I can’t recall the first time I met Rose Bilal – sometime in the early ‘90s I think – but whenever it was, I’m sure neither of us had any idea how much our lives would interconnect over the years. After I got word that she had suffered a stroke and was slowing recovering, I kept sifting through all my favorite times with Rose:
- Like the night she sang “Stormy Weather” in my cabaret show on the main stage at the Palladium and brought down the house. Back before I came to work here, I did a cabaret series and Rose was one of regular singers because she knows how to deliver a song, but even more importantly, audiences always love her.
- Getting ready for those shows, I often visited her house, just north of downtown Tampa. We’d talk music and sing together – trying out keys for songs she would do. We’d drink tea and laugh as she told stories about her days as an R&B singer in Philly or working some crazy day job somewhere. Rose’s stories always end a laugh.
- On one of those visits I told her I was as looking for a piano teacher. She recommended her friend Lynne Arriale, a top jazz pianist who was living and teaching her when she wasn’t touring the world. She put us together and Lynne turned out to be the best teacher I ever had.
- Or the time Rose had the headliner slot on the stage at the Gasparilla Arts Festival with Lynne Arriale’s trio backing her up. Lynne didn’t play with too many people in town but when Rose called her and she available – Lynne always said yes to Rose.
- And the time I visited Rose, who could always use a few extra bucks, and admired one of her folk art creations – a paper Mache creation of young black woman in a colorful dress climbing a crazy curing ladder. I had to have it and it’s still up in my house.
I’m not the only one who fell for Rose’s smile and her big heart and her salt and pepper voice over the years. Now that she needs a hand paying some bills, more than 30 of the bay area’s best jazz musicians are gathering for a benefit concert this Sunday at 3 p.m. at the Palladium. I’m told nobody has said no.
The list of players includes so many Palladium regulars – Nate Najar, Whitney James, John Lamb, Kenny Drew Jr., Belinda Womack, Stan Hunter just to skim the surface. Check out the lineup on the Palladium website. Tickets are just $20 for what promises to be almost three hours of great jazz and fun.
Rose will attend the show and will be sharing that 100-watt smile with everybody who comes out. Hope to see you there. For tickets and a full list of players visit www.mypalladium.org.
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