Music / Cabaret
Review: The Puppini Sisters, The Spiegeltent
Bursting onto the stage with a beautifully melodic version of Jingle Bells, the Puppini Sisters didn’t fail to please their waiting audience. Accompanied by their three-piece band – a double bass, guitar and drums – the harmony trio went on to dazzle and delight their audience with a fantastic mixture of their signature ‘40s tracks, new songs from their upcoming album and, of course, some crowd pleasing festive tunes.
Unusually for a harmony group, we were treated to rare solos from each of the sisters: first by Kate Mullins, singing a soulful ballad, then by the eponymous Marcella Puppini beguiling us with a self-penned song about the meaning of life, and finally by the newest member of the group Emma Smith, pleasing us with an upbeat, swing track with an amazing double bass solo in the middle.
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The sisters managed to get the crowd up and dancing with swing staples such as It Don’t Mean a Thing (If It Ain’t Got That Swing), and Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy, which were of course given a Puppini make-over with flawless, effortless tempo changes. The talented trio also managed to get us in the festive mood with their own take on Christmas classics such as Winter Wonderland and All I Want for Christmas Is You which definitely left the crowd satisfied. Perhaps the most surprising tracks of all were the Puppini sisters’ takes on hip-hop tracks Rappers Delight and Missy Eliott’s Work It, which were most certainly my favourite part of the show, not only for being unexpected, but also for making me see these fantastic vocalists in another light.
All in all, a great night was had by all at the Spiegeltent, with the crowd leaving bathed in a festive glow thanks to the upbeat vocal stylings of The Puppini Sisters. I’ll most definitely be making this event a part of my annual Christmas tradition.
Photography by Michael Chalmers