It’s the end of an era as Jann Wenner, co-founder of Rolling Stone magazine, will be stepping down from his role as chairman of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. The change will take effect on January 1, 2020, where he will be replaced by John Sykes, the current president of Entertainment Enterprises for radio giant, iHeartMedia.
As Chairman, Wenner carried the responsibility of not only being the face of the Rock Hall, but the person who was blamed for perceived shortcomings, such as the lack of colored and women inductees. That burden will now fall upon Sykes, whom Jann Wenner himself nominated. “I just felt I had done what I set out to do… That it had been built, stabilized and become well financed and managed — and, after 30-plus years of running it, time for new energy, new ideas, a new generation,” Wenner said, according to the New York Times.
In 1983, Wenner aided in the founding of the Rock Hall, along with Ahmet Ertegun, Bruce Springsteen manager Jon Landau, attorney Suzan Evans, and record executives Seymour Stein and Bob Krasnow, and has served as its chairman since 2006 following Ertegun’s passing.
The institution began inducting honorees in 1986 and a few months later, Cleveland was selected as the permanent home of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. Throughout its history, there have been 330 inductees, comprised of esteemed artists, producers, and music executives.
Wenner is leaving behind a strong legacy, according to the Rock Hall’s website: “the Rock Hall had a total impact of $199 million in business sales in Cuyahoga County. Visitors to the Rock Hall spent an estimated $127.4 million in 2017, averaging a daily spend of $349,000, both on-site and at other businesses in the County.”
Groovesafe, a movement within the musical community to bring awareness about unwanted touching and sexual assault at concerts, has been making in roads through the music industry since the charity was formed in 2017 by Ashley Driscoll. On Monday, October 14, members of Turkuaz, Lespecial, Escaper, Goose and many more will join together as Groovesafe Allstars, for a benefit concert supporting Groovesafe at Brooklyn Bowl.
Driscoll has been bringing together musicians from across the jam scene to spread the word about Groovesafe. A topic such as unwanted touching is one that is all too common but the issue had not been brought to light until the past few years, around the same time the #MeToo movement pushed back against sexual assault and sexual harassment in the workplace. Through music scenes that intertwine, the mission of Groovesafe can be spread and consent culture can become the norm.
The October 11 Groovesafe Allstars benefit at Brooklyn Bowl has Driscoll’s mission front and center in the jam scene. Speaking to NYS Music about the event, Driscoll says, “I’m excited about this inaugural event because it allows us to showcase what our mission is all about. The thrilling thing about the “AllStar” aspect is we can unite different GrooveSafe Artist Ambassadors from bands of all genres. Bringing everyone together to highlight the importance of our work at GrooveSafe and our main goal to rebuild consent culture in the live music realm.”
“All we want to do is spread awareness that these bad behaviors are happening and that we won’t stand for them anymore. Change in behaviors begins with this awareness. We will be out there at The Brooklyn Bowl on Monday night to remind people how important it is to respect each others dance space, and focus on why we see shows; the music.
Ashley Driscoll – founder of Groovesafe
The show features The GrooveSafe AllStars – Sammi Garett (Vocals – Turkuaz), Josh Schwartz (Sax – Turkuaz), Greg Sanderson (Sax – Turkuaz), Chris Brouwers (Trumpet – Turkuaz), Luke Bemand (Bass – lespecial), Will Hanza (Lead Guitar – Escaper), Ben Atkind (Drums – Goose), Matt Dolliver (Keys, EWI – Swimmer), Sam Lisabeth (Guitar – Guerilla Toss), Melissa Goscinski (Vocals – Cousin Earth), and Tara Lawton (Vocals – Cousin Earth), with an appearance by Tom Salgo (Guitar-Of Clocks And Clouds). More info can be found here.
This initial event will be the start of a series of benefit concerts, spreading the mission of Groovesafe.
