Columnist Jerry Fink: Marciel, Cole keep busy throughout Vegas

Friday, Feb. 13, 2004 | 8:29 a.m.

The Chianti Cafe is a little off the beaten path -- a block north of Sunset Road, at 2895 N. Green Valley Parkway.

It has been serving classic, modestly priced Italian dishes for about a year.

Manager Jim Giampietro, a Las Vegas restaurateur since 1981, likes to give his customers the best food at reasonable prices -- and, along with it, fine entertainment.

"Our musicians are very versatile," said Giampietro, former owner of the defunct Black Whale, Sand Piper and Fratelli's. "They play to the room. This past weekend, quite a few diners wanted to hear something jazzy."

Jazz, R&B, standards -- the two entertainers currently performing in the lounge have an extensive musical menu and can play almost any style.

And when it comes to requests, it's almost impossible to stump vocalist Jessica Marciel and vocalist/keyboardist Alan Cole.

"I challenge people to ask me for a song that I don't know," Cole, 46, said. "I know almost every song in the book from '20s to now. Rock 'n' roll songs come and go, but the standards, any classical, jazz, they stay around forever."

Each of the entertainers has been performing professionally since their teens.

Marciel, daughter of legendary drummer Irv Kluger, 82, spent her Las Vegas high school years opening for such groups as Steppenwolf, Three Dog Night and Santana.

Cole was a musical protege who could play classical music by the age of 6. His mother and father -- and most of their families -- were professional musicians, performing with symphony orchestras or upscale restaurants in Chicago.

The Chicago native was performing with bands in nightclubs when he was 14.

"I looked older," Cole said. "I had a moustache like, from when I was a baby. And when cops came into the clubs, they wouldn't question the musicians."

He and Marciel perform at Chianti from 8 p.m. to midnight Fridays and Saturdays.

Both are busy musicians.

Marciel and vocalist/keyboardist Mike Shane perform at corporate functions and other private events as the group Midnight Affair (midnightmusiclv.com).

She recently made her first CD with her father, "Live at Pogo's." For almost 20 years Kluger and his band have been performing jazz jam sessions from 8 p.m. to midnight Fridays at Pogo's Tavern (a neighborhood bar at 2103 N. Decatur Blvd).

In the past few weeks Marciel has performed at Casa de Amore, the Las Vegas Country Club, Canyon Gate and several other venues.

Cole first moved to Vegas from Chicago in 1992, a couple of years after he was urged to do so by Frank Sinatra.

"I used to play at the Four Torches in Chicago where Sinatra used to hang out and bring in his friend, Jilly Rizzo," he recalled. "They would start drinking and lock the doors."

Sinatra tried to stump Cole:

"Hey kid, I bet you don't know this song -- 'Come Rain or Come Shine.' "

After Cole performed the song, he said Sinatra told him, "I'm going to hook you up."

Cole came to Vegas in '92 and performed at the Desert Inn, among other resorts.

When lounge entertainment began to slow down, he moved to Miami Beach and performed at the Fontainebleau, another Sinatra hangout. He returned to Vegas last year to take care of his ailing father, who died five months ago.

Cole said he was going to return to Florida, but decided to stay in Vegas for the time being. He has two sons here, both musicians.

Nicholas Cole, 24, sings and plays the piano at Caesars' Galleria and at Como's at Lake Las Vegas. Anthony Cole, 21, is a jazz violinist who performs at The Venetian's Caroline Tea Room.

Since resettling in Vegas, Alan Cole has performed at Club Monaco, the Bellagio and other venues.

He was one of the victims who lost their jobs when Castaways suddenly closed Jan. 29. He sang and played piano in the casino's Steakhouse restaurant.

"Luckily, I got paid," Cole said.

Even luckier are fans who can catch him and Marciel at the Chianti Cafe on Friday and Saturday nights.

Lounging around

Jazz saxophonist Jimmy Sommers will perform from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. March 10 at The Lounge at The Palms. Fans can meet the musician at 7:30 p.m. prior to the performance.

More than 200 fans of Frank Sinatra tribute artist Gary Anthony squeezed into Capozzoli's Sunday night for a send-off party. Anthony, Bill (Dean Martin) and Allen Gregory (Sammy Davis Jr.) have a long-term gig in Myrtle Beach, S.C., beginning March 20.

Curve, the ultra lounge at the Aladdin, is launching a "Friday Night Social" event. From 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Fridays, DJs Citizen X and Sandman will play an eclectic mix of music, from Billie Holiday to Tony Bennett to Brian Setzer.

Cat Daddy, featuring Joe Esposito (who co-wrote "Bad Girls" with Donna Summer) is at Bally's Indigo Lounge from 7 p.m. to 3 a.m. Wednesdays, Thursdays and Sundays and from 7 p.m. to 4 a.m. Fridays and Saturdays.