Terrance Simien and the Zydeco Experience
For more than 2 decades Grammy award winning artist Terrance Simien, 8th generation Louisiana Creole has been shattering the myths about what his indigenous Creole Zydeco music is and is not. Leading his Zydeco Experience Band, Simien has become one of the most respected and internationally recognized touring and recording artists in roots music today. He has performed over 5000 concerts, toured millions of miles to over 40 countries and reached at least a million people during his eventful 25 year career.
Simien is blessed with an extraordinary talent that expresses the deepest human emotions through the original instrument: The Voice. His eclectic fusion of Zydeco takes you on a multicultural musical tour of the world. Incorporating diverse music styles he creates a hypnotic blend of Zydeco-roots-New Orleans funk-reggae-flavored-Afro-Caribbean-world music that will force you out of your seat and onto the dance floor. He has found a way to express himself as a relevant and evolving artist who remains reverent to his roots and musical legacy. His live performances have garnered him a level of international success and his fully engaged audiences around the globe have become more Zydeco Experienced than ever before!
He has received countless awards, grants and recognition for his artistry as well as his contributions to help raise the professional standards by mentoring his fellow and emerging artists about the music industry. He worked closely with HBO producers on and was seen in the HBO documentary film “The Music in Me: Children’s Recitals from Classical to Latin, Jazz to Zydeco.” In 2008 Simien became a spokesperson for the State of Louisiana Office of Tourism and is featured in national television commercials and print ads. In December of 2009, Disney will release a new Pixar animated film, “The Princess & The Frog”, set in New Orleans, featuring their first black princess, scored by Randy Newman and features the music of Simien, Terence Blanchard and Dr. John to name a few. Terrance is currently working on a non fiction book for students about Creole culture and zydeco music.
Modern English
Modern English is a British Modern Rock Band best remembered for their songs "I Melt with You," "Hands Across the Sea," and "Ink and Paper".
Original founding members Robbie Grey (vocals), Mick Conroy (bass guitar), Gary McDowell (guitar) and Stephen Walker (keyboards) are back for the first time since the Mid-80’s performing live music together, along with long-term associate guitarist Steve Walker.
This summer Modern English will be playing songs from their entire catalogue including the now classic tracks from the seminal new wave album’s “After The Snow” and “Ricochet Days” and “Mesh And Lace. “ They’ll also be playing songs from the critically acclaimed new album “Soundtrack” and the recently re-issued on CD, “Stop Start.”
A recent review of Soundtrack
“Soundtrack”, the band’s seventh studio album in a 30 year career, marks the convincing return of a band with a solidly recognizable, signature sound and pop sensibility. The album was produced by Hugh Jones (“I Melt With You”, After The Snow, Ricochet Days, plus Simple Minds, Echo & The Bunnymen, That Petrol Emotion, Pale Saints, The Charlatans, etc.) who has been a long time Modern English collaborater While not the most prolific of bands (this is only their 7th full length in a 30 year career), Modern English has continually offered up something a little different and unexpected but always worthwhile. Even the much- maligned Stop/Start album from 1986 has plenty of glorious moments buried beneath the (over) production. Their iconic 1982 hit, "I Melt With You", is one of the true defining musical moments of the '80s yet the band has remained outsiders, which allows them the freedom to create new music on their own terms. Their last album, Everything Is Mad (1996), may have strayed a little too far away from the band's musical origins, but that's to be expected from a band who doesn't usually travel the same road twice.
With Soundtrack, Modern English have repaved a few of those old roads while still moving forward, which is a feat not many veteran bands have been able to pull off. Roping in producer Hugh Jones was a brilliant move since he was the man responsible for their hit albums After the Snow (1982) and Ricochet Days (1984). On Soundtrack, Robbie Grey and the boys sound revitalized and focused, offering up an album that sounds thor- oughly modern yet righteously retro.
JJ Grey and Mofro
JJ has brought his music to countless festivals, including Austin City Limits Festival, Byron Bay Blues Festival (Australia), Bonnaroo, Montreal Jazz Festival and Fuji Rock (Japan). Over the course of his 15-plus year career, Grey has shared stages with the likes of the B.B. King, The Allman Brothers Band, The Black Crowes, Los Lobos, Jeff Beck, Ben Harper, Lenny Kravitz, Booker T. Jones, Mavis Staples and many others. In the spring of 2010 Grey was awarded the opportunity of a lifetime as a solo acoustic opener with soul legends Mavis Staples and Booker T. Jones on the What It Is! tour. JJ reminisces, “Getting to open up for such legends, it’s just something I’ll never forget.”
