There has never been any doubt that Chris Isaak is a child of Elvis influence, but when he took the stage at the Vogue Theater in a rare Vancouver concert on Saturday, it kicked off a Vegas-style set; ninety-plus-minutes of flash, sass and talkin' trash.
Decked out in a crimson suit with baby blue rhinestones, black boots and a silky Colonel Saunders tie, Isaak strutted to center stage, donned a stark-white guitar (adorned, strangely, with "I love Carole K" in black block letters on the front) and launched into his usual show opener, "Dancin'", from his 1985 release, Silvertone. The crowd -- decked out in pre-Halloween garb that rivaled the crooner's dashing duds -- leaped to their feet with celebratory vigor.
The entire night, in fact, was joyful for a reason; the nearly impromptu, intimate show (announced a mere eleven days before the event) was intended as a one-off, a chance for Isaak and the band to find their sea legs after spending most of their time in town working on a new series for Showtime, creatively dubbed The Chris Isaak Show. The series -- produced and written by Diane Frolov and Andrew Schneider (Northern Exposure) is intended to be "an irreverent look at the sexy, outrageous world of rock music" (according to www.chrisisaak.com), a "fanciful mix of fact and fiction," where viewers can "follow Chris on the road, into the studio and even onto his surfboard as he tries to live an ordinary life despite his very extraordinary profession."
True to that plot line, the evening was billed very publicly not just as a special one-night stand, but was in fact promoted as "Chris Isaak -- with a special guest appearance by Minnie Driver." With that less-than-subtle cat out of the bag, Isaak and Co. made no mention of the impending guest as they plowed through a raucous, revival-infused eighteen-song set.
For the most part, the night was standard Isaak fare, contradictory to the hilt, swinging between his angelic falsetto and the sauciest in-between banter heard this side of the boy's locker room.
Taking a jab at a fellow entertainer (who publicly made less-than-flattering comments about Vancouver), the singer praised his new "hometown" and stated that he prepared for the seventeen-episode shoot by getting the "David Duchovny Have Fun in Vancouver" book.
True to reputation, Isaak proved himself a worthy host, firing off all the hits (from "Wicked Game" to "Blue Hotel" and back again), and put forth a series of sassy monologues, including a doozy during "Baby Did a Bad, Bad Thing," a long, graphic story about finding "poodle hairs" in your bed and sending it off to the R.C.M.P. for investigation, only to discover that "Baby did a bad, bad thing."
After a crowd-rousing version of "I Want Your Love" -- in which Isaak ran through both the upper and lower balconies, playing to the adulatory audience -- and a heated take on "Diddly Daddy," the singer took pause, returning for his first encore wearing -- if you can imagine it -- a suit that turned him into a human disco ball comprised of hundreds of shiny mirrors. (Liberace, eat your heart out!)
Three songs into the encore, the "special guest" finally made her appearance; in a tight, black dress, Ms. Minnie Driver stood to the immediate left of the frontman, offering up respectable backing vocals on Isaak's "This Love Will Last." With only one line of solo time, it was hard to get a sense of the quality of her voice, but their on-stage banter was ceaselessly sardonic and amusing. That chemistry will undoubtedly find its way into the TV show, as Driver will be making an appearance as his girlfriend on the first episode, slated for a March debut. "Chris, dammit," Driver cajoled, "you're all revved up! You've been revving up all night! Give me some time!" When he nodded his approval, she pushed him to the rear of the stage, stating "we've been working on something, me and the band, and I need you to step back a bit!"
Isaak conceded, laughingly, letting his new stage dom take the limelight for the torch tune, "La Vie En Rose." While her talents were certainly respectable -- and her on-stage presence most definitely self-assured -- Driver's vocals lacked the oomph to be strong enough to capture the audience's attention had she not been the star that she was. "Well, that's all you'll get," joked Isaak to the crowd. "Minnie doesn't know any other songs." With a steely -- albeit slightly rehearsed -- glare, the troupe then launched into Dusty Springfield's "Son of a Preacher Man," with Isaak providing background vocals, and Driver dancing and shimmying her way up and down the frontman's still-sparkling suit. The energy between the pair was unquestionable, evidenced in their familiar, cheeky manner, but Driver did seem somehow to be holding back a bit, a tad too stiff and restrained compared to Isaak and crew, who provided an act that was just too hard to follow.
DENISE SHEPPARD
(October 31, 2000)