This is been entertainment week for my wife, Scarlet and me. Watching two great acts in two separate arenas brought to mind some fundamental facts about niching.
The most entertaining young big band & vocal jazz act in the country was ours for the evening last Sunday night at the beautiful, under-the-stars venue, Chastain Park Amphitheater in Atlanta, Georgia. The act was Harry Connick, Jr. and his big band orchestra.
Even more recently, last night we took another entertainment turn and had an evening with the incredibly funny standup, Sinbad, at the recently restored historic Tennessee Theater in downtown Knoxville.
A first quality entertainment experience on both counts, and an exemplary lesson in niching as well.
I’ve been a Harry Connick fan for years. We go to see him when we can and we always have great seats. Totally mesmerizing is this man’s talent on display. His piano talents are second to none in classic jazz and his vocals are as ever-rich as Sinatra or Bennett. We’ve never left a concert without being totally impressed.
Maybe you’ve noticed that Connick occasionally acts in film. He does a so-so job. Notably, in concert and on Letterman or Leno, you’ll find him above average in wit and humor. But he’s no comedian. See him live and you learn real quick what his apex talent is — performing good jazz.
And not just any jazz. He narrows even more.
Connick in the 90′s single-handedly revived the old standards of Big Band jazz and the vocals made popular by the crooners of the 40′s and 50′s for a new generation.
Not only are there a very few who are doing it these days… NOBODY does it like him. Solid baritone vocals, hands-too-fast-to-see piano and a big band playing his own arrangements form a mix that you can’t find just anywhere.
And his fans can’t get enough. He played the Chastain Park Amphitheatre two nights back to back to packed crowds.
Because he’s the best in his niche.
Sinbad. Now, Sinbad might be able to dance, but he didn’t dance. He might be able to sing, but he didn’t sing. He may even have a great golf swing, he didn’t even go there.
What he did do was keep a full auditorium doubled over in stitches FOR TWO AND A HALF HOURS.
And get this: no cursing, no vulgarity. Talk about a niche! Hilarity with a clean conscience.
When it comes to creative, black-style, clean comedy, outside one or two others (including his mentor, Bill Cosby), he’s the best.
Some have rumored that his career is virtually over. I don’t know where this opinion comes from. He’s clearly doing what he loves and what he’s excellent at and people are paying $50-a-pop for it.
And if they are like me, those fans would have gladly been comfortable recommending the experience to their parents (a rare option concerning modern comic acts), and most of their friends and been willing to pay full price again to go back NEXT WEEK with some of those people just to watch them watch him.
This was more than good entertainment. It was an exercise in learning to niche well. Get narrow and get excellent and get ready for success.
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