Category: Articles

Even in a city that doesn’t play by the rules, New Orleans’ Bonerama is something different. They can evoke vintage funk, classic rock and free improvisation in the same set; maybe even the same song. Bonerama has been repeatedly recognized by Rolling Stone, hailed as “the ultimate in brass balls” (2005) and praised for their “…crushing ensemble riffing, human-feedback shrieks and wah-wah growls” (2007). Bonerama carries the brass-band concept to places unknown; what other brass band could snag an honor for “Best Rock Band” (Big Easy Awards 2007 and 2010)? As co-founder Mark Mullins puts it, “We thought we could expand what a New Orleans brass band could do. Bands like Dirty Dozen started the “anything goes” concept, bringing in the guitars and the drum kit and using the sousaphone like a bass guitar. We thought we could push things a little further.”

A great night of Orlando’s finest Food Trucks, Live Music, Beer and even a Kids area! Tuesday May 3rd from 5pm – 12am sample eats from over 15 of Orlando’s top culturally diverse food trucks! Free admission! Live Entertainment! Great Brews in the Beer Garden! Fun for the Kids! Get to The Plaza Live to discover Food Truck Heaven!

In THE GREAT AMERICAN SOULBOOK, Tower of Power’s 20th album, and first studio disc in five years, the group did something new – they played some old songs by lifelong favorites.

“In the old days,” says the group’s co-founder, saxophonist Stephen “Doc” Kupka, “the thought of doing other peoples’ songs would have been unthinkable, but this felt like a really good way to go – our take on classic great soul songs that we listened to on the way up.”

In the old days, making the record was a bit easier because the 10 – piece group was based in the Oakland area of California. But now, in between spending over 200 dates on the road every year, the guys also live in different parts of the United States during their off time. So the group scheduled studio time every few months to make the recording of THE GREAT AMERICAN SOULBOOK happen.

“We were resistant at first to the idea,” says Tower of Power’s other co-founder Emilio Castillo. “But a third of the way into the recording, we realized how good it was working.” In addition to Emilio producing most of the album’s tracks, legendary Frank Zappa keyboardist George Duke helmed three songs. “George gave us so much freedom,” says lead singer Larry Braggs, He’d say, ‘I don’t need to tell you how to sing—just sing!'”

Some of the album’s highlights include Larry’s solo numbers, like “Me and Mrs. Jones,” and “Heaven Must Be Missing An Angel.” Initially he wondered how he’d enhance these covers, but realized, “You entertain, enlighten, and give a piece of yourself when you’re making this music.”

The outside collaborations with guest vocalists Sam Moore, Joss Stone, Sir Tom Jones, and Huey Lewis brought fresh dimensions to the songs. Emilio was astounded to be “in the same room as the legendary Sam Moore,” especially collaborating on an Otis Redding classic. In working with the young British singer Joss Stone on “It Takes Two” and “Your Precious Love,” Larry realized, “this was an artist who creates her own licks when she sings, and you have to step back and just let her sing and be creative.”

“Huey Lewis helped saved our career over 20 years ago,” says Emilio, remembering the days that Huey Lewis and the News was a chart-topper, and the Tower of Power horn section a part of Huey’s live shows. Larry says, “We raised the key for ‘634-5789,’ and Huey sang his parts in Montana, and sent them back, and we told him, ‘it sounds great,’ and he said, ‘I’m glad you liked it, but I’m also glad you didn’t have to see me while I sang it!'”

Larry felt most honored working with Sir Tom Jones, who Tower of Power toured with in 2006. “Singing in the studio with Tom is one of the greatest accomplishments for me. I’ve been a fan of his since I was a kid, I used to watch his TV show every week.”

Drummer David Garibaldi felt both the making and listening of THE GREAT AMERICAN SOULBOOK to be inspirational, “We were such big fans of James Brown – his music had such a powerful affect on us. And then listening to ‘Loveland,’ Watts 103rd St Rhythm Band was such a profound influence on me. That music was happening when we were starting out, and we’re still inspired by this music.”

