Offspring of lounge legend takes chance on LV

Friday, May 5, 2006 | 7:40 a.m.

The scion of one of Las Vegas' legendary lounge entertainers will perform from 10 p.m. until 2 a.m. today and Saturday at Charlie's Bar, 2089 N. Jones Blvd.

Blues man Jay Kaye, a resident of Mallorca, Spain, for almost 20 years, is the son of Mary Kaye, whose Mary Kaye Trio is credited with being the first major lounge act in Las Vegas in the early 1950s - preceding Louis Prima by a couple of years.

Kaye's grandfather was vaudeville entertainer Johnny Ukele. His uncle, Norman Kaye, was one-third of the Mary Kaye Trio. His cousin, John (Norman's son), has performed rock 'n' roll and jazz in Las Vegas for many years.

This is a rare visit for Jay Kaye, who is firmly entrenched in the European entertainment scene - especially Spain.

"I would love to come back here and perform on a regular basis," Kaye said. "That's one of my reasons for being here right now - to check out the possibilities, as well as to visit with my mother."

The 53-year-old Kaye was born in St. Louis, where his mother was based at the time.

Shortly after his birth, the Trio moved to Las Vegas, where Kaye grew up. "I have some great memories," Kaye said.

He was always surrounded by musical instruments and musicians, and so it was preordained that he was going to enter the business. He attended West Charleston Elementary School and William E. Orr Junior High School (now Middle School), where he joined his first band and performed at school dances.

"I caught the bug about the time of the Beatles," said Kaye, who was 12 at the time.

The Trio broke up in 1966 and Mary Kaye took her son to Vancouver, British Columbia, where she performed in a jazz club.

"I was writing music at the time and I had enough to almost fill an album," Jay Kaye said. "As luck would have it, my mother introduced me to two gentlemen who had a recording studio in Vancouver.

"I was invited to their studio to sing some of my songs and they flipped out - so we did an album."

Kaye was 14.

When he was 16, Kaye formed a band with his cousin John, who had been living in Las Vegas, and drummer Rick Dean. When the band broke up after a few months, Kaye joined the group Rush Hour.

They were together for two years, once opening for Led Zeppelin and Jethro Tull at a concert in Santa Barbara.

By 1985 Kaye was tired of the politics of the business and moved to Great Britain. Within three years he had made his way to Mallorca, where he performed at a casino. He has lived in Mallorca ever since.

"I didn't want to return," Kaye said. "There was too much creativity going on there, so I stayed."

Until now.

He and his bass player Brahm "Sparky B" Heidl are checking out the local scene. Their drummer, Toby Taylor, was unable to make the trip so they recruited local musician Steve Geller (formerly with Sixties Mania) for the local gig.

Kaye owes his opportunity for the two-night engagement to Doug Hardesty, general manager of Charlie's Bar.

Hardesty loves live music and has bands at the bar every Friday and Saturday night.

"I'm thrilled to have Jay here," Hardesty said. "The other night when they were rehearsing here at the bar a lot of customers who would have left stayed around to listen.

"I was blown away by the music."

There is no cover charge for the performances.