With the release of Unscripted, her latest Trippin' N Rhythm recording, Cindy Bradley is not only keeping the trumpet and flugelhorn hip and grooving lead jazz instruments, but she also continues her knack for picking spot on album titles.
Calling her 2009 debut Bloom proved prophetic, as the multi-talented performer blossomed into a charismatic presence on the radio and on the contemporary jazz festival circuit. Collaborating on Bloom with Grammy winning producer Michael Broening, the collection showcased her talents as a player, which extend from traditional jazz and hard bop to R&B and pop influenced contemporary jazz. She won Best New Artist at the American Smooth Jazz Awards and was named Debut Artist of the Year by the Catalina Island Jazz Trax Festival and Smooth Jazz News.
Working again with Broening on Unscripted, the duo's creative process centered on writing as they went along. It evolved into a longer, deeper process," Bradley said. "Ultimately, I feel Unscripted is more ‘me' than anything I had recorded before. It was completely my vision of what I wanted to play."
A native of Buffalo, New York, Cindy loves telling the story of how she became a trumpet player by accident in fourth grade: "I started playing the piano when I was six, but we had to choose a different instrument to be part of the band program. I forgot to bring my permission slip to class, so the teacher just had me randomly circle an instrument that I wanted to play. I picked the trumpet, which turned out to be a life and career defining fluke." By 12, she was performing professionally with "Sugar and Jazz," a Buffalo area jazz band that consisted of promising musicians, ages 12-17, which emulated the big bands of the 1940s. Cindy played with many jazz groups during her formative years, but it was with this group that she fell in love with performance, jazz, and especially the trumpet.
After earning a bachelor's degree in jazz studies from Ithaca College, she went to the New England Conservatory to study for her master's in jazz trumpet performance. After earning her degrees, Cindy headed to the New York City area and immersed herself in the jazz scene, discovering equal passions for straight ahead be-bop and contemporary jazz, as well as funk, Top 40, R&B and jazz fusion. The bands she was involved with played clubs as well as high profile events like the Emmy Awards and even the Super Bowl.
Cindy has also applied her skills and background in a way to inspire future generations. She has conducted hundreds of jazz workshops at high school and community colleges all over the country. "These workshops are a way of giving back to the community," she says. "It's inspiring just to see the influence a few encouraging words can have on young people who really want to develop their passion for music. It's amazing to realize that a lot of the younger kids I teach have never seen anyone play a wind instrument in person."
Guitarist, composer, and producer, Marc Antoine, was born in Paris (France) May 28, 1963. His parents bought him his first guitar when he was 11-years-old, which quickly became his third arm. Marc has had a guitar in his hands ever since.
At age 13, his father saw such rapid progress that he sent him to the conservatory where he would study classical music. By then, his mentors were Andres Segovia and John Williams. At 17, he'd already won many prizes and started showing an interest in a variety of music genres including jazz, rock, world, pop, and more. At the same time, he was playing in local bands in France.
Tragedy struck in the summer of 1981, when his debut career got cut short by an accident to his left hand. The surgeon told him that his chances of playing again were very slim. However, through the adversity, his love and passion for music helped him overcome this tragedy and in 1984 he was back on the scene in Paris, performing in clubs and recording.
In 1988, he moved to London where he joined Basia's band and worked with the Reggae Philharmonic Orchestra, soul to soul, Pato Banton, and General Public. His world tour travelling lead him to Tokyo, Japan, where he became an acclaimed session player.
As a true citizen of the world, Marc kept moving, this time to Los Angeles in 1990. He stayed there for 12 years, playing with Sting, Celine Dion, Rod Stewart, Cher, Selena, Queen Latifah, George Benson, and others. He composed and performed for major movie soundtracks, including "Get Shorty," "The Fan," "Patch Adams," "Midnight In The Garden Of Good And Evil," "Demolition Man," and "Celtic Pride."
Marc's first solo album was "Classical Soul" in 1994 followed by "Urban Gypsy" in 1995, both on NYC Records. This was followed by "Madrid" in 1998, "Universal Language" in 2000, "Cruisin" in 2001, and "The Very Best Of Marc Antoine" 2002, all on GRP Records. He released "Mediterraneo" in 2003 and "Modern Times" in 2005, both on Rendez vous Records, with "Hi-lo Split" 2007 and "Foreign Exchange" in 2009, both on Concord /Peak Records 2009.