We hope to have a rotating act and continue to put on benefit concerts with talented musicians who support the movement to stop unwanted touching at shows in cities throughout the country. Our touring bands work so hard to bring you the music, let’s work together and make the show experience better. Let’s help people love the music again and give us a voice to create safer shows. Practice consent and take care of each other.
Ashley Driscoll – founder of Groovesafe
Additionally, at the upcoming HarvestFest at Woods Valley, Groovesafe will receive a portion of ticket sales from the weekend event, which features Rob Compa of Dopapod and Hayley Jane, among others.
“The Swamp,” as Giants Stadium was affectionately known, hosted Grateful Dead shows in 1987, 1989 and 1991. In 1987, the band saw their hit “Touch of Grey” reach the Top 10 and the band’s stadium rock years hitting their peak. The latest box set from the godfather of jam bands, GIANTS STADIUM: 1987, 1989, 1991 features five previously unreleased Grateful Dead shows from Big Blue’s home in East Rutherford, NJ: July 12, 1987; July 9 and 10, 1989; and June 16 and 17, 1991.
Originally recorded by John Cutler, each show has been mixed from the multitrack master tapes by Jeffrey Norman at Bob Weir’s TRI Studios in San Rafael, CA and mastered in HDCD by David Glasser at Airshow Mastering. The first three shows are mixed from 24-track masters. The final two from 1991 are the only Grateful Dead shows ever recorded to 48-track masters.
This release is limited to 10,000 individually numbered copies and available via Dead.net. Find more details on the Giants Stadium box set here.
Grateful Dead archivist and legacy manager David Lemiuex says of the “Loose Lucy” from the June 17, 1991 show, “Gone from the repertoire for 16 years, 1974-1990, when it made its return at the Capital Center on 3/14/90, it was in its slower 1973 arrangement, and was incredibly well-received, with one of the most inadvertently self-referential choruses in the Dead’s canon. Were they thanking us for a real good time? Were we thanking them? Regardless, it was a blast to sing along with Jerry when he was clearly having fun singing this classic.”
Jazz and Microbits will occur every Wednesday from 6-8 p.m. The schedule for October features world jazz trio BeBimBop (10/2), Newark-based trumpeter James Gibbs III (10/9), renowned guitarist Paul Meyers and Brazilian percussionist Nanny Assis (10/16), guitarist Bob Devos and bassist Steve LaSpina (10/23), and pianist Oscar Perez (10/30). Click here for directions.
Riverview Jazz, the producers of the Jersey City Jazz Festival, have announced a new intimate jazz series in Kearny Point, NJ. In partnership with Sprig Market Cafe and Kearny Point, each Wednesday in the month of October will bring an evening of delectable bites, bespoke cocktails, and world-class jazz music.
“We are very excited to bring some great jazz to the town of Kearny. We toured the industrial space at Kearny Point and immediately saw the potential for presenting music,” says Riverview Jazz Executive Director Bryan Beninghove. “The food and drinks at Sprig are top-notch, there’s a wealth of amazing musicians in the area, and the vibe is really hip. We’re excited!” RiverviewJazz.Org is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization.
Admission to Kearny Jazz is free with a tasting menu offered for $25/person.
Harlem-based band Mwenso & The Shakes will embark on their extensive “Harlem 100” North American Tour this fall which includes stops in Baton Rouge, Jacksonville, Greenville, Charlotte, Des Moines, Princeton, St. Louis, Flint, Stanford and many more.
In collaboration with IMG Artists,the National Jazz Museum in Harlem and JMG Live, this multimedia show celebrates the 100th anniversary of the Harlem Renaissance while capturing the sights and sounds of Harlem when legendary artists such as Fats Waller, Duke Ellington, Langston Hughes and Billie Holiday made Harlem the cultural center of the country. Conducted by bandleader and lead vocalist Michael Mwenso, “Harlem 100” presents the most exciting Harlem musicians and dancers in a modern variety show.
Mwenso & The Shakes
“The ‘Harlem 100′ will be a musical journey that celebrates one of the greatest movements in cultural history while connecting the past to the present,” says Mwenso.
