Sheryl Crow joked about getting a "boob job," sang about the Dalai Lama and downed some Cindy Wolf lamb chops. In so doing, she helped raise about $225,000 for the Ulman Cancer Fund for Young Adults during a benefit concert Sunday at Baltimore's Pazo restaurant.
Crow, a breast cancer survivor who commands upward of $500,000 for private gigs, performed for free. Or rather, she sang for her supper. Still selfless, but not a bad trade when you consider Chef Wolf's tapas menu.
"I will admit a kind of paternal pride -- in between songs she said how much she liked the cooking," said Tony Foreman, Wolf's husband and partner in Pazo. "She loved the real Neapolitan-type pizza, the lamb chops and the empanadas. Pretty flattering to hear from the stage."
Crow was battling a cold, but you couldn't prove it by her 45-minute performance, Foreman said. At one point between songs, Crow told the crowd that after cancer surgery, she considered having a "boob job" but opted against. Might have boosted her career, she said with a laugh. Before singing "Out of Our Heads," she told the audience it was inspired by the Dalai Lama, whom she saw speak.
Before the show, Foreman and Wolf had the chance to meet Crow -- a "really lovely, down-to-earth person," Foreman said -- and to check out her tour bus. Luxurious, but the kitchen was a letdown. "Kinda small, a little lackluster," he said. "I'm sure Cindy would do well with it, though."
Pazo donated the food and drinks for all 350 diners, and more than 50 staff members worked for free. Knowing that, patrons were generous with tips. But when it was all over, the wait staff, valets and coat checkers donated their tips -- about $1,200 -- to the cause, said Brock Yetso, executive director of Ulman Cancer Fund.
"It was pretty phenomenal," said Doug Ulman (creator of the fund and brother of the Howard County exec), who knows Crow because he is president of the Lance Armstrong Foundation. (Crow was once engaged to the cyclist.) "The staff was so good and so welcoming. To have them come up at the end and give their tips was really moving and inspiring."
Ehrlich is planning -- gasp! -- a comeback
If the open campaign office and fundraising appeals have left any room for doubt, then consider this a news flash: Bob Ehrlich is seriously mulling another run for governor.
I have that from a political adviser who meets regularly with Ehrlich and two aides to talk comeback strategy -- and who, for some reason, confirmed as much when I phoned him the other day.
