Review and photos – Coco Love Alcorn at the Edge Gallery, Winnipeg, May 3 2009

– by eugene osudar/pics by Michelle Slota

who and what
does coco love

she loves bicycles

and boys and rap
and jazz and s’cool
scat and
sweeeeeeet
scrumptious
soul

oh,
“sweeeeet,”
says she

how many times
did we
hear
that delicious
word
part from
her lips

at the Edge Gallery

so beautiful

her songs
about bicycles,
not just one
not just two
three songs about
bicycles

coco is
fun/she’s funny
coco is
sun/she’s sunny

bike riding songs
over hills
nelson BC
ross,land
vancouver

and riding now
in her new hometown
Toronto

(a cd about her love
of bikes and bike
riding needs to be)

coco love alcorn
pretty in pink
rouge around her
bright apple cheeks

(dare i,
to take a bite
and fall
in love with her
sparkling eyes)

pointy black shoes
spiked heels
like wheels
to spin and twirl
as she grooves
to her bounce,bopping
songs

“stranger”
her obvious
nerves
relax with her
immersion in
the scat

“come on girls,
i need some help,”
says coco

joyce labriolo
lindsay alcorn
run on stage
back up singers
beautiful
in black evening
dresses,

“the next song is about
my favorite mode
of transportation.”

“I Got A Bicycle”

“i feel super kick ass”

“i got a bicycle
i ride around
i’m like super,girl
i never touch the ground”

“hey, hey!’
what a PoP/happy song!
thank you,

hand claps
that the audience
join in on
in perfect time
half are musicians
mostly singers

(musicians, singers
know
who to see!)

“I Got a Bicycle”
coco love alcorn
super perky, sparkly girl
in the 60s
a little dusty springfield
a little petula clark

“i totally saw 3 bikes
go by in the middle
of the song,” says she

it’s Main Street
The Edge Gallery
Winnipeg
dirty old town
the old worn, main drag
the hardcore
street peeps
staggering, the living
dead, looking
for money for
their next drink or
their next narco
cocktail, meth,
crack, heroin,
this dusty windy
town, contrasting to;
it’s all sunshine
getting warm
it’s spring!
WTF!

“this is my first time ever
touring with girls. So much fun!
love often starts with crushes,
this song is about the type
of men
we often get crushes on,
right girls?”

a rap song about,
boys in glasses
?
geeky boys
?
“Intellectual Boys”
?
boys like me!
yay!
coco loves boys like
me!
(if only
i wasn’t 45!)

if only i was still a boy

“Revolution”

and here’s what i wrote,
here’s what i felt,
“Sounds like Stevie
Wonder. Songs in the Key
of Life.”
oh my, what a groove
perfectly
beautiful
just like you
“sweet,” says
coco love alcorn.

“Fiori Modena”
“this is a love song. Does anyone
know what a Fiori Modena is?”
“It’s a bike. It’s the smoothest ride,”
answers one of those musicians
in the audience.
“Right!’

doubling riding entendres
sex and the smoothest bicycle
ride
imaginable
and in the middle
of the song,
think prince’s
little red corvette
written from a bicyclist’s
POV
“fiori modena”
coco tells a story about “our uncle
(lindsay and coco, there was a conversation
with members of the musically esteemed
audience regarding proper
grammar) teaches band at a high school
and he invited us to play
for the kids and right when i began this next
part of Fiori Modena
the principal walked in”
and it’s all sexy and smooth
riding lyrics,

“electricity”
is simply hot

then a song about robots,
“i have a new assistant and she’s great
Jen,
she sent out an email to people
on my email list
and at the bottom, she wrote
robots get in free
so in Saskatoon
six robots showed up
so they got in free!”

only in Saskatoon!
come on canada
where are the robots!

“Props”
more fun sing,a,long

“Joyful”
“title track of the new cd,
it’s about
giving yourself permission
to be happy.”
soul,jazzy,scat,fun,funny
this time, says me,
“sweet.” right after the song
concludes,
oh sweet spontaneous
instantaneous
applause
heartfelt
soul-inspired
merci bien.

“this song is like 4 weeks old.
it still has the protective plastic
wrap on it. I have three bicycles,
(another song about bikes!)
(yay!)
2 are in Toronto and 1 is still
in Vancouver. It’s
a BRC
Bike Riders Choice
it’s much more sturdy
all purpose.”
“BRC” rap beautiful.

“Sugar”
and invited on stage
is one of the singers
in the audience
JD Edwards
and he provides Deeeeeply
rooted,
hummmmming scats and the back and forth
between he and coco
is s’cool
jazz cats
purring
and so milky sugary sweeeeeeet
hot,hot.improv
so hot coco
says, “we need to tour
together.”
they need to
tour
scat together

the evening’s finale
is the Edge Gallery Optional Choir:
hot opener
Andrea Ramolo
(catch her extensive canadian tour
near you, i know i heard
Dar Williams
in her song stylings)
Jessee Havey
JD Edwards
Serena Postal
Lindsay and Joyce
on stage
and everyone else in the audience
singing
back ups
to the so sweeeeeet
“Compassion”

a
beautiful
way to end an inspiring
so sweet
evening
with
coco love alcorn.

and don’t forget,

you have her permission

to be happy.

“sweeeeeet.”