|
contents | jazz | |||||||||||||
| Jill Newman Productions Presents Jimmy Scott, Bilal and others by McClair PR Jill Newman Productions, renowned across the nation for high-quality, diverse music productions, announces an exciting calendar of events, including the United States premiere of the triumphant return of Sly & The Family Stone, Jimmy Scott, Bilal, Derrick Hodge and others. Calendar of Events: • WORLD PREMIERE OF DERRICK HODGE PROJECT featuring Derrick Hodge, bass; Chris Dave, drums; Marcus Strickland, soprano & tenor saxophones; Aaron Parks, piano & synthesizer; and Federico Pena, keyboards. October 31, 2007 ~ 8:00 p.m. & 10:30 p.m. Blue Note, 131 West Third Street ~ New York, NY. Hodge has performed and/or recorded with Terell Stafford, Donald Byrd, Bootsie Barnes, Kirk Franklin, Donnie McClurkin, John P. Kee and the New Life Community Choir, Kenny Lattimore, Q-Tip, Mos Def, Timbaland, Jill Scott, Musiq Soulchild, Gerald Levert, Common, Kanye West, Andre 3000, Sade, Terence Blanchard, Mulgrew Miller, Clark Terry, and others. Aside from Hodge's performing side, he has always had a passion for music composition. Being granted the opportunities to write for artists in the past has enabled him to be identified as a writer in various genres of music ranging from Jazz and Orchestral Chamber music to Pop and R&B. For his premiere, he will be introducing his ideas and concepts in a more intimate, small group setting. The beginning of a new venture for him, Hodge considers this project at the Blue Note to be the starting point for a lifelong quest to keep music honest, relevant to the people, and uninhibited by genre. • THE UNITED STATES PREMIERE OF THE TRIUMPHANT RETURN OF SLY & THE FAMILY STONE featuring Sly Stone, Rose Stone, Freddie Stone, Cynthia Robinson and Pat Rizzo. December 7, 2007 ~ 8:00 p.m. & 10:30 p.m. B. B. King Blues Club & Grill, 237 West 42nd Street ~ New York, NY. The First Family of Funk returns to the Big Apple for their first time in 32 years! In the late '60s, Sly and the Family Stone fused R & B rhythms and a psychedelic sensibility into a new pop/soul/rock hybrid that drew a diverse audience from around the world. The Family Stone's music pre-dated disco and inspired the many Black self-contained bands that emerged in the '70s. Along with James Brown, the Family Stone virtually invented '70s funk, and their impact has proven lasting and widespread. • BILAL featuring The Robert Glasper Trio. November 27 - 28, 2007 ~ 8:00 p.m. & 10:00 p.m. Yoshi's, 510 Embarcadero West ~ Oakland, CA. Making his debut at Yoshi's, Philadelphia born Bilal is surely one of the most significant artists of our changing times. His falsettos recall the energy of Joe Cocker at Woodstock and he approaches swing and scat with the same expansion and technique as Ella Fitzgerald. Most audiences were first made aware of Bilal courtesy of his breathtaking backing vocals on Common's Like Water for Chocolate, most notably on the track "Funky for You. Like Nina Simone, Bilal is classically trained in jazz and big band arrangements and opera voice (he reportedly is proficient in seven languages). He also writes his music, lyric and note and has performed with well-known neo-soul artists Erykah Badu, Jill Scott and John Legend. It's that scope, and Bilal's willingness to push around within soul music, that's gotten him the nod from everyone from straight-up R&B fans to new-school soul jazz heads. • JIMMY SCOTT IN LINCOLN CENTER'S AMERICAN SONGBOOK. February 22, 2008 ~ 8:30 p.m. The Allen Room, 6th Floor ~ Frederick P. Rose Hall, Broadway at 60th Street. American Songbook returns to Lincoln Center for its 10th season, celebrating the diversity of American popular song, and the incomparable Jimmy Scott takes the stage on February 22. The history of jazz singing can be heard in the voice of the great Jimmy Scott, now in his 82nd year. First famous in the late 1940s singing with the Lionel Hampton Band, Scott's early career was dodged with personal and professional misfortune with his tender vocals going uncredited on recordings and bad contracts keeping his records off the shelves. Scott sank into obscurity by the 1960s, only to be rediscovered in 1991 when he sang at the funeral of record industry great Doc Pomus. Now performing all over the world, Scott brings pathos to every note he sings. His distinctive, other-worldly sound can also be heard on 21 albums to date. • JENA 6 BENEFIT featuring MOS DEF, STOKLEY WILLIAMS, GARY BARTZ, HEAVy & others TBA. Date TBA, Highline Ballroom, 431 W 16th St ~ New York, NY. Jill Newman is known as a producer of unique, top-quality events in New York, San Francisco, Chicago and other cities across the United States and Japan. She first produced Mos Def for her Another Side Series in February 2004 and has since worked with him at various venues including Lincoln Center and the Blue Note. Jill Newman events include concerts with Aretha Franklin, Eartha Kitt, Andre Previn, Chaka Khan, George Cables, Cecil Taylor, Richie Havens and Butch Morris, as well as the esteemed Zora Salon with Ossie Davis, Ruby Dee and Avery Brooks, directed by Lloyd Richards. Known for putting together projects made up of stellar leaders who meld their individual talents into unique musical units, Newman conceived and produced the McCoy Tyner and Savion Glover project; the Jabane Ensemble's world premiere featuring Robert Glasper, Lionel Loueke, Grégoire Maret, Chris Dave, Derrick Hodge with special guests Bilal and Roy Hargrove; Gary Bartz/Mulgrew Miller Duet; and Jimmy Scott's 80th Birthday Celebration with Savion Glover, Avery Brooks, DeeDee Bridgewater, Billy Paul and Andy Bey. write your comments about the article :: © 2007 Jazz News :: home page |