Always inspired by soul and R&B music, Tower of Power formed in the Oakland area of California in 1968. The ten-member Tower of Power’s first album was the 1970 release, EAST BAY GREASE for Bill Graham’s San Francisco Records. The group’s hits included “What Is Hip?” (1973), “You’re Still A Young Man” (1972), “Soul Vaccination” (1973), “Don’t Change Horses (In the Middle Of the Stream)” (1974) and “So Very Hard to Go” (1973). The group continues to play 200 dates all over the world, every year. When not on the road, Tower of Power’s horn section guests on albums for quite a range of other artists, including recordings for Elton John, Phish, Rod Stewart, Neil Diamond, Aerosmith, Little Feat, Smokey Robinson, Bonnie Raitt, and David Sanborn.

The group is releasing THE GREAT AMERICAN SOULBOOK on its own TOWER OF POWER RECORDS imprint with distribution through Ryko. And in keeping with audience needs in these internet-centric times, Tower of Power is focused on selling the album at live shows, on its web site, and on Amazon.com, iTunes, and other digital forms of media. Bassist Rocco Prestia says that while young music fans are learning about classic soul from them, the group is catching up with the youngsters, “It’s common knowledge that this is the way the music business is going – downloads. It’s all computerized and exciting.”

He and the rest of the group feel that it’s the music that ultimately brings people together, “If I had my druthers, I’d be listening to just old R&B radio stations. I think that’s the best music because it came from a place where the lyrics were important. The way the music was put together was soulful for me. My kids will often tell me of a song they hear on a TV commercial or a cover by a young artist – ‘this is a great song.’ Then, I’ll introduce them to the original.”

EMILIO CASTILLO – Second tenor sax
STEPHEN (“DOC”) KUPKA – Baritone saxophone
FRANCIS ROCCO PRESTIA – Bass
DAVID GARIBALDI – Drums
LARRY BRAGGS – Lead & background vocals
ROGER SMITH – Keyboards
TOM E. POLITZER – First tenor sax, alto sax
ADOLFO ACOSTA – Second trumpet, flugelhorn
MICHAEL BOGART – Lead trumpet, flugelhorn, trombone
MARK HARPER – Guitar

The estate of legendary singer and songwriter John Denver is proud to announce John Denver: A Rocky Mountain High Concert, a live touring experience honoring Denver’s memory and music. The concerts will feature projected vintage video of Denver performing, backed live by members of his original touring band and an accompanying string section. For the first time in fifteen years, audiences will experience John Denver in concert, performing hit songs from throughout his career.

Today, Denver’s status as a cultural icon stands undiminished. His popularity and continuing influence on popular culture fifteen years after his untimely death in 1997 is remarkable. The fusion of classic Denver tunes combined with performances by musicians from his original band and archival video footage makes the Rocky Mountain High tour an uncommon musical treat, dishing up night after night of unforgettable music, all in tribute to the musical legacy of a national treasure: John Denver.

“…Go and see them live, because it really is astonishing! I can’t remember seeing anything as exciting as them since I saw Jimi Hendrix live back in the 60’s…”

–Elton John

Young Croatian cellists Luka Sulic and Stjepan Hauser, known as 2CELLOS, achieved sensational success by taking the cello to a new level and breaking the boundaries between different genres of music. Their unique cello version of Michael Jackson’s “Smooth Criminal” took the world by storm. Within only a week, this YouTube video became a huge viral sensation leading to a record deal with Sony Masterworks and an invitation to join Elton John on his worldwide tour.

Since then, the duo has appeared on major TV shows such as The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, The Ellen DeGeneres Show (multiple times), Lopez Tonight, TV Total with Stefan Raab and many others.

