Legendary New Orleans singer, Aaron Neville will be a special guest joining Paul Simon and Wynton Marsalis as they perform 'The Paul Simon Songbook', April 19-20 at Jazz at Lincoln Center. The benefit concerts will showcase the remarkable 40-year songwriting career of Simon. Marsalis and Simon will lead new orchestrations of his classics played by the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra and Simon's band. Meanwhile, Aaron is scheduled to perform with his Quintet on March 3 in Nevada and will be at the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival for its closing weekend, taking the stage with his Quintet on May 5.
Carlos Santana releases his new Santana Greatest Hits Live at Montreux 2011, DVD/Blu-Ray today (February 21). Billed as "the ultimate live concert", the set features greatest hits, classic album tracks and unique cover songs with over 3 hours of footage. Carlos was inducted into the California Hall Of Fame last year and continues his support of his Milagro Foundation which benefits underserved and vulnerable children around the world. He will be on tour in Mexico in March.
Brian McKnight and his two sons, BJ and Niko, have launched their own record label under the group name BRKN RBTZ. They intend to release their own music and newly signed artists on their new Trif3cta Records. BJ and Niko will roll out their debut tracks, "L.O.V.E." and "Marry Your Daughter" as an introduction to their musical talents. McKnight says, "This is something I have wanted to do for a long time. I have been in this industry for over 20 years; I have seen a lot of things change but at the end of the day, people still want good music and we will bring that directly to them." BRKN RBTZ plans to release a full EP this summer. You can catch Brian McKnight on tour this month doing an acoustic date in Jamestown, NY on February 23.
Birthday wishes to Grammy winning singer, songwriter Seal who celebrates today (February 19). Seal was born in Paddington, London, England and began his career singing with the British funk band Push. He got his big break when he was offered the lead vocals on the track "Killer" by producer Adamski. He's best know for his Grammy winning song "Kiss From A Rose" which appeared on the soundtrack to the 1995 film Batman Forever. Seal's latest release is a tribute to his favorite soul and Motown classics, called Soul 2, and he's announced tour dates in Australia in April in support of the album. Seal and his wife, super-model Heidi Klum, announced they were separating last month, but had indicated they were trying to reconcile. This weekend they were both seen without their wedding rings and People Magazine is reporting they will move forward with their divorce.
Stevie Wonder, Aretha Franklin and Alicia Keys will sing at the funeral for Whitney Houston tomorrow (February 18). The private, invitation-only service will be held at the New Hope Baptist Church in Newark, NJ with longtime family friend, gospel singer Rev. Marvin Winans giving the eulogy. Whitney's mentor, Clive Davis intends to speak at the service as will Kevin Costner, Whitney's co-star in the movie The Bodyguard. The Associated Press has been given permission by the Houston family to stream the services on the Internet so her fans in the U.S. and around the world can be a part of her tribute and sending home.
Birthday wishes to Grammy winning singer, songwriter and producer James Ingram who celebrates today (February 16). James was born in Akron, OH and played the local clubs there before moving to Los Angeles, CA. He got his professional start singing backup and playing the piano for Ray Charles' recording studio sessions; recording studio sessions and playing keyboards hehind the Coasters for Dick Clark; and recording backup vocals for his mentor, Marvin Gaye. Ingram got his big break when he was hired by Quincy Jones to sing "Just Once" and "One Hundred Ways" on Quincy's multi-Grammy winning album The Dude. In 1983 James released his debut solo album, It's Your Night, which featured "Yah Mo Be There," his Grammy winning duet with Michael McDonald. His songwriting credits include the Michael Jackson hit "P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing)" and, more recently, "Good Life" performed by rap artist Kanye West. James will be performing tomorrow night in Manila, Philippines.
A private, invitation-only funeral will be held Saturday, February 18 for pop icon Whitney Houston. According to Billboard, Carolyn Whigham, the owner of the Whigham Funeral Home in Newark, NJ, announced that the funeral will take place at noon at the New Hope Baptist Church in Newark. There are no plans for a wake or public memorial at Newark's Prudential Center, as was previously considered by the family. Ms. Whigham stated, "They have shared her for 30 some years with the city, with the state, with the world. This is their time now for their farewell." Whitney was born in Newark and began her singing career at the New Hope Baptist Church. Her mother, Grammy Award winning gospel singer Cissy Houston, was the director of the music program and her cousin, singer Dionne Warwick, also sang in the church choir. Houston was found dead in her hotel room in Los Angeles on February 11. The coroners office is awaiting toxicology tests to determine the cause of death. Houston was 48 years old and leaves behind her 18 year-old daughter, Bobbi Kristina Brown.
Grammy winning saxophonist Kirk Whalum is celebrating Valentine's Day today with the release of his 29th album, Romance Language. On this set, Kirk pays tribute to jazz greats John Coltrane on saxophone and Johnny Hartman on vocals, who released the original version of Romance Language in 1963. The album contains American Songbook classics like "My One And Only Love", "Lush Life" and "Autumn Serenade." Kevin Whalum handles the vocals while their Uncle Hugh "Peanuts" Whalum is featured singing on "Almost Doesn't Count." As a special Valentine's Day gift to his fans, Kirk is performing a two-hour concert in Portland, Oregon and streaming the show live beginning at 11:30 PM ET/8:30 PM PT via his Facebook page. The stream will include a backstage camera offering viewers a rare glimpse behind the scenes. Then on February 18th, there will be a rebroadcast of the Valentine’s Day concert at 8 PM ET/5 PM PT with a live question and answer session with Whalum.
The 54th GRAMMY Awards were a bit more subdued last night due to the death of Whitney Houston on Saturday, but British singer-songwriter Adele, made her return to the stage with an excellent performance and walked away with six GRAMMY's. She swept the big three taking the Record of the Year and Song of the Year awards for "Rolling In The Deep" and the Album of the Year for 21. Jazz legend Tony Bennett was nominated in two categories and won both; they were Best Pop Duo/Group Performance for "Body and Soul" featuring the late Amy Winehouse and Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album for Duets II. Booker T. Jones won Best Pop Instrumental Album for The Road From Memphis, besting Dave Koz who was also nominated for Hello Tomorrow. Corinne Bailey Rae took home the award for Best R&B Performance. The full list of winners is available here: www.grammy.com/nominees#content.
Grammy winning singer and actress Whitney Houston has died at the age of 48. Her publicist, Kristen Foster, confirmed Houston died today but the cause and location were unknown. Whitney got her start in music singing in the chuch and her early professional gigs included singing backup for Chaka Khan and Jermaine Jackson. She was signed by record mogul Clive Davis and released her debut album Whitney Houston in 1985. The album was the number one album of the year on the 1986 Billboard year-end chart, making her the first female artist to earn that distinction. Her troubles with drug abuse were well documented and took their toll on her exceptional voice. Houston staged her come back with her 2009 release I Look To You, but was unable to keep her touring commitments due to health issues. Her most recent project was as executive producer of the remake of the film Sparkles. She and co-star Jennifer Hudson had been filming since late last year with plans to release the film in 2012.