer of the Grammy-nominated theme song from “Midnight Express.”  The same Chris Bennett they play on the Smooth Jazz radio station every day.  And yes, it’s also ‘Chris’ the yoga instructor that lives down the street.

She’s a cinematic vision of another era in long gloves and evening gown, a classic chanteuse on stage. A professional musician replaces the image of suntanned, barefoot woman who casually invited you to her show.  When you learn later on that, in addition to a successful career as a singer/songwriter, she’s also enjoyed longevity as a music producer, actress, composer and dancer, don’t be overwhelmed by the celebrity company she keeps. She’s still ‘Chris’ to you.  

Her voice is as unmistakable as the feel of crushed velvet on fingertips. Strikingly feminine, warm, smooth and articulate over the lyrics of Gershwin and Berlin.  Authentic and uninhibited with Lerner and Loew. Though she continues to headline music festivals and jazz venues around the world, from Tokyo to Berlin, tonight Venice (California) is as exotic and illustrious as any global destination.  Tonight Chris Bennett translates the experience of her artistic journey home.

With a repertoire that includes selections from the Great American Songbook, some slightly obscure standards and a handful of personal favorites, her most popular requests are of the self-penned works she’s made famous on ten CDs as a bona fide jazz vocalist. She speaks of an upcoming gig in Paris, a week in Berlin, and the thrill of performing for Gore Vidal, Anita O’Day, and especially, for you tonight. She looks into the audience and sees a new face.  She winks at you.

You think you know who your neighbors are.  Sometimes you get lucky and don’t.