2CELLOS were also the first instrumental act to ever perform on the hugely popular TV series GLEE, where they appeared as special guests in the Michael Jackson tribute episode, performing “Smooth Criminal”. The 2CELLOS’ arrangement of the song, which featured Naya Rivera, debuted at No. 10 on the Billboard Hot 100 Digital Songs Chart and landed the 2CELLOS’ debut album in the Top 100.

Sulic and Hauser have played the cello since childhood; Sulic graduated from the acclaimed Royal Academy of Music in London, and Hauser from the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester, both in 2011. Sulic has won a series of top prizes at numerous prestigious international music competitions including First and Special Prize at the VII Lutoslawski International Cello Competition in Warsaw (2009), First Prize at the European Broadcasting Union “New Talent” Competition (2006) and First Prize at the Royal Academy of Music Patron’s Award in Wigmore Hall (2011) among others. Hauser has worked with acclaimed classical artists such as Mstislav Rostropovich, Bernard Greenhouse, Mennahem Pressler and Ivry Gitlis, to mention a few. He has collected no less than twenty-one first prizes at the national and international music competitions and performed twice for Prince Charles in Buckingham and St. James’s Pallace. Both have appeared in major classical music venues throughout the world including Wigmore Hall, Royal Albert Hall, Southbank Center, Amsterdam Concertgebouw, Vienna’s Musikverein and Konzerthaus.

Luka and Stjepan’s successes extend far beyond YouTube and their fan base continues to grow around the world. Apart from touring with Elton John, 2CELLOS recently performed with the Red Hot Chili Peppers, George Michael and Leona Lewis and released their second album IN2ITION in January 2013. The album was produced by the legendary Bob Ezrin (Pink Floyd, Alice Cooper, Kiss, Deep Purple) and features an eclectic group of vocal and instrumental guests including Elton John, Steve Vai, Lang Lang, Naya Rivera and Zucherro.

“It took life for us to get to this point – Everybody was so free. From the first notes, it sounded like an explosion of sound; We went where the songs took us with a singularity of purpose.

We came in to make music as grown-ups, to make music as men.”

— Raul Malo, lead singer of The Mavericks

The Mavericks are back. The country-steeped garage band with a Cuban American lead singer, emerged from Miami with their sultry debut that was equal parts innocence, intensity and vintage influences. But time has a way of melting when you’re busy living life – and two decades has passed since their polyrhythmic brand of post-modern country has given the world “All You Ever Do Is Bring Me Down,” “Here Comes The Rain” and “Dance The Night Away.”

With their new album, time melts once again and the band that defied definitions, blurred genres and made everybody feel good, is back. The “most interesting band in the world” has captured the infectious energy and robust sound from their LIVE shows on their first release on The Valory Music Co., IN TIME. Whether it’s the Buck Owens-influenced “Dance In The Moonlight,” the panoramic Orbison-esque “Born To Be Blue,” the horn-punctuated retro noir “Back In Your Arms Again” or Tejano-esque “All Over Again,” the Mavericks have once again found the way to make soul music and sole music.

For Malo, the lead singer with the rich supple voice that’s second to only Roy Orbison in its ability to convey lonesome, desire and vivre; drummer Paul Deakin and multi-instrumentalist Robert Reynolds; as well as longtime collaborator keyboardist Jerry Dale McFadden and seasoned guitarist Eddie Perez, life has made them richer in terms of experience, playing acumen and a sense of their own musicality. It has also deepened the connection between them in a way that heightens the singular chemistry that made the Grammy-winning band one of the most exciting live propositions in any musical genre.

“Maybe the space has given us a sense not of how, but more what can happen when we come together,” says Deakin, whose spent the years apart balancing master-level carpentry with touring with David Meade and Jason White. “Just being there, and experiencing it, you don’t think about it. But there is definitely something when you get Raul, Robert, Eddie, Jerry Dale and I in a room that’s more…”

“And the way this record happened: it really fostered the passion, the urgency and the hyper-listening of being in tune with each other. It’s a way of being in tune we don’t have with anyone else.”

