Whistle while you work

and a recipe for a grapefruit cocktail to wet your whistle

Delicious Bits interrupts its usual programming to bring you a special dispatch on whistling.

When we went to see Beck perform with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra on Friday, we knew we’d be in for a treat. Beck has explored a kaleidoscope of genres, weaving between folk, funk, soul, hip hop, electronica, alternative rock, country, and psychedelia. In the process, he’s created a sound that’s as unpredictable as it is unmistakably his own.

And, yes, the show was amazing, with a combination of deep tracks, crowd favourites Loser and Where’s It At and his wonderful version of Everybody’s Gotta Learn Sometime, amongst other highlights.

But the thing that stopped us in our tracks was opening act Molly Lewis. Who knew that one can make a career out of whistling?

You know how to whistle, don't you, Steve? You just put your lips together and blow.

Slim Browning in To Have and Have Not, 1944

Bogart and Bacall making it steamy in To Have and Have Not (photo credit: Liberty Publishing)

“There is not yet an Academy Award for Best Whistling, but, if there were, Molly Lewis would be a shoo-in. Lewis, who is thirty-three, is a professional whistler. Her mellifluous sound, spanning two octaves, is part Snow White communing with the birds, part haunted theremin.”

—Michael Schulman, The New Yorker

In an industry teeming with vocal gymnastics and instrumental virtuosity, Lewis has carved out her own strange and shimmering corner of music with nothing more than pursed lips and impeccable pitch. The Australian-born, Los Angeles-based artist has turned whistling—often relegated to idle moments or bird imitations—into a mesmerizing, cinematic art form. Strange, seductive, a little surreal, with a slightly sinister David Lynch edge.

There’s a pretty good chance you heard Lewis whistling; it’s her ethereal sound that illuminates Billie Eilish’s “What Was I Made For?” on the Barbie soundtrack. And aside from Beck, her collaborations have included artists as diverse as Karen O, Jackson Browne, Mac DeMarco, La Femme, Bedouine, and Dr. Dre.

Whistling to a different tune

Lewis has been whistling since childhood. Her competitive streak began after her parents encouraged her to watch the 2005 documentary Pucker Up, which led her to international whistling competitions. As Lewis wryly observed at the concert, “And yes, they’re a freak show.”

By 2015, she had claimed first place in the Female Live-Band Division at the Masters of Musical Whistling by performing Camille Saint-Saens’ Le Cygne. With that, she launched a career that is part mystical, part fantastical, part classical, with an undertone of retro 50s jazz running throughout.

Over the course of her 40 minute set, Lewis had us at turns enthralled at her music and laughing at her witticisms. She whistled both her own compositions (written on a ukulele) and other pieces, reimagined.

Molly Lewis on stage at Roy Thomson Hall in Toronto

As Lewis took the stage Friday night, she struck a self-deprecating tone. “I’m used to playing in front of much bigger crowds and more prestigious halls than this,” she quipped. With the reach of Beck’s North American tour, that quip may well become a reality.

For a taste of Lewis’s quirky and unforgettable vibe, check out the video below:

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Fizzy Lizzy

makes one perfect cocktail

My friend Cathy is always trying new recipes. Whether they come from social media, a friend’s dinner party, or something she tasted at a restaurant, she’s less concerned with the exactitude of the recipe and more interested in knowing the ingredients — then she simply goes from there.

On a recent visit to her place, she was enthusing about a new cocktail she had tried, one that featured grapefruit, tequila and simple syrup. But as she began setting out the ingredients, the custom requests started flying: “Can I have mine with vodka?” “Do you have gin?” “Could you make it with less simple syrup?” Spotting an opportunity to steer things toward my idea of the perfect cocktail, I offered to make a grapefruit simple syrup — and gently pushed for gin as the spirit of choice.

I haven’t tasted the original, but I’m declaring this the perfect summer sundowner. Adjust the flavours to suit your mood, but don’t skip the grapefruit syrup — and make a little extra to stash in the fridge for the next time inspiration strikes.

Ingredients

1 jigger (1½ oz) each gin, lime juice and grapefruit simple syrup (recipe below)

¼ cup freshly squeezed grapefruit juice

Club soda

Collins or highball glass

Fill a cocktail shaker with ice. Add the gin, lime juice, grapefruit simple syrup and grapefruit juice. Shake vigorously for 10 to 15 seconds. Strain into a Collins glass half filled with ice. Top with club soda, stir and serve.

Grapefruit simple syrup

makes approximately 1 cup

Combine 1 cup freshly squeezed grapefruit juice and 1 cup sugar in a small saucepan. Set over medium heat and stir until the sugar dissolves. Continue to heat gently, without boiling, for about 2–3 minutes, just until the mixture is fully combined and slightly thickened.

Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature. Strain through a fine mesh sieve then transfer to a clean bottle or jar.

Refrigerate and use within 1–2 weeks.

Sources: Wikipedia, RNZ, Hero Magazine, The Guardian, Philthy Mag