Mwenso was born in Freetown, Sierra Leone but spent his teenage years hanging out at the legendary jazz club Ronnie Scott’s in London where he was exposed to musicians such as Benny Carter, Elvin Jones, Ray Brown and Billy Higgins. In his youth, Mwenso started honing his talents as a trombonist, singer and performer playing in jump bands, reggae and Afrobeat horn sections and at hard-bop sessions. Mwenso’s talent as a performer caught the attention of many, which subsequently led him to meet James Brown who allotted space for him to sing and dance at his London shows.
The band’s debut album Emergence, out now via Ropeadope Records, has received critical praise, with PRI’s “The World” saying, “To say the music of Mwenso and The Shakes is pretty wild is an understatement. It’s part jazz, part funk and part Broadway show tunes.”
Driven by Mwenso’s deep ancestral understanding of the African-American music tradition, Emergence came together through many late nights at the band’s loft in Harlem exploring music outside of the traditional classroom, using free-form musical expression. Hailing from many corners of the world including Sierra Leone, London, South Africa, Greenwich Village, Madagascar, France, Jamaica and Hawaii, the band gains inspiration from each of their unique backgrounds while cohesively collaborating in a spontaneously communal and improvisational environment.
In 2012, friend and jazz musician Wynton Marsalis brought Mwenso to New York City to serve as curator and programming associate at Jazz at Lincoln Center where he also booked nightly sets at Dizzy’s Club Coca-Cola. Over the next few years, Mwenso booked and performed with the likes of Cécile McLorin Salvant, Jon Batiste, Aaron Diehl, Sullivan Fortner and Jamison Ross.
Through these performances at Dizzy’s, Mwenso began to collaborate with a wide variety of Juilliard-trained musicians that soon became known as The Shakes. This unique group of global artists presents music that merges entertainment and artistry with a formidable timeline of jazz and blues through African and Afro-American music.
Mwenso & The Shakes are Mwenso (bandleader, vocals), Vuyo Sotashe (vocals), Kyle Poole (drums), Gabe Schnider (guitar), Mathis Picard (piano and keys), Ruben Fox (tenor sax), Julian Lee (tenor sax), Russell Hall (bass)and Michela Marino Lerman (tap dance).
Mwenso & The Shakes “Harlem 100” Tour Dates
October 8—Baton Rouge, LA—The Manship Theatre
October 11—Irmo, SC—Harbison Theatre at Midlands Technical College
October 12—Wilmington, NC—Thalian Hall
October 13—Jacksonville, FL—Ritz Theatre & Museum
October 14—Greenville, SC—Peace Center for Performing Arts
October 15—Charlotte, NC—Blumenthal Performing Arts, Knight Theater
October 17—College Park, MD—Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center
October 18—Harrisonburg, VA—James Madison University – The Forbes Center for the Performing Arts
October 19—Hampton, VA— Hampton Arts, The American Theatre
October 22—University Park, PA—Center for the Performing Arts at Penn State University
October 23—Lancaster, PA—Millersville University, The Ware Center
October 24—Rochester, NY—Nazareth College Arts Center, Callahan Theater
October 26—Storrs, CT—Jorgensen Center for the Performing Arts at University of Connecticut
October 27—Morristown, NJ—Mayo Performing Arts Center
October 30—Des
Moines, IA—Hoyt Sherman Place
November 1—West Lafayette, IN—Loeb Playhouse at Purdue University
November 2—Oxford, OH—Miami
University of Ohio Hall
Auditorium
November 3—Midland, MI—Midland
Center for the Arts
November 6—Princeton, NJ—McCarter Theatre
November 7—Athens, OH—Ohio University Memorial Auditorium
November 8—Carmel, IN—Center for the Performing Arts
November 9—St Louis, MO—The Sheldon Concert Hall
November 10—Overland Park, KS—Carlsen Center at Johnson
Country Community College
November 14—Urbana, IL—Krannert Center for the Performing
Arts, Colwell Playhouse
November 15—Flint, MI—The Whiting
November 16—Chandler, AZ—Chandler Center for the Arts
November 17—Cerritos, CA—Cerritos Center for the Performing
Arts
November 20—Stanford, CA—Stanford Live, Bing Concert Hall
November 21—Rohnert Park, CA—Green Music Center at Sonoma
State University
November 22—Davis, CA—Mondavi Center
November 23—Livermore, CA—Livermore Valley Performing Arts
Center
November 24—Arroyo Grande, CA—Clark Center for the
Performing Arts, Forbes Hall
Gordon Lightfoot has postponed the October and November dates of his “80 Years Strong” due to a leg injury the Canadian balladeer sustained while working out earlier this year.