Ironic, since other than a disjointed album seven years ago, the Mavericks had gone their separate ways. Through happenstance, serendipity and a collective convergence of the cosmos, the band members found themselves entertaining the notion of some live shows for major festivals, then the idea of recording emerged.

Seven years had passed; they’d barely spoken, hadn’t been in the same room. Hadn’t given the band more than a passing thought, because what’s done is done.

But the Mavericks had never been conventional. Indeed, with the passage of time, their legend grew – and wherever the principles went, the question of reuniting seemed to grow exponentially.

“I’d always dismissed the people who asked (about The Mavericks) as just holding onto the past,” laughs Malo. “A moment in their lives, some notion that was more fantasy than fact. But the years past, I kept making music and it never died – those questions.

“Finally, a friend was visiting family in Virginia, a year or so ago, and they were sitting close enough to the bandstand, the players heard them talking about us. Without saying a word, that band played three Mavericks songs without missing a beat. When does that happen?”

So the man who feared re-treading what was and diminishing the potency of the multiple CMA and ACM Group of the Year’s legacy began to rethink whether there was more music to be made.

“It’s funny,” says Perez, whose made music with Chris Shiflett of the Foo Fighters, Dwight Yoakam, Miranda Lambert, George Straight, Lee Ann Womack and Raul as a solo artist. “It was maybe to some dates, then sure let’s do it — and then what was a few shows turned into, ‘Hey, maybe let’s make a record.’ It just snow-balled, because I think every one of these guys lives to make music, and together, they all know they’re like nothing else.”

The time apart had also strengthened everyone’s musicality.

“I expected everybody to play their asses off,” Malo confesses. “That they’d step in like men, and make music. And they did. And then some.”

What Malo doesn’t say is that the band did zero pre-production. He was on tour in Europe. Other band members had commitments. Given that they were more “let’s see what happens” than locked in, it was decided to show up and see what happened.

Harvesting a sea of influences – from Dean Martin to ZZ Top, Merle Haggard and George Jones to tangos, polkas and Ravel’s “Bolero” – this album was as bold as it was exciting to record. Or as Perez laughs, “It’s so many genres… if you had to call it something, I guess it would have to be ‘inclusive’.”

“I think it took 30 seconds,” Malo says of the band’s inherent chemistry. “We started playing, and it just happened. It was that explosion of sounds! There’s this beautiful simplicity to this, because we did fall together in some ways, but there’s deceptiveness to it, too – because when we play together, we know each other so well.”

“There was a sense anything could go wrong at any moment,” Deakin concurs. “So there was this immediacy – and this notion of really being ‘in’ it. Raul didn’t let us hear the songs on purpose, so we were all really listening, really paying attention because we didn’t know what was going to happen.”

“FIGURE TRAMPOLINE was a massive live production,” the drummer continues, lining out the band’s history album by album. “MUSIC FOR ALL OCCASIONS, that was us recording in the basement of Sony Publishing. And CRYING SHAME was our first real recording session in Nashville with major producers. CRYING SHAME was really the raw us,” said Deakin. “IN TIME feels really, really good. Like when we were making music in the warehouse back in Hialeah (FL). In the end, we went all the way back: we’re like a garage band behind that voice.”

For all the polish and sophistication, sold out shows at the UK’s Royal Albert Hall, cultural blurring and tours of Japan, South America and Europe, United States and Cananda, The Mavericks are, indeed, a post-punk band with deep retro-fittings from Miami’s indie scene. That existing beyond the lines is why the lush ’50s stroll of “That’s Not My Name” is as comfortable for the lil ole band for Calle Ocho as the jukin’ “As Long As They’re Lovin’ Tonight,” the stoic tenderness of “In Another’s Arms” or the epic build-and-recede “Call Me When You Get To Heaven,” featuring the legendary McCrary Sisters, which went down in one take.

