Pearl Charles recently played the relaunch of KCRW x School Night. For the relaunch, the night shifted from Bardot to Zebulon. This was my first time catching her live (I did catch an online set when venues were shut down). Considering how long she's been part of the Los Angeles music scene, I am a touch embarrassed to admit that. It is what it is.
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| Pearl Charles at Zebulon |
As for the return of School Night, I won't say that I was always hanging out at School Night, but it was a weekly event that I would keep an eye on. Their Bardot nights ended in December 2024 and I began to inquire of various people if they knew anything. No one knew a thing. I remember having a conversation with someone about how she liked to hang out at School Night. Of course, she was similar to me and wasn't always there. I mentioned to her that School Night had apparently ended its run. She was shocked by the news.
When I noticed on Zebulon's website that School Night was returning and that Pearl Charles was on the bill, I obviously circled the night.
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| Pearl Charles at Zebulon |
With a "let's do this thing," Pearl Charles launched into her first song "Does This Song Sound Familiar?" Wearing a country hat and floral adorned clothing, her fashion statement matched the desert country tune. "Take me back somewhere I've never been." She kept to the country genre for her next tune, but then as if taking her own advice from "Does This Song Sound Familiar?" she shifted gears. It was back to the 1970s and the John Travolta era of disco. "Givin' It Up" had people clapping to the beat. The piano notes for "Only For Tonight" could fit perfectly in an ABBA tune.
She had one last surprise for us. Country to disco to jazz. "You know, I always wanted to be a jazzer. I didn't really make the cut . . . I'm little more untamed, unfinished. Not that the jazzers . . . they like to party." Turning on the sultry dance moves, she closed out the set with the jazz piece "Step Too Far." Pearl Charles is not someone willing to be confined by music genres. I see the song being about an individual who is dealing with someone who went beyond just breaking their heart. It sounds like a off and on again relationship. Maybe one individual has too much of a wandering eye.
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| Pearl Charles at Zebulon |
I don't mind a broken heart
But you crossed the line a thousand times
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