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Health & Fitness

Buster Poindexter Jazzes Up The Emelin Theatre

 Larchmont’s lovely, intimate venue, The Emelin Theatre, has certainly seen its shower of stars over the years. But only as often as Halley’s Comet streaks across the sky, does it play host to a legend. This Saturday, they will witness just that, when singer Buster Poindexter treads the Emelin’s boards. Puzzled, perplexed? This can (and should) easily be clarified, as Buster is a little less famous than legendary. Maybe it’s because he has more than one persona.    As David Johansen, he’s known as the lead singer and utterly brilliant lyricist for those chroniclers of the urban underground, The New York Dolls. The man also plays dark, death-haunted Americana with his band, The Harry Smiths. He’s acted in TV shows like Oz and Christmas classics like Scrooged. But this Saturday, he will be shaking his moneymaker as that fearless musical explorer, Mr. Poindexter. The cool cat who had a fluke hit in the ‘80s, but uses the Poindexter persona as a chance to do all the weird, wild American songs he knows, loves and hasn’t self-penned. Just give this beautifully-tailored, high-pompadoured dude a spotlight and a stage and dig how his rumbling baritone and quick, colorful wit could corral a roomful of 8 year olds with ADHD.

 Still, with his musical restlessness and need to keep reinventing, what can we expect from Poindexter this Saturday? “When I started thinking about it this time around,” he says, “I made a list of a lot of songs. And I just got together with the band and started playing ‘em. And the ones that just kind of roll off your tongue, are the ones you keep. It’s a little bit of this and a little bit of that.” If you’ve ever seen Buster Poindexter (and shame on you if you haven’t), there is one constant; it’s called “fun.” That doesn’t necessarily mean all the songs are positive and upbeat (Buster can do old blues that will chill your soul), but the fun comes, in this age of cautiousness, with not knowing what’s coming next.  

“I kind of created the conceit (of Buster) in the first place, just to give me the opportunity to do anything I want to do,” says Poindexter, in his infamous deep, cigarette-ragged rumble. “It’s not like I have to adhere to any kind of cheap notion of what it’s gotta be. The people who come and see us, know what to expect.”   

 Meaning the unexpected. “We do this as a sort of cabaret and we have a very sophisticated audience,” says Poindexter. “When people come and hear me with (guitarist) Brian Coonan, they know there are certain Dolls and David Johansen songs we have to do. But in this incarnation, it’s very freeing. When people come a Buster Poindexter show, they have no preconceived notions. They know I’m just gonna let my tastes prevail and take them on this little trip. I don’t want to rehash what I did 20 years ago. That would be like work. Singing means so much to me. I don’t want it ever to turn into a job. It’s simply a beautiful, metaphysical place for me to be.” 

The singer-actor-raconteur claims he’s been “very lucky,” to keep things fresh throughout his career. Of course, it helps to be multi-talented, which Poindexter is too modest to claim to be. But his various guises seem to have kept him as interested in music as he was when he first turned pro in the early ‘70s. “I’ve been really fortunate to be able to move around and do all these different things,” he says. “These people who do the same repertoire for 50 years, they must have a different attitude toward music than I do. They must think of it more like clock-punching. For me and the band, it’s more like jazz. People might call out something obscure of ours and we might just play it. Anything can happen.” 

As for the acting thing, Poindexter (as David Johansen) has a nice-sounding role in an upcoming Billy Crudup film, so his thespian ambitions are still being fulfilled. But for the time being, at the elegant Emelin, expect to hear smart, sophisticated, sometimes nutty, sometimes smutty songs, that illuminate the American spirit, every bit as much as a history lecture. Just a lot more fun. 

Casual, zen-like, looking forward to his gig and the rest of his life, Poindexter’s remark about his movie role seems to sum up his career. Really his entire raison d’etre. Without sounding the least bit blase, he says, “Yeah, I did a scene in that film. It should be good. You never know.” 

Speaking as someone who’s been in the audience when this classic American artist sings, there’s only one thing I’d change about that assessment. Especially when it comes to the music. You do know it’s going to be good. There’s just no doubt about it. 


Info: Buster Poindexter and Band will be at The Emelin Theatre on Saturday, November 9th at 8:00 PM. Tickets range from $15-$39. For more info go to www.emelin.org or call 698-3045 

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