If you tossed selections by Billie Holiday, Sly and the Family Stone and Gil Scott-Heron into a blender and hit "puree," you very well might end up with "New Amerykah Part One (4th World War)." Or a bit of mess. Same difference, really.
UT explores local music with Studio 865 and Flipside, hosted by Todd Steed. Todd Steed and Robinella are locked in conversation. Steed, one of the grand old men of the Knoxville music scene, asks the country-jazz chanteuse about her influences and compares her to Dolly Parton and Billie Holiday.
Luck's In My Corner: The Life and Music of Hot Lips Page is a comprehensive biography of one of the most compelling jazz musicians of the Swing Era. Oran “Hot Lips" Page was the greatest of the Kansas City trumpeters, whose powerful, growling horn made him the go-to man on that instrument during Count Basie's earliest days as a leader.
Mayme Johnson, the widow of infamous Harlem gangster Ellsworth "Bumpy" Johnson has written a book on her late husband, offering a glimpse into his storied life. Visit SOHH.com for the complete story.
The Baltimore concert this Sunday by saxophone legend David "Fathead" Newman is a reminder that jazz - like blues and country, even a distant echo called rock 'n' roll - was once an entertainment of the working class.
After months of preparation, auditions, rehearsals, the Strings of Color Orchestra is finally going to do what director Ron Planks dreamed it would do for years- play music by some of the greatest jazz and pop artists of the century, translated into music for violins, violas, cellos and basses in what should be an incredible tribute to Black History Month.
Salutes to Frank Sinatra, Billie Holiday and Marvin Gaye are on tap for the 29th annual Tri-C JazzFest in April, billed as "A Tribute to American Classics." The festival also has lined up performances by Natalie Cole and the Joshua Redman Trio, among others.
Festive urns full of tropical flowers and oversized chandeliers are popping up at the Philadelphia Flower Show, as exhibitors prepare to open for a preview for selected guests tomorrow and for the general public on Sunday.