Nellie McKay, accompanied by her companion dog Bessie, performed at Mary Munford Elementary School Thursday afternoon before heading to the In Your Ear studios. The nearly full auditorium of students was delighted to see Bessie on stage.
Nellie began her 30-minute set singing “If I Fell” by Lennon and McCartney while playing ukulele. After the song she asked the kids if any of them knew who the Beatles were. To her surprise, nearly all raised their hands.
A few songs later, when Nellie added harmonica, the students laughed as Bessie began to accompany her – standing and howling along with the song. Towards the end of her performance Nellie moved to the school’s piano and was joined on a few songs by JAMinc board member Samson Trinh playing saxophone. Nellie also passed one of her ukuleles and a harmonica to the students so they could examine the instruments.
Remarking on how engaged and well behave the students were, she told them they were one of her best audiences ever and thanked them for coming to see her.