The 80 year-old Lightfoot was scheduled to perform dates at Binghamton’s Broome County Forum on Oct. 25, Buffalo’s Kleinhans Music Hall on Oct. 28, Rochester’s Kodak Center on Oct. 29 and Utica’s Stanley Theater on Nov. 3.
A statement from Lightfoot’s representatives stated, “Doctors orders have mandated that Gordon will not be sufficiently recovered, due to complications from an injury sustained while working out at his gym, and will be unable to travel in time for his upcoming tour.”
Tickets already purchased may be refunded at the point of sale and all tickets will be honored at the rescheduled dates, which are expected to be some time in June.
Steve Lacy sold out the Apollo Theater, his fifth stop on his first ever solo tour, despite touring since the age of 15 with the group The Internet.
Steve Lacy walked on stage in his pink gown and played Apollo XXI end to end. He spent a great portion of the show singing with either a guitar or bass in hand, but ran around with only the microphone for a few bangers. After finishing the album and a couple of his singles, Lacy had run out of music to play. He decided to perform “Dark Red” twice to close out his set.
Dance-punk band !!! (Chk Chk Chk) will headline the 10th annual O+ Kingston festival of art, music and wellness, held October 11-13. !!! will be joined by folk-rocker Elvis Perkins, Dirty Projectors lead singer and guitarist David Longstreth (solo), cabaret-punk band The World/Inferno Friendship Society, cumbia-meets-garage rocker Tall Juan, visionary guitarist Sam Cohen, neo-soul band Lady Moon & The Eclipse and 40 more solo artists, bands and ensembles representing a wide cross-section of musical genres and styles.
Weekend wristbands include entry to all concerts as well as film and video screenings, participatory art workshops, cycling events, Literary SALO+N, classes in yoga, dance, meditation, sound healing, and more. See the full schedule here, subject to change.
Kingston community members who would like to attend, but are deterred by financial resources will be able to pick up free 3-day wristbands from the following O+ Festival partners: Center for Creative Education, Harambee, Hudson Valley LGBTQ Community Center, Kingston Library, Latinxproject, My Kingston Kids, Radio Kingston, Rise Up Kingston and the YMCA of Kingston and Ulster County. Free wristbands are made possible thanks to the generosity of O+ supporters.
Other O+ Kingston music highlights include BODEGA (post-punk indie), The Giraffes (heavy rock), Carrie Nation & The Speakeasy (folk rockabilly), Sound of Ceres (electro dream pop) and Chris Wells and The Silver Spaceship (epic party band from the superfreak behind The Secret City).
Elvis Perkins
In addition, O+ partner Bardavon Presents welcomes “The Mystical Arts Of Tibet” on Sunday, Oct. 13 at UPAC.
