By Marilyn Lester****Sometimes it’s not easy to walk in parental footsteps, especially for gifted children of the famous. But if they’re fortunate, their own art can be a guide out of the shadows. This is the inspirational path actor/singer/songwriter Mark Arthur Miller has taken in his show Soul Searching, a son’s journey to know his father, Motown’s mega-charting songwriting icon, Ron Miller. Soul Searching, with Miller and his top-flight band, is a winner, filled with great tunes and timely values.
From the moment the star appears from the back of the house—jive dancing in a shiny grey suit that all but screams Motown—all arrows point to the Motor City. This is a show filled top to bottom with soul, from the son’s exploration of self to the meaning of the Motown soul ethic to the seriously soulful set list of Motown standards and hits. The opener, Smokey Robinson’s “Get Ready†sets the tone and invokes the spirit of the Miracles front man in an homage of style and movement. With a quick segue into “Papa Was a Rolling Stone†(Norman Whitfield, Barrett Strong), Miller launches into his narrative, the reason we’re here gathered: the story of a little boy who’s sketchy pre-school relationship with his father was rekindled at age 16 after a total ten-year absence—and the consequences of that reunion.
What Miller has produced is a show with a very fine polish and lots of sustaining humor. He’s a white kid who’s growing up in the predominantly Black South Side of Chicago. Ironically, miles away his famous father is one of only two white songwriters employed by Motown Records. “I Heard It Through the Grapevine†(Whitfield, Strong) and the novelty song “Hot Nuts†(Doug Clark, Lil Johnson), for instance, help carry the fascinating story of young Miller along.
Soul Searching had been gestating for quite some time. It began several decades ago as the germ of an idea, working its way through Miller’s consciousness to the point of do-ability about a decade ago. In May 2017 a concept album was released with the show’s final script taking form recently. That script can be defined as much by what it doesn’t say as what it does—which is to say, given the tremendous data and complexities of lives, it simply can’t all be addressed.
What to leave out? Ron Miller’s second marriage and offspring, for example, are never mentioned. Some issues are touched upon but not developed, such as Miller senior’s possible gambling addiction. The younger Miller’s journey is abridged, including a post academic life as a professional tennis player before moving back to Chicago, then to New York and back to L.A. to pursue acting and, more importantly, singing. The choices that remain still add up to a smart, focused text, delivered with dramatic skill and precise timing. Here is the storyteller at work, and despite a certain slickness in delivery, Miller always maintains authenticity.
His keen interpretive ability extends to the lyric as well as the narrative. This talent is especially evident in his last two numbers, with the singer creating story songs of Ron Miller’s “Heaven Help Us All†and “I Want to Come Back As a Song.†Yet, as intelligent as his choices are, Soul Searching plays on the long side and could benefit from being made shorter and tighter. Still, Miller nicely captures the ups of the story, such as in his own composition with Peter Smith, “87th & King†along with the downs, as in “Tracks of My Tears†(Smokey Robinson, Pete Moore, Marv Tarplin), intertwining music and text cohesively.
Supporting Miller is a band whose sound elevates the show to rock-star heights. Music director, keyboardist and pianist Peter Smith has had a long association of working with Miller and the partnership has not only produced some fine original songs, but wonderfully creative arrangements. Overall, the sound is a marriage of Motown and jazz funk, with some blues underlays for good measure. The tempos lean toward the engagingly foot-tapping. Miller’s vocals are forged in the tenor range of Robinson and Eddie Kendrix, a stylized sound perhaps not for everyone, but his musicality is unimpeachable. His phrasing on a jazz-influenced “Dock of the Bay” (Steve Cropper, Otis Redding) was a delight.
Two backup singers, Lauren Scales and Joy Hanson, provided musical texture throughout, with each having a spotlight moment in the medley of two Ashford & Simpson numbers, “Ain’t Nothin’ Like the Real Thing” paired with “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough.” The band, with its big, crisp sound, played in the pocket throughout. Hats off to Greg Gonzalez on drums, Thomas Gooding on bass guitar, Al Street on guitar, Stacy Dillard on tenor saxophone and Antoine Drye on trumpet.
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