“I see this as a record everyone’s invited to,” Malo explains. “It’s a mix of different rhythms, different places and times. From rednecks to Cubans, Mexicans to gringos to WASPs, you can imagine this band pulling into a country festival and playing ‘Dancing In The Moonlight'” – and everybody dancing.

“It’s taking people to new places, but knowing it’s all one world.”

“We constantly struggle with the definition of mainstream,” explains Reynolds. “There were moments obviously when we were ‘in’ it, but it’s more the mainstream embracing us from where we exist on the musical fringes. But rather than being something we’re not, we’ve always stayed true – and by being square pegs, we also probably reflect America, because America’s roots are a melting pot.

“Listen to Raul’s writing: that strength and passion! He paints a larger universe. Big love, big loss, big joy – and party, live! It’s exciting musically, but it’s tricky because it can feel joyous, but sometimes it’s actually this really big pain.”

“Raul’s ability to write a simple lyric,” Deakin reflects, “reflects the mass of humanity, even though it’s one man. When you add his voice, and that sense of melody, it moves people.”

Certainly “Tonight Is The Night,” with its climbing melodic escalation and unabashed brio, is as seductive as country’s been in years, while the B-3 and mariachi “Amsterdam Moon” celebrates the sensual jolt of being alive in the unseen details. Even the spaghetti Western “Come Unto Me” ripples with drama and the squat horn parts as Malo’s voice grows bolder and more epic in its bravado and command of carnality.

Keyboardist Jerry Dale McFadden, who started with the band in ’93, says, “The new music stands for real music, a magical vibe that happens when we play together. You don’t recognize that our work was labored over. No, instead, we make it look like its music that we just started playing.” McFadden believes IN TIME will be applauded by old fans and will likely attract younger audiences as well. “We just made a great record, and there are plenty of folks who will discover this for the first time and discover the vibe, that this is something fresh. What was old is new again.”

“This is a very masculine record,” Malo says with vast understatement. “There’s a little bravado in there, I’ll say that. It’s the bullfighter with the flower in his mouth, but it’s also about men… and women… and how different we are, but how much we want and desire each other. Kind of quit with the understanding, and let’s get back to being what we are.”

Getting back to being what we are underscores everything about The Mavericks return to form. The ferocity of their playing, the singularity of their intent – and yes, the copious sense of exuberance that infuses every note of the album.

“Our relentless pursuit of fun and our selfish notion of pleasing ourselves has always driven us,” Deakin concedes. “But pleasing ourselves creatively has also always worked for us, created an immediacy that makes us true to the songs. We don’t create for a niche or a genre, but to capture the spirit – and that’s always been our strong point.”

“When we were the new kids, there was this excitement,” Reynolds continues. “Maybe even a naivet? that came off as brash, but we were always sincere. We were never trendy, because we weren’t chasing anything. Maybe we were rebels because we were different… But I think people realize now, this is who we are, what we do. It’s not hipster, it’s who we are.”

“The fans have always understood us,” says Raul. “We made them feel good – and that was something then, as now I think, people wanted. Life is so serious; even for a moment, let’s forget and enjoy!”

“That’s one of the best part of this label, Scott (Borchetta, Big Machine Label Group CEO) understood what makes us what we are. He was there when we were happening, and he was very supportive! No one at the label wanted to put hand cuffs on us, they just wanted a Mavericks record… and I think we gave them one.”

Bassist, vocalist, composer Esperanza Spalding unveils the brilliant compositions of her new release, Radio Music Society into a dynamic “big band” format. Inspired by her desire to write for a large ensembles, Spalding has crafted her performances to spotlight the talents of her 12-piece world class band including Spalding on electric bass, double bass and lead vocals; Leo Genovese, piano, Rhodes and keyboards; Chris Turner, backing vocals; Tia Fuller, alto saxophone, backing vocals and music director; Lyndon Rochelle, drums and backing vocals; Jef Lee Johnson, electric guitar and backing vocals; Jeff Galindo, trombone; Corey King, trombone; Igmar Thomas, trumpet; Leala Cyr, trumpet and backing vocals; Dan Blake, tenor and soprano saxophones; and Aaron Burnett, tenor saxophone. Weaving high-caliber artists into the context of a big band could be a challenge, but not for Spalding. Her ability to combine musical styles makes her writing accessible to audiences across the spectrum.

