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Eric Darius- New Album comes out June 24th.

http://www.myspace.com/ericdarius

 

 

View news headlines at MSNBC

 

 

The Central Georgian

JazzFront

Evening at the Plaza - 7-10 p.m. June 28, Eatonton Plaza, Eatonton. Summer concert series for the whole family held in the heart of historic Eatonton on the third Saturday of the month. June features A1A, the official Jimmy Buffett tribute band, (706) 817-9433.

Henry Butler Brings New Orleans to NPR  - Pianist Henry Butler started playing music as a child in the New Orleans housing projects. Blind since birth, he went on to study at the Louisiana State School for the Blind, learning classical piano scores in Braille.

Archie Shepp: The Original Fire Music Saxophonist Archie Shepp paints a vivid picture of the '60s free-jazz scene in his own words.



This Week's Top 10 Jazz Songs

Jessy J's  "Tequila Moon" holds on to #1 spot for a 4th consecutive week, while Chris Strandling stands pat at #2 for another week.

 1 JESSY J TEQUILA MOON
2 CHRIS STANDRING LOVE & PARAGRAPHS
3 KENNY G SAX-O-LOCO
4 PAUL BROWN OL' SKOOLIN'
5 EUGE GROOVE MR. GROOVE
6 BRIAN CULBERTSON ALWAYS REMEMBER
7 CHUCK LOEB WINDOW OF THE SOUL
8 EVERETTE HARP OLD SCHOOL
9 SAX PACK FALLIN' FOR YOU
10 JESSE COOK CAFE MOCHA

Review: Wayman Tisdale is back with new album, 'Rebound'....

William Ruhlmann, All Music Guide
I
n the typically lengthy thank-you section included on his eighth CD, Rebound, Wayman Tisdale acknowledges his doctors, as well as the special devotion of associates, friends, and family during a troubled time, as his way of alluding to the bone cancer he suffered in the interim since his last album. "When life tries to get you down," he says at the outset of the title track that opens the disc, "it's the perfect time for a rebound." That is about as much reference as he makes to his physical challenge, however. Otherwise, the listener might suppose that things are flowing as smoothly as ever for him. Certainly, they are musically. Rebound is another characteristic contemporary jazz effort for Tisdale, in which his fluid bass playing is heard within the context of highly programmed rhythm tracks. To provide contrast, a few vocals turn up, the most high-profile of them being country star Toby Keith's turn at Barry White's "Never, Never Gonna Give Ya Up." Seeking legitimacy, Keith plays it straight, never hamming the song up as much as White himself did, but that keeps it from being as fun as it might be. More impressive is the Gap Band's Robert Wilson on "Watch Me Play Again," which draws a parallel to that bass-happy group, and gospel singer Marvin Sapp also makes a strong impression on the closer, "Grateful," which also may speak implicitly to Tisdale's resolve to overcome his illness and get back to plucking his bass. ~

Benny Waters: Innovation in Longevity

NPR.org, April 2, 2008 - Benny Waters will long be remembered for his virtuosity — and his longevity. His career as a clarinetist, saxophonist, vocalist, composer, and arranger spanned eight decades, and his playing reflected elements from the entire history of jazz.

Benny Waters grew up near Baltimore, Md., as the youngest of seven children. After he discovered the organ and learned to play it, his mother, who was terminally ill, was so moved by his natural ability that she devoted her remaining energy to getting him a formal education in music.

In Lionel Loueke, African Pop Meets Jazz

Loueke

Day to Day Like many of today's top jazz guitarists, Lionel Loueke now makes his home in New York City.

But Loueke grew up in what he describes as a family of poor intellectuals in Benin, a small country of subsistence farmers in West Africa. And when he left West Africa to study jazz, he took with him the music of the region.

Loueke has since forged a unique sound, captured on a new CD called Karibu, his highest-profile release to date. Loueke recently brought his guitar to NPR's New York bureau to demonstrate his original style with a solo performance.

Teaching 'America's music' to the next generation

By Neil Schoenherr

Jazz is "America's Music." Established in the early 1900s, the music has remained popular for nearly a century, going through many variations.

In the 1920s, jazz was "pop" music, but today it is often shunned by younger people in favor of today's popular tunes — rap, rock and country. Can jazz, with its broad history and reputation for being "art" music, be relevant to youth today?

Gerald L. Early, who directs the "Teaching Jazz as American Culture" summer institute for high school teachers, hopes to show that jazz is not only relevant to youth today, but also essential.

Gerald L. Early, who directs the "Teaching Jazz as American Culture" summer institute for high school teachers, hopes to show that jazz is not only relevant to youth today, but also essential.

The director of a summer jazz institute at Washington University in St. Louis hopes to show that jazz is not only relevant, but also essential.

Some of the country's leading scholars of jazz and American culture will be teaching at WUSTL's National Endowment for the Humanities Summer Institute for High School Teachers July 2-27.

"'Teaching Jazz as American Culture' will offer participants an exciting opportunity to learn about one of the most extraordinary art forms the United States has ever produced," says Gerald L. Early, Ph.D., Washington University's Merle Kling Professor of Modern Letters and director of the summer institute.

The primary goal of the institute, says Early, is to "work with 30 public high school teachers to show how, through the study of the social, cultural, technical and aesthetic history of a major American musical genre — jazz — they can rethink aspects of teaching history, literature, music, art and film while broadening students' understanding of the political, social and commercial impact that an artistic movement can have. Participants will develop lesson plans for their subject area using aspects of jazz."

Participants come from various academic disciplines, including English, history, social studies, art and music.


Is the Current Onslaught of ‘Blue-Eyed Soul’ Performers Overshadowing Black Music Culture?
Howard University News Service

Listening to "Lost Without You" makes fans of Robin Thicke want to sail away to a romantic island. The eclectic sounds of Joss Stone remind many of smoky blues clubs. And when Justin Timberlake fans hear "My Love," they’re instantly infatuated with the passion in his voice.

So what do these three sultry-voiced musicians have in common? They’re part of the new generation of "blue-eyed soul" artists.

"Their sound is different -- like Justin Timberlake’s album is more upbeat than most black R&B artists," 20-year-old Howard University student Brianna Hurt told BlackAmericaWeb.com. "I just like their sound, plus I don’t really like hip-hop anymore. It all sounds the same. Yes, [Robin Thicke] sounds like Marvin Gaye, but I don’t compare him to anyone. I listen to them because they’re good, and there’s no profanity."  More...

JAZZ FANS DECRY EXCLUSION

(San Francisco Chronicle) Few African American musicians booked for Berkeley festival, none on Yoshi's anniversary CD

When Yoshi's jazz club in Oakland released its much-anticipated 10-year anniversary CD last month, local jazz aficionados were outraged that no African American musicians were included.

The tension grew days later when the Bay Area's jazz community learned that the Berkeley Downtown Jazz Festival had invited only six African American musicians to perform at the five-day event in August. More..

Jazz night in Baghdad bebops with Airmen’s notes....

(I-Newswire) - Ragamuffin musicians clad in hip suits shuffle in after a meal uptown. Instruments clatter from their cases and get propped on stands. After some quick glad-handing of friends, a few wires get plugged in. Some quick scales peep out of the horns before a deep voice intones a mellow introduction. “Welcome to jazz night.” Then, music.

Alto saxophone notes twist smoothly on the same breeze that carries the cool air across the small room. The thread of a muted trumpet is wound between, causing toes to tap, heads to bob and fingers to snap in time, the room alight with jazz phrases that ask you to do nothing more than just be cool. More...

 




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