Marc's career boasts many #1 hits on the R&R contemporary jazz charts, as well as topping the billboard charts. In 1995, R&R selected him Best New Artist of the Year, which was followed by his Gavin Award in 1998, a Latin Grammy for Best Instrumental Song in 2005, and the International Artist of the Year at the Chicago Jazz awards in 2010. He has also received numerous other nominations for jazz awards in the US and Canada.
Regularly touring with contemporary jazz artists like Dave Koz, Chris Botti, Jeff Lorber, Jeffrey Osborn, and many others, he also performs or records with jazz Legends, including Peter Erskine, Jimmy Haslip, Mike Mainieri, Dave Valentin, Christian McBride and Mark Egan.
In 2010, he created his own label and publishing company called Frazzy Frog Music and released his first independent record "My Classical Way." It was voted number two Record of the Year on Jazz Times magazine Top 50. He is now working on a new project called "Guitar Destiny," a mixture of genres inspired by his many travels and musical destiny. Release is scheduled in the summer of 2012.
Marc currently resides in Madrid, Spain where he writes and produces in his studio when he's not touring.
GRAMMY® Award winner Norman Brown is on close intimate terms with his audience. For two decades, it has been an engaging, mutually rewarding relationship, with the multitalented guitarist, composer, and singer offering classic R&B and contemporary jazz.
Born in Shreveport, Louisiana, and raised in Kansas City, Kansas, Brown first picked up a guitar at age eight. Inspired by Jimi Hendrix's rock sounds, Brown soon discovered his father's favorite artist, Wes Montgomery, and found his stylistic holy grail. After high school, Brown moved to Los Angeles to pursue his musical career, attending the Musicians Institute where he also taught. While playing with his own group in local clubs, and drawing comparisons to George Benson, Brown was discovered and signed to the MoJazz label, a division of Motown. He delivered his 1992 debut, Just Between Us, and followed with the gold- certified After The Storm and 1996's Better Days Ahead.
With critical acclaim and sales behind him, the talented musician made the leap to Warner Bros. and released Celebration, which first teamed him with producer Paul Brown. The 2003 follow-up, Just Chillin', earned Brown much-deserved recognition with a GRAMMY® Award in the best pop instrumental category. That project was followed by his 2005 release West Coast Coolin', where Brown tested out his skills as a vocalist, a move that was welcomed by the urban AC radio market. In addition, his 2005 compilation, The Very Best Of Norman Brown, was one of the best-selling smooth jazz albums of that year.
Brown made the leap to the Peak Records label in 2007 for Stay With Me, and most recently released Sending My Love in June 2010.
"On this album, I wanted to really feature what people liked about me -- great guitar playing, very lyrical melodies," Norman said. "I wanted to make the songs easily digestible, not too complicated, with easy grooves that you don't have to think too much about. It's a feel-good thing, and I want to uplift people's spirits and make them feel good."
In addition to success as a musician and producer, Brown has launched a successful career as a broadcaster. In January of 2007, he brought his engaging personality to Broadcast Architecture's Smooth Jazz Network as an on-air personality, hosting this own weekend radio show.
Jazz and R&B icon Gerald Albright is considered to be one of the most innovative and successful artists of the last twenty-five years.
Born in Los Angeles, he began piano lessons at an early age. His love of music picked up considerably when he was given a saxophone that had belonged to his piano teacher. By the time he enrolled at the University of Redlands, he was already a polished saxophonist. He decided to switch to bass guitar after he saw Louis Johnson in concert. A few months after graduating from college, he joined jazz pianist/R&B singer Patrice Rushen, who was in the process of forming her own band.
During the '80s, Albright became a highly requested session musician, playing on albums by a wide variety of artists, including Anita Baker, Ray Parker, Lola Folana, Olivia Newton-John, and the Temptations. He also toured extensively. Including with Jeff Lorber, Teena Marie, the Winans, Quincy Jones, and Whitney Houston.
