Exploring the people, places & culture of greater LA
Each week I receive dozens of press releases and emails about upcoming events around the Los Angeles area. Many of these happenings sound enticing, but it’s the rare event that truly captures my attention and stands out from the crowd. The upcoming performance of String Theory at the Ford Amphitheatre is one that jumped out at me.
Barbara Morrison always demurs when she’s described as a jazz singer, asserting that her primary and predominant allegiance is to the blues. But over the course of a career spanning five decades, she has earned the love and respect of an international array of jazz artists, and now that community is rallying to her at a difficult hour.
Not to complain, but jazz writers are regularly besieged by press releases comparing the latest young singer to Ella, Sarah and Dinah, hype that always seems to accompany a CD by a winsome vocalist with a pellucid tone and bland, unformed musical personality.
Bombino inspired the Tuareg people with his music before fleeing violence and repression in his country. You can learn about his fascinating story in an article by Andrew Gilbert that appeared in the Los Angeles Times today. Perhaps it will inspire you to catch one of his two performances in the LA area. He performs with his four-piece band Thursday at Levitt Pavilion Pasadena and Friday at Levitt Pavilion MacArthur Park.
Looking for a way to get a jump on the weekend? Did the July 4th holiday get you amped up for summer fun? Are the warm evenings that we’re experiencing across the Southland enticing you to get outdoors? If the answer to one or more of these questions is “yes,” the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) has planned an event that is sure to please.
Tickets went on sale yesterday afternoon for the 8th Annual FYF Fest, an all-ages music festival complete with multiple performance stages, comedy acts, art installations, craft booths, food trucks, and carnival games. This year marks several firsts for FYF Fest, including its new location in downtown LA near city hall and the involvement of Goldenvoice, the organization that also produces Coachella.
Every once in a while you come across an idea so good it’s hard to figure out why no one’s acted on it before. That’s how I felt hearing veteran jazz singer Roseanna Vitro’s new album “The Music of Randy Newman.” Working closely with veteran pianist and longtime collaborator Mark Soskin, Vitro infuses Newman’s songs with her soul-deep feel for blues and gospel. The results are revelatory, insistently raising the question of why no jazz singer has previously tackled a Randy Newman project.
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