Radio Music Society is a companion release, rather than a sequel, to Spalding’s previous internationally acclaimed Chamber Music Society, which culminated in her winning the Best New Artist GRAMMY® Award in 2011. Radio Music Society is her most diverse, ambitious and masterful recital yet. Each of the 12 songs is accompanied by conceptual music videos, which further express Spalding’s inspiration and story behind each track.

Spalding’s dynamic performances are nothing less than exhilarating when experienced live. As Jeff Baker of The Oregonian once wrote, “This was about art, performed at the highest level by someone with the vision, talent, and determination to make it happen.” Follow the Radio Music Society online at: www.esperanzaspalding.com

25 years ago Paula Poundstone climbed on a Greyhound bus and traveled across the country — stopping in at open mic nights at comedy clubs as she went. A high school drop-out, she went on to become one of the great humorists of our time. You can hear her through your laughter as a regular panelist on NPR’s popular rascal of a weekly news quiz show, Wait Wait… Don’t Tell Me. She tours regularly, performing standup comedy across the country, causing Bob Zany with the Boston Globe to write: “Poundstone can regale an audience for several hours with her distinctive brand of wry, intelligent and witty comedy.” Audience members may put it a little less elegantly: “I peed my pants.”

While there is no doubt that Poundstone is funny, the thing that probably separates her from the pack of comics working today and that has made her a legend among comics and audiences alike is her ability to be spontaneous with a crowd. Poundstone says: “No two shows I do are the same. It’s not that I don’t repeat material. I do. My shows, when they’re good, and I like to think they often are, are like a cocktail party. When you first get there, you talk about how badly you got lost and how hard it was to find parking. Then you tell a story about your kids or what you just saw on the news. You meet some new people and ask them about themselves. Then, someone says, “Tell that story you used to tell,” and then someone on the other side of the room spills a drink, and you mock them. No one ever applauds me when I leave a party, though. I think they high five.”

Paula’s interchanges with the audience are never mean or done at a person’s expense. She even manages to handle politics without provoking the pall of disapproval less artful comics have received.

Her newest comedy CD, I HEART JOKES: Paula Tells Them in Boston was recorded during a performance at the Wilbur Theatre in the heart of the city and was released on April Fool’s Day 2013.

Over the span of her career, Paula has amassed a list of awards and accolades that stretch the length of a great big tall guy’s arm. She not only shot through the glass ceiling, she never even acknowledged that it was there. Never one to stereotype herself as a ‘female comedian’ or limit herself to comedy from a ‘female’ point of view, in the early 90’s she was the first woman to win the cable ACE for Best Standup Comedy Special and the first woman to perform standup at the prestigious White House Correspondents dinner where she joined the current President as part of the evening’s entertainment.

In March, 2013, Paula joins Whoopi Goldberg, Joan Rivers and several other prominent women in comedy for a feature-length documentary produced by Lions Gate to air on Showtime entitled, WHY WE LAUGH TOO: Women of Comedy. In November, 2012 in Washington DC, Paula was honored, along with Nina Totenberg, NPR correspondent; David Brooks, New York Times columnist; and Bob Mankoff, New Yorker Cartoon Editor, with the 2012 Moment Magazine Creativity Award at their 35th anniversary symposium and dinner, followed by a one-hour panel on the intersection of humor and politics. Just weeks later Paula was hand-picked to interview Calvin Trillin for the Los Angeles-series-darling, Writers Bloc, a series that presents conversations between the featured author and another interesting thinker.