Gerald went on to record numerous successful solo albums for Atlantic Records. Two albums hit the number one slot on Billboard's Top Contemporary Jazz Chart, and were nominated for GRAMMY® Awards in 1989 and 1990. In 1998, he released Pleasures of the Night with Will Downing on Verve Forecast, which hit No. 1 on Billboard's Top Contemporary Jazz Albums chart as well.
He moved to GRP in 2002 for the Groovology album, and continued to maintain his busy schedule as a session man. His second GRP album, Kickin' It Up, followed in 2004. Two years later, he signed with Peak Records, which released the 2008 GRAMMY® nominated New Beginnings, and the 2009 GRAMMY® nominated, Sax for Stax; both in the category of Best Pop Instrumental Album.
Over the years, Gerald has appeared on numerous TV shows such as A Different World, Melrose Place and BET Jazz segments, as well as piloting a show in Las Vegas with Designing Women star Meshach Taylor. He was also selected to be one of 10 saxophonists to play at President Clinton's inauguration ceremony.
His 2010, release Pushing The Envelope on Heads Up International, a division of Concord Music Group, showcases Gerald's fine balance of song craft and musicianship, and features special guest appearances by Fred Wesley on trombone, Earl Klugh on acoustic guitar and George Duke on acoustic piano.
Serving as the producer and arranger, the albumprovides the perfect opportunity for Gerald to exhibit his skills, as he plays soprano, alto, tenor, and baritone saxophones, flutes, bass guitar, and keyboards, and also handles synthesizer, EWI and drum programming. "The title reflects all the tunes on the project," Gerald said. "I didn't want to hold anything back. I really wanted to push the envelope and give people a little more edge. I come from the era where we didn't think of a formula – we went from the gut."
When Slim Man was young, his Dad showed him a movie – "The Five Pennies," starring Danny Kaye and Louis Armstrong. After seeing Armstrong sing and play, he told his dad, "That's what I want to do."
Slim Man studied trumpet for 10 years, and taught himself to play guitar as well. He studied classical music at Peabody Preparatory, and took private jazz piano, voice, theory, and harmony lessons.
While in middle school, he took up bass, and started the legendary pre-punk band Momma Max, who opened for Iggy Pop and the Stooges, The Raspberries, and others. When Young Slim snuck backstage and met Jimi Hendrix at a concert, it was an encounter that changed his life, lending new inspiration to his musical aspirations.
Slim Man's first big break came when he went to New York City to meet a publisher who expressed interest in his songs. While the meeting did not go well. Slim remained determined and he started calling every publisher he could. A few hours later, he was in the office of Roxanne Gordy, Motown executive and niece of the famous Berry Gordy. Motown signed Slim Man as a songwriter, and one of the first tunes, "Summer Days," was included on Angela Bofill's first critically acclaimed CD, Angie. He also wrote songs for the Temptations, Carl Anderson, and others.
While working at Motown, Slim Man became friendly with members of Stiff Records, which had Elvis Costello, Nick Lowe, Ian Dury and others on its roster. The company expressed interest in some songs and named the project BootCamp.
BootCamp had success, with two of the first 100 videos ever played on MTV, and doing shows with the B-52s, Squeeze, Split Enz, The Tubes, Johnny Winter and more.
Slim Man then started organizing and MC-ing nationwide country music talent contests sponsored by Marlboro. After the Marlboro Contest ran its course, Slim Man started writing and producing, which led to End of the Rainbow, the first Slim Man CD in 1995. Nine other records followed, most recently Thousand Miles Away in August 2010.
J.D. Considine of Rolling Stone Magazine said "Slim Man's style is a near perfect example of how jazz and soul can be combined as pop."
Dotsero lives up to its "something unique" definition, bringing style, energy, charisma, humor, and most importantly spontaneity to each live performance. "When people come to hear Dotsero play, they are not just interested in hearing the music, they want to see the music through performance and feel something as well. Our goal is for our shows to be a total sensory experience," says Stephen Watts, the band's sax player. "The best thing is that anything can happen at one of our performances."
