What is that? I don’t know, I forget.
Oh yeah, I forgot to mention in the latest dismissive that the NEW PIONEERS are here next Thursday May 9th and you know what that means. Bluegrass with a Capital B starting at 7 and going until it’s over.
AND, we were just wondering if would come to see the amazing HOWARD LEVY perform here. No, not the basketball coach. He is not a multiple Grammy- Award winner, diabolic diatonic harmonica and piano whiz and planetary gadabout.
Really, why wouldn’t you, but you never know so it’s always wise to ask first.
Here is why you probably want to hear Howard:
Multiple (more than one) Grammy Award Winner Howard Levy is an acknowledged master of the diatonic harmonica, a superb pianist, innovative composer, recording artist, bandleader, teacher, producer, and Chicago area resident. His musical travels have taken him all over the geographical world and the musical map. Equally at home in Jazz, Classical music, Rock, Folk, Latin, and World Music, he brings a fresh lyrical approach to whatever he plays. This has made him a favorite with audiences worldwide (Fort Atkinson included?), and a recording artist sought after by the likes of Kenny Loggins, Dolly Parton, Paquito D’Rivera, Styx, Donald Fagen, and Paul Simon. As a sideman, Howard has appeared on hundreds of CDs and played on many movie soundtracks.
He is perhaps best known for the four CD’s he recorded with Bela Fleck and The Flecktones, a unique band that set the musical world on its ear back in the early 1990’s. He got back together with the band in 2010 and recorded the CD Rocket Science. They toured extensively in 2011-2012, and Howard won a Grammy for Best Instrumental Composition for “Life in Eleven”, which he wrote with Bela Fleck.
Howard’s other prominent collaborations include three CDs with Trio Globo (Glen Velez and Eugene Friesen), two with Lebanese Oud player/composer Rabih Abou Khalil, and one with the avant- garde Jazz Riessler/Levy/Matinier Trio.
Howard is music director and chief composer for the Latin/Jazz group Chévere de Chicago. He produced and released the band’s CD Secret Dream, and Time Capsules with his acoustic swing group Acoustic Express, on his own label, Balkan Samba Records. His solo Jazz CD, Alone and Together on Balkan Samba, and his Jazz trio CD Tonight and Tomorrow on the Chicago Sessions label, both received 4-star reviews in DownBeat.
Is that enough?
Let us know if you are interested in coming to an appearance in early July.
And remember to plan ahead and reserve for JEFFREY FOUCAULT & COLD SATELLITE on their Calvacade CD release tour with the Pines opening, May 10th and May 17th.
And this weekend there’s ROXANNE NEAT, and JIM & VIVIAN CRAIG with FRED CAMPEAU & MITCH THOMAS.