Paula has starred in comedy specials on HBO and BRAVO, won an Emmy Award, served as “official correspondent” for The Tonight Show during the 1992 Presidential race, pioneered the art of backstage commentary during an Emmy telecast, steps up to the plate for causes she believes in, and is almost always included in any compendium – be it film, television or print, noting comedic influences of the 20th/21st century, most recently, We Killed: The Rise of Women in American Comedy (October 2012, Sarah Crichton Books). Paula also appears on “Late Night w/Craig Ferguson” about 3 times a year and she’ll do an occasional editorial for NPR’s “All Things Considered”.

n April 2013 NPR Laughter Therapy (Highbridge Audio) will be released, a 2-CD collection of NPR’s best interviews and stories with “funny folks” including Paula’s Talk of the Nation interview. If it means anything to anyone, she is recognized as one of Comedy Central’s 100 greatest stand-ups of all time. Paula won an American Comedy Award for Best Female Standup Comic, and in 2010 she was one of a select group voted into the Comedy Hall of Fame.

Wait Wait…Don’t Tell Me is now heard in 5 million homes across the country, including all of the major markets, internationally on NPR Worldwide, streaming on the Internet and via podcast. In 2008 it received a Peabody Award for broadcasting excellence. On the show Paula gets to match wits with some of the country’s leading pundits. In May 2013 the show will do its first Cinecast from New York’s Town Hall and Paula will be one of the Panelists. The show made it’s television debut on BBC America with a “2011 Year In Review.” Paula was on that panel as well. Poundstone quickly goes on record about how much she loves being part of the show saying: “I am a proud member of the endorphin production industry. They allow me to say whatever I want on Wait, Wait Don’t Tell Me. The panelists are unscripted, so it’s perfect for me. I feel like I’m a batter in a batting cage. I get lobbed topics. Sometimes I just watch them go by, but every now and then I get a piece of one. If the others didn’t cheat, it would be an almost perfect work experience.”

Paula is also a published author and lecturer. Her hard cover book, There is Nothing In This Book That I Meant To Say (Crown, 2006, with a forward by Mary Tyler Moore) is still in release on audio (Highbridge) and in paperback. Other writing credits include the back page columnist of Mother Jones, The Los Angeles Times, Entertainment Weekly, and Glamour magazine.

Not only a writer, but an avid reader, Paula continues her role for the American Library Association (ALA) as the Nat’l spokesperson for United for Libraries, their “Friends of Libraries” national network – a citizens support group who work to raise awareness and much needed funds to support their local libraries. Paula has appeared as the headliner at the ALA’s annual conference for their Laughs On Us panel the last four years, and to quote Sally Reed, the ALA Nat’l Director: ”…you’d have to come to one of these events to see how adored Paula is by librarians. We love her and it’s never repetitive.” Paula has hosted many events to great success, including the Art Directors Guild Awards an unprecedented 4 times,

Paula’s incredible spontaneous humor is the perfect fit for the voracious appetite of the social networks, not to mention short films on her website. Paula’s new comedy CD, I HEART JOKES: Paula Tells Them in Boston follows her first CD, I HEART JOKES: Paula Tells Them in Maine (November 2007). Both are available for sale on the Store page of this website, on CDbaby, and iTunes.

He’s played with everyone, he’s toured everywhere, he can lead a raucous big band or hold an audience silent with a solo acoustic blues. Here’s the story of David Bromberg, or at least some of it . . .

Born in Philadelphia in 1945 and raised in Tarrytown, NY, “as a kid I listened to rock ‘n’ roll and whatever else was on the radio,” says Bromberg. “I discovered Pete Seeger and The Weavers and, through them, Reverend Gary Davis. I then discovered Big Bill Broonzy, who led me to Muddy Waters and the Chicago blues. This was more or less the same time I discovered Flatt and Scruggs, which led to Bill Monroe and Doc Watson.”