Virtually all Dotsero recordings have enjoyed notable national charting success, with the Jubilee CD hitting #1 for 5 consecutive weeks and #3 for an entire year early in their career. Dotsero's other releases have all charted top 10 to top 20, with "Fresh Pants" being named Best of 2004 Critics Choice by Jazziz Magazine. Dotsero" latest CD, "Storyhouse," was named #1 CD & #1 song of the year in 2011 by Art Good of Jazz Trax, as well reaching the top 20 on the Billboard chart, and #4 on the Groove Jazz Internet Chart.
The band has performed with a number of leading jazz acts over the years, including Spyro Gyra, the Yellowjackets, Chaka Kahn, Earl Klugh, Herbie Hancock, Lee Ritenour, Wynton Marsalis, Joe Sample, Dave Grusin, Richard Elliott, Nancy Wilson, David Sanborn, the Rippingtons, Norman Brown, Stanley Jordan, David Benoit, and Jeff Lorber. Whether at home in Colorado or on the road the world over, Dotsero takes pride in making its live show something people will remember.
Few bands have been able to stay together and focused for even a few years, let alone the over 20 years Dotsero has been performing and recording for audiences far and wide. During that time, Dotsero has racked up an impressive number of awards and honors. The core members received their Bachelor of Arts degrees in music from the University of Colorado.
In 2001, brothers David and Stephen Watts were named as two of the top five graduates in Arts for the last 125 years at the University of Colorado, along with jazz greats Glenn Miller and Dave Grusin. The group was also given the prestigious "Excellence in the Arts" award by Denver Mayor Wellington Webb's. The group was also recognized by the legendary Red Rocks Amphitheatre for being a performer and participant in its 60th anniversary season.
Johannes Linstead is recognized internationally as one of the best selling guitarists and composers in the Instrumental and World Music genres. The Canada native is known for his melodies and lightning-fast Spanish guitar work.
Since the release of his first album, Sol Luna Tierra, in 1999, his albums have been topping charts and earning multiple "Best Album" and "Guitarist of the Year" nominations and awards. His most recent album, 2009's Mistico, was No. 1 on eMusic.com's World Music and Jazz/Blues charts and winner of "Best World Album" and "Best Instrumental Album – Acoustic" in the ZMR Awards.
Often compared to fellow countryman and guitarist Jesse Cook, Linstead's live performances, featuring lively Latin and Mediterranean rhythms, move audiences to clap and dance. He and his group of world-class musicians create a festive mood with guitar improvisations and percussion solos with the driving beats of bongos, congas, timbale, and doumbek.
A multi-instrumentalist, Linstead also plays piano, mandolin, sitar, bouzouki, bass, wood flute, and various percussion instruments. In 2010, he signed an "influential artist" endorsement agreement with Yamaha Corporation of America, the largest musical instrument manufacturer in the world. Linstead was also named "2010 Best New Artist" at the Catalina Island JazzTrax Festival.
"The influence of the many countries I have visited, from Spain, to the Caribbean Islands, to the Far East, have moved me to create new rhythms and sounds," Linstead said. "Experiencing these cultures – not just the music, but also the people’s everyday triumph over hardships – is what inspires my music."
Music is in Mindi Abair's blood. Her paternal grandmother was an opera singer, and her father was a saxophonist in a blue-eyed soul group called The Entertainers – a gig that kept the whole family on the road for several years throughout the early '70s. The Abair's put down roots in St. Petersburg, Florida, when Mindi was five-years-old, and she had already demonstrated musical aspirations of her own by taking up the piano.
She made the switch to saxophone in the fourth grade, and took part in every band program available in elementary, middle, and high school. After a year at the University of North Florida, she transferred to Berklee, where she graduated magna cum laude with a degree in woodwind performance.
Mindi recalls some wise counseling she received during her college years: "My saxophone teacher told me every week, 'You have to start your own band. Don't try to be someone else. Don't practice a bunch of David Sanborn licks or Wayne Shorter licks. Go out and be your own person.' It was the best advice anyone could have given me."
Mindi released her first album, the independently produced Always and Never the Same, in 1999, while touring with the Backstreet Boys. B y the beginning of the new decade, the combination of a nonstop performing and the well-received indie release had helped her solidify her musical identity. "By the time I signed on with Verve in 2002," she says, "I really knew who I was as an artist. I knew what I wanted to say, and I had a sound that was mine and no one else's."
