Michael is a singer, songwriter, recording artist, and great guitar
player first and foremost... He has been recording, performing and
perfecting his craft for 30 years plus... in addition to singing and
playing, writing great songs, and arrangements... he has 4 great CDs,
and many copyrighted works to his credit, and is on his own Indie
Label...Finally receiving notoriety and airplay worldwide in 2007 for the
release of his "Lost In the Blues" album... and the re-release of his
"Easy Money" album. Both of these CDs are on digital jukeboxes
everywhere... He continues to establish himself as a solo artist, though
he has played with many great musicians along the way... Tommy Bolin,
Toy Caldwell (Marshal Tucker Band), Johnny Lee, Charlie Musselwhite,
Mark Naftlin (Butterfield Blues Band), Katy Moffat and many other great
artists... some you have heard of and some you have not...The new CD "Why I Sing The Blues" is his absolute best ever... and a
must listen... it is already receiving great reviews, and airplay,
including regular rotation on internet, college, public and commercial
radio stations... known and respected worldwide you will no doubt hear
more of his music well into the future...MICHAEL HARRISON BLUES
When Tumi Mogorosi composed this suite for jazz musicians and opera
vocalists he had never heard the previous successful attempts by Donald
Byrd, Max Roach or Mary Lou Williams to combine these seemingly
'unfriendly'aesthetics. Tumi, born in 1987 and already an accomplished
drummer on the Jo'Burg scene, was at the time studying music at the
Tshwane University of Pretoria where he became close friends with opera
singers working on the same campus. So unlike some of his US peers
Tumi's beliefs are not 'religious'.
Surprisingly, Tumi's suite wasn't influenced by these great elders'
masterpieces, but anyone who listens to this album will agree that the
suite encaptures the soaring spirituality that made these experiments of
the '60s the beloved classics that they are today. Tumi does not belong
to any religious group.
This album is neither a jazz mass like Mary Lou William's Black Christ
of the Andes, nor a compilation of devotional pieces like Donald Byrd's
Christo Redentor. Project Elo stands for Project Elohim, the angelic
entities of the spiritual scriptures which are in the drummer's
philosophy, a symbol for accomplished human beings.
The spirituality the album conveys is attuned to a 21st century
syncretic, non dogmatic vision infused with esotericism. Recorded live
with no overdubs in two days by a group of friends, this album captures a
moment of Eternity and will defy any idea you may have of what South
African jazz is. Tumi's music transcends labels and styles. When
composing or playing he is only concerned with being true to the
primodial source of life, which cannot be confined to any genre.TUMI MOGOROSI
If there’s a performer today that embodies the oft-applied moniker of
“songwriter’s songwriter” it’s Houston favorite, Matt Harlan. A
troubadour of the first degree, Matt has been bringing his songs of
bus-stops, coffee-shops and lives overlooked to stages across his
home-state of Texas, the USA and Europe.Born and raised in Texas, Harlan soaked up the richness of the state and
its song-smiths while bouncing between its big cities and small towns.