The initial music lineup (of which 60 percent is from the mid-Hudson Valley) also includes: Ami Madeleine, Chris Andersen, The Arkhams, Sandy Bell, Brandy, Camp Saint Helene, Carrtoons, Datura Road, Dronechoir, Eat The Cake Band, Greg Farley, The Four Fives, Foster Care, Glockabelle, Zeb Gould, Grover, Hen in the Foxhouse, Jalani Lion, JB!! aka Dirty Moses w/Victory Soul Orchestra and DJ Nate da Great, Julia Kent, DJ Ali’s KinderDisco, Zamy Maa, Olivier Manchon’s Orchestre de Chambre Miniature, Maiko Hata Trio, The Meditation Tapes, Mooskii G. Myyers, Peter Naddeo, The Nightblinders, NOVA ONE, 100ANDZERO, Ramona Lane, The Restless Age, Sledge Wolf, Cheval Sombre, Tiny Blue Ghost, TONUS MAXIMUS, The Wilful Boys and Tyler G. Wood.
Dirty Projectors’ David Longstreth
This year’s O+ Kingston artists have responded to the theme of “X” with cross-disciplinary projects, collaborations and interventions at the intersection of art and life. Films, installations, murals, performances, multi-site experiential projects and workshops invite the viewer to activate artwork with participation. Workshops include artXmedicine, visual artXmusic, artXsocial engagement/activism, artXenvironmental activism, and X organizing principle/pattern
Participating artists and musicians receive complimentary health and wellness care in the Artists’ Clinic and in local dentists’ offices during the festival weekend. O+ calls this exchange: “the art of medicine for the medicine of art.”
In the wake of several tragic losses, more than fifty music industry professionals have banded together to create an industry-wide mental health support initiative, Backline.
A hub for artists, industry professionals and their families to quickly and easily access mental health and wellness resources, Backline has partnered with leading support organizations and care providers to streamline access to services specifically geared towards the music industry including Sweet Relief Musicians Fund, Anders Osborne’s Send Me a Friend, VA Way, and more.
Backline’s creation was supported by industry professionals including Ben Baruch (11E1even Group), Nadia Prescher (Madison House), Joshua Knight (Paradigm Agency), Jay Sweet (Newport Folk Festival) & Peter Shapiro (Brooklyn Bowl).
The Backline website will start as a referral-based system, where professionals will assess visitors’ needs and lead them to appropriate resources. Backline’s goal is to provide a network of on-demand mental health services available at no (or low) cost for industry professionals, with a focus on addressing the unique challenges and stresses of our space.
“There are wonderful organizations who have been doing great work to support the health and wellness of the music industry. What we saw was a gap in making these resources easily accessible. Mental health treatment is not one-size-fits-all, so it is our hope that by bringing these organizations together in one place, and providing case managers to guide visitors through the resources, we can make it simple to get the help you need,” says Hilary Gleason, CEO of Level, Backline’s convening body.
Level pairs businesses and bands with non-profit organizations while identifying what resources each has to bring to the table to build innovative campaigns and events that align with each party.
In the coming weeks, Backline’s educational materials and trained professionals will make their way onto tour buses, green rooms, backstage areas, and beyond. “The Relix Roadie Lounge is honored to be working with Backline to show musicians, techs, crew, production staff, and all the hard working people behind the scenes, that there is always help. The road can be a lonely place. Together, we hope to give support and a home away from home with Backline,” adds Josh Rowe, VP of Partnerships & Events at Relix Media Group.
The Massry Center at The College of Saint Rose has unvieled their 2019-20 season, featuring the Wooten Brothers, Martha Redbone, Martin Sexton, Dallas Brass, Milk Carton Kids and Kat Edmonson. The acoustically incredible Kathleen McManus Picotte Recital Hall and other concert spaces play host to a full slate of musical performances during the year, including orchestral works, chamber music, Latin jazz, zydeco, and more. The calendar also features several performances by Saint Rose Camerata in October, February and March.
Martha Redbone – Saturday, October 12
Martha Redbone is one of today’s most vital voices in American Roots music. A multi award-winning musician, the charismatic songstress with the magnificent voice is celebrated for her tasty gumbo of roots music embodying the folk and mountain blues sounds of her childhood in the Appalachian hills of Kentucky mixed with the eclectic grit of her teenage years in pre-gentrified Brooklyn. With the power of her gospel singing African-American father’s voice and the determined spirit of her Cherokee/Shawnee/Choctaw mother, Redbone broadens all boundaries of Americana.
