Blues Rock Singer Shari Puorto Sings On A South Bay Night
It was a cool and slow night in the South Bay Beach Cities of Los Angeles, yet I wanted some live music and a couple of cold beers.
I’m sure you can relate.
I was in Redondo Beach and knew that my friend Shari “El” Puorto was singing at a place called The Slip Bar & Eatery on the Redondo Pier. The Slip is the kind of place you can go to on a cool and slow night – or a warm and busy one – and feel right at home. It’s such a comfortable place it’s like slipping on a pair of slippers. Or, more appropriately for this area, flip flops.
Shari can sing. Shari sings blues and rock and has a voice so strong it can rattle the windows in a bar. She was doing an unplugged session with keyboards and a bass guitar and when I walked inside, all the tables were full.
The Slip is not a big bar, mind you. With the tables full, there were about 30 people in the place. Shari was singing but I had to take care of priorities first. That meant walking up to the bar and getting a beer.
One of the great things about The Slip is that you can get beer at great prices. They usually have two or three selections for $4-5. And I’m not talking Bud Light or Coors Light; they have beers you can hardly get anywhere else on special. I’ve had a nice lager in a bottle the shape of a buddha.
This time, they had what turned out to be an excellent blonde. I had three of them and enjoyed them very much.
After ordering the first, I took a seat at the far end of the bar, which happened to be in clear view of Shari and her acoustic band. As soon as I sat down she acknowledged me by saying “well I guess we have to do that song for you.”
My favorite song of hers is an original called “Six Months Sober.” It’s not about abstaining from alcohol, but about staying away from a former boyfriend. It’s an awesome song, one that could – if it were ever discovered by a record company – be her equivalent of Jimmy Buffett’s “Margaritaville.” You know, her signature piece.
It took some pretty nifty improv by the keyboardist to pull it off, because Shari usually only performs it with her full band, but it sounded awesome.
Shari later did another favorite song of mine. This was a cover tune of “Bobby McGee,” which is perfectly suited to her bluesy/raspy voice.
This prompted me to order a third blond beer.
I had arrived alone and while I had a few casual friends in the bar I said “hi” to, this was not a typical wild party night. It was just one to sit back, enjoy good beer and listen to great music.
Even The Nightlife Blogger needs nights like this sometime.
Cheers!
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