Linda Eder
54 Below, NYC, January 12, 2025
Reviewed by Candace Leeds

A loving audience greeted Linda Eder as she took the stage at 54 Below. She wowed the crowd with her opener, a rousing medley of songs that Judy Garland made famous. It included “Come Rain or Come Shine” (Harold Arlen/Johnny Mercer), “San Francisco” (Bronislaw Kaper & Walter Jurmann/Gus Kahn), “Zing! Went the Strings of my Heart” (James Hanley), and “The Trolley Song” (Ralph Blane/Hugh Martin).
Throughout the show, Eder’s voice dazzled. She had a beautiful vocal tone that could soar to the heights with its dazzling sound, and her belt had had a particularly beautiful quality. She sang from the heart. She has fans who adore her and return for show after show.
Eder wove the program together and highlighted the legendary performers known for each of the songs she presented from the Great American Songbook. Billy Stritch, her music director/pianist, whom she announced has been with her for the past three years, was a great partner on several duets. “Here’s Steve and Eydie,” she said to introduce a jazzy take on “Side by Side” (Harry Woods). Stritch also joined her on a great, jazzy rendition of “Steppin’ Out with My Baby” (Irving Berlin) that recalled Tony Bennett’s version.
Eder’s rendition of “Before the Parade Passes By” (Jerry Herman) was one of the most powerful moments of her show; she began with a soft, whispery, pensive, sound and moved into a dazzling high-octane finale. Another highlight was her rendition of “Bring Him Home” (Claude-Michel Schonberg/Alain Boublil), which brought tears to many in the audience. She explained that Les Misérables was her favorite musical and that the song made her think of her 25-year-old son, whom, she explained, still lives with her.
Hoots and howls came from the audience as she sang “Someone Like You” (Frank Wildhorn/Leslie Bricusse & Steve Cuden), which was her signature song from the Broadway production of Jekyll & Hyde. Her performance in that show won her a Drama Desk Award.
Her grand finale, “Man of La Mancha” (Mitch Leigh/Joe Darion) took her voice to new, beautiful heights and brought the entire audience to its feet. She concluded with her traditional encore song which she always closes, “I’m Always Chasing Rainbows” (Frédéric Chopin/Joseph McCarthy) and then moved into “Over the Rainbow” (Harold Arlen/E.Y. Harburg).