Saint Rose Camerata – Saturday, October 26 – George Crumb’s 90th Birthday Celebration
Saint Rose Camerata honors American composer George Crumb for his 90th birthday (b. October 24th, 1989. The concert includes a group of songs from his early period, works for amplified instruments, and the use of extended techniques. Written in 1969 during the Apollo 11 flight, Night of the Four Moons features extracted texts from poems by Federico Garcia Lorca and an unusual ensemble combination of mezzo-soprano with flute, electric cello, banjo, and an array of ethnic percussion instruments. Celestial Mechanics [Makrokosmos IV], a piano masterpiece of twentieth century, will be performed with special lighting and projected images.
Dallas Brass – Saturday, November 9
Founded in Dallas, TX in 1983 by Michael Levine, the Dallas Brass has become one of America’s foremost musical ensembles. The group has established a unique blend of traditional brass instruments with a full complement of drums and percussion, which creates a performing entity of extraordinary range and musical challenges. They play an eclectic mix of classical masterpieces, Dixieland, swing, Broadway, Hollywood and patriotic music, all with their own unique and sometimes very comical twist!
Milk Carton Kids – Saturday, December 7
The Milk Carton Kids are a neo-traditional folk duo from Los Angeles, California. Kenneth Pattengale and Joey Ryan-formed harmonized vocals and tightly entwined guitar lines might conjure shades of the Everly Brothers or Simon & Garfunkel, but their music has a unique American roots-folk flavor. Their witty onstage banter snaps as crisply as their guitar licks. They’re known on the road for their adversarial, Smothers Brothers-evoking comedic banter as well as their virtuosic guitar skills.
Saint Rose Camerata – Saturday, February 15 – Nineteenth and Twentieth-Century Chamber Music
Saint Rose Camerata presents 19th and 20th– century chamber music including a cello sonata by Beethoven (2020 marks the year of his 250th birthday anniversary), works by Dvořák, Martinů, and American composer Juliana Hall.
Wooten Brothers – Sunday, March 1
Victor Wooten, a five-time Grammy Award-winning artist and a founding member of the eclectic group Bela Fleck and the Flecktones,has also been playing with his brothers for over four decades. They are recognized as some of the most innovative musicians in existence and are collectively known as one of the most talented and dynamic band of brothers the world has ever known
Saint Rose Camerata – Saturday, March 28th Season Finale: Saint Rose Composers and Façade by Walton
Season Finale: Saint Rose Camerata presents a new work about Chilean artist Violeta Parra by Emily Pinkerton, Assistant Professor of Music Industry, and a work for voice and guitar by American composer Domenic Argento. The program also includes Façade: An Entertainment by British composer William Walton. The work is a clever and entertaining combination of recited poems by Edith Sitwell and Walton’s instrumental music. Saint Rose Camerata will perform selected movements from the collection of over forty poems, which were assembled between 1922 and 1928.
Kat Edmonson – Saturday, April 25
Kat Edmonson forged her sound, an unusually charming and seamless blend of old and new, performing in small rooms and clubs before touring worldwide and performing with the likes of Lyle Lovett, Chris Isaak, and more. She has emerged as one of the most distinctive performers in contemporary American music. With a sweetly mellifluous soprano echoing Blossom Dearie’s lighter-than-air approach as well as her gift for evocative songwriting, Kat is a rare artist who embodies the spirit of the past while remaining resolutely au courant.
Martin Sexton – Saturday, May 16
Syracuse native Sexton got his start singing in the streets and subways of Boston in the early ’90s. Still fiercely independent and headlining venues from The Fillmore to Carnegie Hall, he has influenced a generation of contemporary artists. His songs have appeared in television series and in numerous films, though it’s his incendiary live show, honest lyrics, and vocal prowess that keep fans coming back for more.
Click here for more info on the Massry Center’s 2019-2020 season.