With three studio albums to his name, Harlan exposes a range of
influences, to interpret a generation steeped in plastic yet filtered
through the Hill Country limestone. His expressive vocals recall Chris
Smither and Chris Knight, shading his poignant songs with soaring heart
and aching grit.Matt has just released his third album, "Raven Hotel," which was
recorded in Austin, TX with producer, Rich Brotherton. The collection
features tunes in a variety of moods and is being well received by
national and international Americana radio, earning a #1 debut on the
Euro Americana Charts.Harlan is a winner of multiple songwriting accolades, from outfits like
American Songwriter and Billboard. Most recently he was awarded the 2013
Singer-Songwriter of the Year at the Texas Music Awards and was
featured alongside a stellar cast of characters (Lyle Lovett, Guy Clark)
in the documentary, “For the Sake of the Song.” MATT HARLAN
Joe Camilleri, writer of milestone Australian songs such as So Young,
Hit And Run, Shape I’m In, Hold On To Me, Harley and Rose, Chained To
The Wheel and Never Let Me Go, has given his life to making music in
this country. Leader of two of Australia’s most successful bands, Jo Jo
Zep and The Falcons and The Black Sorrows, Joe’s music has become part
of Australian music culture. Joe was inducted along with other members
of the Falcons, into the Australian Recording Industry (ARIA Hall of
Fame) in 2007.In 1975 Joe, a self taught musician from Melbourne’s western suburbs,
formed Jo Jo Zep and The Falcons, a band who swung from R’n’B to reggae,
power pop and ska. Over a period of 8 years The Falcons amassed
enviable sales and radio airplay and ultimately epitomised the era. Jo
Jo Zep and The Falcons toured the country relentlessly and became one of
Australia’s finest live outfits. The band also toured the USA.In the early ‘80s Camilleri and friends started up a new band, The Black
Sorrows. Originally a ‘just for the fun of it’ outfit, The Sorrows have
released 12 albums over the past fifteen years and sold well over a
million albums world-wide. The Black Sorrows has always been an elastic
band and over its life has been home to some 32 of Australia’s finest
musical talents. Vika and Linda Bull, Jen Anderson, Stephen Hadley,
Michael Barker, Peter Luscombe, Nick Smith, Ross Hannaford and James
Black (just to name a few) have all been part of the fertile Joe
Camilleri/Black Sorrows fold and all have gone on to play with the best
of the best in this country. JOE CAMILLERI
Benjamin Herman (alto saxophone, C-melody saxophone, flute) began
playing saxophone at the age of twelve, and was soon active on the
professional club circuit. By the time he received the Wessel Ilcken Prize at 21, he had already performed all over the world.In 1991, the year he graduated with honours at Hilversum Conservatory, Herman was the only European selected for the Thelonious Monk Competition. Other candidates included Joshua Redman, Chris Potter and Eric Alexander.Back from studying with Dick Oatts at the Manhattan School of Music in New York, Benjamin Herman soon began initiating his own projects, including the pioneering New Cool Collective ensemble.As one of Holland’s most productive and prominent jazz musicians,
Benjamin Herman is a much sought-after soloist. He has played and
recorded with Rein de Graaf, Fra Fra Big Band, Michiel Borstlap, Candy
Dulfer, Jazz Orchestra of the Concertgebouw, Misha Mengelberg, Paul
Weller and Georgie Fame.He has also made a name as a composer at home
and abroad.Herman plays numerous concerts each year with New Cool Collective
and his quartet (Benjamin Herman: alto sax, Jesse van Ruller: guitar,
Carlo de Wijs: Hammond organ, Martijn Vink: drums) strongly inspired by
popular dance-floor jazz. New Cool Collective and the New Cool
Collective Big Band often perform at international pop venues and
festivals, resulting in a following far beyond the normal jazz concert
crowd. BENJAMIN HERMAN
The music combines all the different musical traditions Joe has been
involved in – years of Classical training (composing from an early age,
singing in choirs and playing in orchestras), whilst at the same time
playing in all manner of bands and ensembles, DJing and producing, and
performing live improvised experimental music.By tapping into the energy of virtuoso drum solos and adding the
elements of other music that are dark and beautiful, he creates
Electronic music made with acoustic instruments, drums, field recordings
and natural sounds – intense, beat-driven Classical textures with
layers of energy, emotion and atmosphere.Like all of Joe's mixtapes, there is a broad and multi-layered range
of music and sound from around the world, from contemporary releases
stretching back to the 1940's and something from every decade in-between
- including imagined collaborations such as Burial with vocals from
Argentinian folk legend Mercedes Sosa, or Linton Kwesi Johnson reciting
poetry over Tipper's immaculately-produced beats.There is also a
wealth of sound design and spoken word, taken from interviews with
composers, radio programmes (many recorded by Joe), and poetry recitals.Other
artists making appearances in this fast-paced mix include Four Tet,
King Tubby, Frank Sinatra, Junip, Kidkanevil and Daisuke Tanabe,
Squarepusher, The Four Tops, DJ Shadow, Floex, Finley Quaye, Clarinet
Factory, Origamibiro and many more…HIDDEN ORCHESTRA
Polish duo Skalpel channeled the influence of their homeland's rich jazz
traditions into their own contemporary electronic sound. DJs/producers
Marcin Cichy and Igor Pudlo first teamed in Wroclaw, Poland, in 1998.