His songs have also appeared in film and on network and cable television programs including House, Flashpoint, Crash, Friday Night Lights, The Deadliest Catch, and the film The Hoot. In November 2009, JJ wrote his first film score for the critically acclaimed documentary The Good Soldier that appeared in theatres and on Bill Moyers' Journal on PBS. Recently, Grey played piano, sang and contributed a song (The Wrong Side) to Buckwheat Zydeco’s Grammy-winning Alligator album, Lay Your Burden Down.
With the release of Georgia Warhorse and a relentless world tour to follow, Grey is set for a breakout year. Commenting on his musical future, he says, “Life just makes itself up right in front of me and I just roll with it. All I know is to have the family I have, see the places I’ve been, meet the people I’ve met and to get to play music with some of the most talented folks around has got to make me the luckiest man alive.”
Shemekia Copeland
At a young age, Shemekia Copeland is already a force to be reckoned with in the blues. While still in her 20s, she’s opened for the Rolling Stones, headlined at the Chicago Blues Festival and numerous festivals around the world, scored critics choice awards on both sides of the Atlantic (The New York Times and The Times of London) and shared thestage with such luminaries as Buddy Guy, B.B. King, Taj Mahal and John Mayer. Heir to the rich tradition of soul-drenched divas like Ruth Brown, Etta James and Koko Taylor, Copeland’s shot at the eventual title of Queen of the Blues is pretty clear. By some standards, she may already be there.
Trevor Hall
A graduate of Southern California’s Idyllwild School for the Performing Arts, Hall used his music as a means to follow his spiritual quest. Now in his early twenties, Hall has performed alongside Ben Harper, Jason Mraz, Stevie Nicks, Matisyahu, and recently opened for Michael Franti. His song titled “Other Ways” was featured in the Shrek the Third Soundtrack. Hall is a kind spirit that performs music as it “flows through him” for the audience. After multiple trips to India, Hall has created a sacred connection with the South Asian country, and has a personal connection with a Temple-orphanage. Hall has a donation box displayed at every show to help pay for their education, food and clothing.
Tea Leaf Green
June 2010 Tea Leaf Green will release Looking West, their first studio album in 2 years. The release is a compilation of road-tested, fan favorite songs that the band has never recorded in the studio. The album marks a new chapter for Tea Leaf Green and represents the artistic and individual growth of the band since their formation more than a decade ago.
In a few short years, these road warriors have built a strong following, consistently filling venues across the country and becoming a warmly received, go-to band on the festival circuit with stand-out performances at Bonnaroo, Wakarusa, 10K Lakes, and The Echo Project, among others. Sharing some of the style and substance of musical contemporaries My Morning Jacket, Wolfmother, and the Raconteurs, Tea Leaf Green conjures the spirit of bands like '70s Bob Dylan, Tom Petty, and The Grateful Dead, taking classic sounds and giving them a present-day polish. Tea Leaf Green reminds us at every turn just how alluring rock 'n' roll can be.
The Ragbirds
The Ragbirds are a 5-piece, female-led, folk-rock-world fusion band out of Ann Arbor, MI. They describe their own music as "infectious global groove". The musical roots of The Ragbirds sound are complex - with Gypsy, Middle-Eastern, Americana, rock, and Latin influences, all stirred with a Celtic fiddler’s bow. In live performances the band incorporates variations on traditional African drum pieces, each member trading their instrument for a hand drum. The songs carry a positive message and include both pop hooks and improvised solos. It is music that fits stages of many sizes and styles - from the "listening rooms" that folk audiences flock to - to jam-band music festivals - to bars and clubs with a hyped-up dance floor.
Carl Palmer
Carl Palmer of the legendary Emerson, Lake and Palmer, often considered one of the greatest drummers of our time.
Featuring original members: David Nelson & Buddy Cage with Michael Falzarano (Hot Tune), Johnny Markowski (Stir Fried/JGB) and Ronnie Penque (Stir Fried/JGB/Ripple)
