Photos: Phillip Officer's Mabel Mercer Album Release Concert at 54 Below

On October 24, 2025, singer Phillip Officer celebrated the release of his new Mabel Mercer tribute album, You Fascinate Me So: Phillip Officer Salutes Mabel Mercer, with a concert at 54 Below in Manhattan. No understanding of the American popular song is complete without the knowledge of the legendary Mabel Mercer and her influence on lyric interpretation. Her perfect diction and honest approach to lyrics attracted many of America’s rising singers to emulate her style: Frank Sinatra, Lena Horne, Tony Bennett, Bobby Short, Peggy Lee, and Nat King Cole.  What they learned from Mercer transformed American culture. Officer puts his own mark on Mercer’s repertoire in the new album. (Read Stephen Mosher’s review of the show the album is based on.) Mosher writes: “Phillip Officer has a most beautiful sound.  You could listen to him all day - live or on Spotify.  It is a pleasure to hear him sing.  And that’s that.  But even with a beautiful voice, a storyteller must interpret the lyrics, and Phillip Officer is an interpreter, he is a storyteller, all of which is seemly, since he does remark on Mabel Mercer’s insistence on putting the story in the lyrics.  [Phillip Officer] painted pictures with his beautiful voice and interpretive skills, and impressively.”

Read an interview with Officer about the new album here. Officer said that “It was imperative that I try to capture the ‘truth and honesty’ always prevalent in a Mercer performance.  It was her most distinguishing asset.  She had a reserved, yet playful sense of humor which was important to infuse in her repertoire.  Mabel had a clean and clear approach to a song, never accessorizing the story with unnecessary mannerisms or intentions. I wanted to honor Mabel’s essence, yet I wanted to modernize and make the songs my personal own.”

You Fascinate Me So features music direction by Mark Hartman and special guest KT Sullivan. Officer was backed by Mark Hartman on piano, Ray Marchica on drums, Stephen Benson on guitar, and Saadi Zain on bass.

You can find the album at orcd.co/phillipofficer

Find more upcoming shows at 54 Below on their website here.

Below, see photos from the October 24 concert snapped by photographer Conor Weiss.