Working in virtual anonymity, Skalpel soon began assembling the first of
their Eastern European fusion-inspired cut-and-paste mosaics by
sampling classic LPs from artists including Krzysztof
Komeda, Tomasz Stanko, and the Novi Sisters, spending months and even
years in search of the right sounds to complete each individual track.
In 2000 Pudlo interviewed Ninja Tune label artist DJ Vadim for the
Polish hip-hop magazine Klan. Soon after, Vadim invited Skalpel to tour
Poland with his Russian Percussion ensemble, and after returning to
Wroclaw the duo issued their debut CD-R, Polish Jazz. Despite limited
distribution, the release was the subject of rapturous acclaim and in
2001 Ninja Tune extended a record deal. Skalpel spent the next three
years working on its self-titled debut LP, earning comparison to jazz
icons Miles Davis and Herbie Hancock with the end result. Konfusion
followed in 2007. SKALPEL
In 2006, the Juke Hounds were drawn together by a shared attitude about
the world. A Midwestern grit that made each of them relate to the blues
in the first place -- and then to each other.The Juke Hounds play the ”blues with a feeling” all right. But that
feeling is not the familiar woe-is-me nobody-loves-me pose, but one of
defiance and swagger that says "you can't keep me down." The music, the
lyrics and and even the bands aggressive stage presence, announce they
are a force to be reckoned with.Brittany Nader Of Buzzbin Magazine agrees that when the Juke Hounds start to play,
“it’s impossible not to get up and start shaking along to the rhythm.”
Mike Fuller of Water Street Tavern, echoes the observation: "There are a
lot of people dancing and moving around. Not a lot of people are
sitting down…. Everyone stands and treats it like a rock show, and
that's pretty much how it is."The Juke Hounds know something about defiance. When friends, family and
even fellow musicians insisted that playing the blues in Ohio was a
foolish waste of time, The Jukes took their advice as a personal
challenge. Today, the Juke Hounds are rocking the blues to packed houses
across Northeast Ohio -- not to mention all the way to Memphis.In 2010, The Juke Hounds won the Cleveland Blues Society “Road To
Memphis” competition and represented Akron, Canton, and Cleveland at the
2011 International Blues Competition in Memphis where the band
showcased at the Hard Rock Café’ on Beale Street. This year (2013), the
Juke Hounds won the NEOBA Blues Competition and will represent Northeast
Ohio at the 2014 International Blues Competition held in Memphis TN. THE JUKE HOUNDS
Ed Stallman is a guitarist and keyboardist from San Diego who currently
plays instrumental blues, jazz, and rock. All songs are produced,
engineered, and recorded by Ed Stallman at Coastal Eddie Studio. "I have
combined sequenced background music and lead guitar parts to create
some really groovy
tunes. I am a 30-year guitar, keyboard, and vocal
pro. I have sold thousands of CDs and downloads on the Internet and have
amassed over two million downloads and streams of my songs to date. You
have probably heard some of my tunes at a local store or eatery via
Trusonic music service."Ed Stallman's playing is just incredible. He is a true world-class
player who delivers amazingly intricate, tasteful, grooves in each and
every one of his instrumentals. When we think of guitar solos, we tend
to think of cryptic riffs that are great to hear but hard to remember.
Stallman is different. I can actually recall the melodies and I can sing
along with his guitar riffs in the car! Stallman's mastery of
blues/jazzy and funky guitar is second to nobody. Add to this some
fabulous studio production - and you have it all. His album is a great
example of a great guitar player, with rhythm to burn and an imagination
to match. ED STALLMAN
