Suede Loves Rehoboth and Is Coming Back to Town June 1
Singer/Musician Suede is performing at the Atlantic Sands on Friday, June 1 as part of the Silver Threads Conference. I caught up with her for a chat about her upcoming show.
FJ: The Silver Threads organization is bringing you to Rehoboth for a performance at the Atlantic Sands on June 1. That’s a great room for you. How did you get involved with Silver Threads?
S: They called me, what can I say? I’m easy. Seriously, I met some of the organizers in Provincetown last October. They shared that they were going to bring Silver Threads—which started in Florida—north to Rehoboth. (Bravo!) They came to one of my shows and I (ahem) apparently wowed them, blush, blush.
I’m not familiar with the Atlantic Sands room at all. I hear good things about it. I’m looking forward to being back in Rehoboth very much! I don’t think I’ve been back since the release of my fourth CD, Dangerous Mood!
FJ: You’ve been in Rehoboth before, with sold out shows at the Convention Center and Nassau Vineyards, and more. What are your best memories of Rehoboth Beach?
S:: I’ll never tell.... Oh, you mean professionally? Well, yes, I have a long history playing in Rehoboth, starting with Jazz Fest a hundred years ago. I played Sydney’s way back when (tiny room!), the Blue Moon (love that place!), and then, as you say, the Convention Center, and the Vineyard. They were all great. All different and all great. Working with CAMP Rehoboth has always been great fun. They really do it right. You guys are so lucky to have those folks around!
FJ: How would you compare P-Town and Rehoboth?
S: Hmmmm... They both have gay people and beaches, but other than that, they’re pretty different. Can’t really compare them. Both are fabulous gay resorts with fabulous gay people! Let’s see—you get hard shell crabs for dinner in Rehoboth and lobstah and wicked cod on the Cape!
FJ: What’s up your sleeve for the Silver Threads concert? What can we expect? Is it just you, or do you have backup? Preview, please.
S:: I’m gonna leave it a surprise as to the band, I think...but I can tell you that I have a bunch of new tunes since I was there a few years ago. A new CD is in the very preliminary phases, and I’ll be putting a lot of the new tunes in the sets for the show on June 1, including my version of “Hallelujah” which is already pre-selling CDs! I love my fans!
These days I perform with at least my jazz trio from NYC…all the way up to using my 12 piece big band when budget allows (it doesn’t this time). I rarely do solo shows anymore, although I love it, but since I play piano, guitar, and trumpet myself, doing solo shows is a rare treat for me. People will just have to buy tickets for the Atlantic Sands performance to see what I show up with!
For those who have never heard me, please don’t let the name or the fact that I am a lesbian (I’ve been out my entire career, long before it was “safe,” let alone a good career move) fool you. I am a pop/jazz/blues musician, not a folk artist. My music appeals to everyone, gay/straight, women, and certainly men. I hope the boys come out to the Sands on June 1 and won’t miss the show! I know that the conference events are just for women, but the Friday night concert is open to all! Be radical. Bring me some straight fans, too!
FJ: You and I go waaay back to Annapolis, Kent Island, Last Chance Saloon in Columbia, Maryland, and mutual friends—we won’t tell folks how long—but what’s your most enjoyable memory about your early career?
S: Meeting you, of course. Ha! I’ve been so lucky to be able to do this for a living, without any other visible means of support (wasn’t that a lingerie commercial?) for 30 years with my own company and record label. The only reason this is true is because I really do have an amazing posse of loyal fans who’ve been there from the start, at the Shot Tower bar in Baltimore, Last Chance Saloon in Columbia, all my early local MD/DC bar gigs, and now all around the globe in some amazing concert halls with some truly extraordinary musicians. I’ve even sailed the seven seas with Olivia cruises (75 trips to date!). I’m genuinely grateful and I “get it” that none of it would have happened without my incredible fans who still show up and keep bringing me newbies. Could I conjure up one “most enjoyable memory”? that would be tough. Maybe, like you, I will have to write a book!
FJ: Where do you go after Rehoboth?
S: I’m so glad you asked! Next, I’m headed to Montclair, NJ to be a part of a screening of the film Jan’s Coming Out in which I have a bit of a cameo appearance. Actually, it’s more than a cameo, I’m interviewed, I interview Jan, and my recording of “Remember Who You Are” is featured in the film. It’s a great story documenting the coming out of Jan, a British mum of three; suddenly, a light went on and she realized she liked girls. The screening is on June 7. I hope to see you on Friday, June 1 at the Atlantic Sands in Rehoboth Beach!
Tickets ($35) for Suede at the Atlantic Sands are available at CAMP Rehoboth and at Out Gear on Rehoboth Aveune. More Information