It Just Happens That Way, her major-label debut in 2003, was the first in a string of solo recordings on Verve that also included I Can't Wait for Christmas (2004), Come As You Are (2005) and Life Less Ordinary (2007). She made the move to Peak, a division of Concord, with the 2008 release of Stars, an album that showcased – more than any of her previous recordings – her attractive vocal work as an engaging counterpoint to her solid saxophone chops.
This combination of highly refined skills takes even more of the spotlight on In Hi-Fi Stereo, a May 2010 release on Heads Up International, a division of Concord Music Group. "I wanted to move away from a more produced sound and just get into the studio and play. It didn't have to be perfect. I t didn't have to be shiny and new. It's not an intellectual record. It's a fun, feel-good record, a vintage sounding record, a modern take on a very classic sound."
Versatile guitarist Jeff Golub doesn't think about categories, labels, or popularity when it comes to music. Instead, his major concern is something far more basic: honesty. "I love all kinds of music and I really only look at one thing when it comes to any style or type: if it truly comes from the heart. If it does, then it's something I can embrace and really enjoy. If it doesn't, I don't care what you want to call it, it doesn't resonate with me."
A native of Ohio, Jeff studied at Berklee, and was a member of the James Montgomery Blues Band while in Boston. Long before either his student days or his time in New York City as a successful bandleader and session player, Jeff's earliest musical heroes were country artists.
"I used to hear the Grand Ole Opry on the radio as a kid and later saw some of the country artists like Porter Wagoner and Webb Pierce," Jeff said. "When I saw some of those suits, I thought those guys were outrageous. But then I heard some of the guitarists playing behind them and really got hooked on those chords. Those were the first chords that I learned as a guitarist. So when the British Invasion bands got popular, especially the Beatles, I was ahead of the curve."
Influenced as a teen by Wes Montgomery, Jeff was hooked on jazz. "I decided I wanted to be a jazz musician and that's why I ended up going to study at Berklee. While I had learned about those country chords, I also really got into the blues. So all those things kind of came together during my time in Boston, and then I thought I was ready to head to New York and become a jazz guitarist."
While Jeff received notoriety during his time with Billy Squier, which included seven LPs and three world tours with Billy Squier, it was his time with Rod Stewart (1988-1995) that really elevated his profile within the mainstream music community. During that period, Jeff participated in five world tours and on four albums. He then chose to pursue a career as a solo artist.
Jeff has released 13 albums, most recently Three Kings, a tribute to B.B., Freddie, and Albert King, in June 2011.
One of music's most distinctive voices, David Pack has won acclaim worldwide for both his insightful solo work and as the charismatic lead vocalist—and guitarist—for the celebrated progressive pop-rock group Ambrosia. As a songwriter, David's compositions took the band to the top of the charts repeatedly, and have delivered hits for a diverse group of artists. As a record producer, he's worked with many of the biggest names in music.
David first rose to stardom with Ambrosia's debut hit, 1975's "Holdin' On To Yesterday," followed by the blockbuster 1978 #3 Billboard single "How Much I Feel." Before Ambrosia disbanded in '82, Pack penned them two more signature smashes —"Biggest Part Of Me" and "You're The Only Woman."
Pack's debut solo album was the 1986 Warner Bros. release Anywhere You Go, with Unborn released in 2004 followed by The Secret Of Movin' On in 2005.
David is viewed as a visionary producer, with production credits including work with Patti Austin, Kenny Loggins, Aretha Franklin, Michael McDonald, Phil Collins, Selena, Wynonna, CeCe Winans, Natalie Cole, Chick Corea, James Ingram, Patti Labelle, and Trisha Yearwood. Notable highlights include the GRAMMY®-winning Best Contemporary Gospel Albums Handel's Messiah-A Soulful Celebration ('95) and Tribute: The Songs Of Andre Crouch ('96).
The most personally meaningful to Pack of all his many projects as a producer is 1996's RIAA Gold CD The Songs Of West Side Story (with Phil Collins's Top 5 hit "Somewhere"), an all-star tribute to music legend Leonard Bernstein, who was also godfather to Pack's eldest daughter.
