Sunday was a magical afternoon at the A-Frame in the Hollywood Hills with Josh Nelson on piano, Danny Janklow (fresh off of his world tour!) on saxophones & flute, Jordan Richards on bass, Paul Kreibich on drums, and myself on ye olde vibraphone.
Danny brought the house down on his "Girl Talk" solo, and I thought to myself, "THIS must be what they mean by the term, 'YOUNG LION'...!" At the end of his solo, as the band continued to play, the crowd burst into applause, followed shortly by laughter, as Josh -- while playing -- shrugged and said, "How can I possibly follow that?!". He proceeded to play a strikingly beautiful and soulful piano solo - the first chorus of which was mostly accompanied by giggles and chatter, as we all metaphorically picked ourselves up off the floor.
In one of my favorite moments, our host, Betty Hoover, gave her introduction of the band. It is an A-Frame tradition for Betty to announce the musicians while they gently play "Take the A-Train" behind her, which is what we did. Being a jazz musician, I love unexpected musical situations where anything can happen. And anything did! Including Paul receiving the loving & honorable qualification of 'Old Guy'. Which we know actually translates to "Jazz Master"....tee hee. ;-)
I couldn't have asked for a better experience of performing my original composition "Coming Home" with such world class musicians, in such a beautiful environment, to such an enthusiastic and supportive audience. The new single (for which the entire party was centered around) is free for Indiegogo backers (by special email), and available for purchase on CDBaby! (And in the very near future, iTunes!)
And of course, no account of the day's events would be complete without mention of the "Little Hummingbird"... both musically speaking, and literally! It was a joy to play with Jordan's groovin' bass lines, Paul's effortless Latin-to-swing feels, and the harmonic layering of the melody with Josh & Danny. "Little Hummingbird" will be included on the full release of the new album, which you may pre-order on Indiegogo by making a donation -- thus, also helping complete the final stages of album production!
As for the actual hummingbird, we are pretty sure he heard us playing his diddy and was inspired to take flight. (See below!) :)
Thank you to Betty Hoover, Dena Hulbert ... Bern, Steve and all who helped out... and all who attended. Also thank you to all the backers & Indiegogo supporters, without whom, there would be no single to release!
Danny brought the house down on his "Girl Talk" solo, and I thought to myself, "THIS must be what they mean by the term, 'YOUNG LION'...!" At the end of his solo, as the band continued to play, the crowd burst into applause, followed shortly by laughter, as Josh -- while playing -- shrugged and said, "How can I possibly follow that?!". He proceeded to play a strikingly beautiful and soulful piano solo - the first chorus of which was mostly accompanied by giggles and chatter, as we all metaphorically picked ourselves up off the floor.
In one of my favorite moments, our host, Betty Hoover, gave her introduction of the band. It is an A-Frame tradition for Betty to announce the musicians while they gently play "Take the A-Train" behind her, which is what we did. Being a jazz musician, I love unexpected musical situations where anything can happen. And anything did! Including Paul receiving the loving & honorable qualification of 'Old Guy'. Which we know actually translates to "Jazz Master"....tee hee. ;-)
I couldn't have asked for a better experience of performing my original composition "Coming Home" with such world class musicians, in such a beautiful environment, to such an enthusiastic and supportive audience. The new single (for which the entire party was centered around) is free for Indiegogo backers (by special email), and available for purchase on CDBaby! (And in the very near future, iTunes!)
And of course, no account of the day's events would be complete without mention of the "Little Hummingbird"... both musically speaking, and literally! It was a joy to play with Jordan's groovin' bass lines, Paul's effortless Latin-to-swing feels, and the harmonic layering of the melody with Josh & Danny. "Little Hummingbird" will be included on the full release of the new album, which you may pre-order on Indiegogo by making a donation -- thus, also helping complete the final stages of album production!
As for the actual hummingbird, we are pretty sure he heard us playing his diddy and was inspired to take flight. (See below!) :)
Thank you to Betty Hoover, Dena Hulbert ... Bern, Steve and all who helped out... and all who attended. Also thank you to all the backers & Indiegogo supporters, without whom, there would be no single to release!
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