Zoe Gilby Quartet @ The Cherry Tree Restaurant, Jesmond.

Zoe Gilby (vcl), Mark Williams (gtr), Andy Champion (bs), Richard Brown (dms).

Zoe is a class act. Not only does she sing good but she looks and dresses good too.

Perched atop her trademark stilettos, wearing a long black gown avec cleavage and the long auborn tresses framing her face she looked like the diva she undoubtedly is; Lady Ga-Ga with taste.

And taste is what tonight was all about. Whether it be my starter of Poached Chicken with Cucumber, Peanut & Sesame Sauce or Zoe's exquisitely served That Old Black Magic followed by I Didn't Know What Time It Was, both left me with a feeling of inner satisfaction.

I'm pretty familiar with Zoe's sets by now but inevitably she pulls one out I haven't heard for a while. Such a gem tonight was Too Late Now - God I'm old enough to remember when it was in the Hit Parade (Jane Powell). It's a great tune whoever sings it and nobody does it much better than Z.

Talking of which, nobody does a much better steak than Tony the Chef at the Cherry Tree particularly when, as tonight, it is enhanced with Bernaise Sauce nor Zoe when she's enhanced by the sound backing from Mark (here there and everywhere) Williams, Andy Champion & Richard Brown.

In the words of another song tonight - Some Cats Know.

First time I ever heard Zoe, back in the days of the Side Café, she sang If I Only Had A Brain. I still remember thinking 'Oh no! she's going to sing the millionth version of Over The Rainbow! Instead she sang the aforementioned Brain - a far superior song - and tonight she sang it again.

Another first was Johnny Mandel's The Shadow of Your Smile which may still need a little work done on it.

Nevertheless, it was an excellent night despite a dip in attendance.

Lance.

PS: For the 'Foodies' I was full after the main course so I skipped dessert. If I hadn't I may have opted for Prune and Armagnac Parfait with Boozy Prunes and ended up getting breathylised!