Bromberg began studying guitar-playing when he was 13 and eventually enrolled in Columbia University as a musicology major. The call of the Greenwich Village folk scene in the mid-’60s drew David to the downtown clubs and coffeehouses, where he could watch and learn from the best performers, including primary sources such as his inspiration and teacher, the Reverend Gary Davis.

Bromberg’s sensitive and versatile approach to guitar-playing earned him jobs playing the Village “basket houses” for tips, the occasional paying gig, and lots of employment as a backing musician for Tom Paxton, Jerry Jeff Walker and Rosalie Sorrels, among others. He became a first-call, “hired gun” guitarist for recording sessions, ultimately playing on hundreds of records by artists including Bob Dylan (New Morning, Self Portrait, Dylan), Link Wray, The Eagles, Ringo Starr, Willie Nelson, and Carly Simon.

An unexpected and wildly successful solo spot at the 1970 Isle of Wight Festival in Great Britain led to a solo deal with Columbia Records, for whom David recorded four albums. His eponymous 1971 debut not only included the mock-anguished “Suffer to Sing the Blues,” a Bromberg original that became an FM radio staple, but also “The Holdup,” a songwriting collaboration with former Beatle George Harrison, whom he met at his manager’s Thanksgiving dinner festivities. Harrison also played slide guitar on the track. Through Bromberg’s manager, Al Aronowitz, David also met the Grateful Dead and wound up with four of their members, including Jerry Garcia, playing on his next two albums.

Bromberg’s range of material, based in the folk and blues idioms, continually expanded with each new album to encompass bluegrass, ragtime, country and ethnic music, and his touring band grew apace. By the mid-’70s, the David Bromberg Big Band included horn-players, a violinist, and several multi-instrumentalists, including David himself. Among the best-known Bromberg Band graduates: mandolinist Andy Statman, later a major figure in the Klezmer music movement in America, and fiddler Jay Ungar (who wrote the memorable “Ashokan Farewell” for Ken Burns’ PBS documentary, “The Civil War”).

Despite jubilant, loose-limbed concerts and a string of acclaimed albums on the Fantasy label, Bromberg found himself exhausted by the logistics of the music business. “I decided to change the direction of my life,” he explains. So David dissolved his band in 1980, and he and his artist/musician wife, Nancy Josephson, moved from Northern California to Chicago, where David attended the Kenneth Warren School of Violin Making. Though he still toured periodically, the recordings slowed to a trickle and then stopped.

After “too many Chicago winters,” in 2002 David and Nancy were lured to Wilmington, Del., where they became part of the city’s artist-in-residence program and where David could establish David Bromberg Fine Violins, a retail store and repair shop for high quality instruments. Frequent participation in the city’s weekly jam sessions helped rekindle Bromberg’s desire to make music again, as did the encouragement of fellow musicians Chris Hillman (The Byrds, Desert Rose Band, Flying Burrito Brothers) and bluegrass wizard Herb Pedersen, and David’s manager, Steve Bailey. The jams also led to the formation of Angel Band, fronted by Nancy and two other female vocalists, with David serving as an accompanist.

With the release of Try Me One More Time, David continues his musical revitalization, playing shows on his own, backed by (and supporting) Angel Band, his own David Bromberg Quartet, and reunions of the David Bromberg Big Band, the configuration depending on the circumstance. Listen for that joyful noise – David Bromberg’s back!

What quality separates Patrizio from other great artists? Is it the natural grace of his voice, the “rugged” good looks, or the confident, casual, respectful attention that he gives to his audience? Or is it just the basic trust he evokes in people?

Italy has provided a simple word to describe all of the above; “Simpatico”.

Being Italian and possessing a strong voice or a big range, does not mean necessary being a classical or opera singer. Patrizio Buanne has been influenced and continues the style of those performers with EXPRESSIVE BIG CHARISMATIC VOICES and a great sense of entertainement.