Keep On Keepin' On with Angela McCluskey, A.J. Croce, Jackie Cruz and more...
Well, it's been a wonderful couple of months of new musical adventures. Hit the road with Grammy nominated pianist, guitarist and songwriter A.J. Croce (son of legendary musical artist Jim Croce) for a string of east coast theater shows. Working with A.J. was delightful and his company extraordinary. Aside from being uber talented, intelligent, insightful, humble and funny, he's a walking encyclopedia of music and music history, having worked with a large portion of most of the music legends of this century, from James Brown to B.B. King. Exchanging stories about life, love, music, literature, food and philosophy was truly enjoyable, and a cathartic learning experience which I'll never forget. He's an incredibly soulful musician and songwriter. Also, never toured by train before, which I have to say, was a hell of a lot of fun! Makes one feel more like a troubadour than a "rock star", which I found to be extremely refreshing. Felt more connected to the world, and the ground. When the phone rings, and A.J.'s on the line, answer it my friends. His regular drummer is Jim Keltner. Fucking J-I-M K-E-L-T-N-E-R! I was honored and humbled. It was also awesome because I was playing percussion, which is something I do well, but not a s often as I'd like too. Keeping it simple and interesting with just a cajon, snare, brushes, conga, tambo and shakers is quite the thrill, and throughly enjoyable. It's easier with A.J. He's such a passionate and musical player, it makes it effortless. It's great when you have that connection with an artist, when you feel the music reverberate through your bones. You don't think, you just feel and express that raw power through your playing. It was palpable and the audiences really sunk their teeth into it...as did we...
Been also doing a bunch of live radio promotion and shows with Grammy winner, Electro Pop icon and chanteuse Angela McCluskey, in support of her new album "The Roxy Sessions" and the debut singles "You & Me" and "Let's Get Lost". We've rocked KCRW's "The Morning Becomes Eclectic" with Chris Douridas; Little Water Radio "live" with DJ/Host Delphine Blue on her "The Rest Is Noise" show; and WFUV "live" with legendary DJ/Host Rita Houston. Great independant radio stations that have really shown us love, and are hugely supporting the album. Our residency at The Django in The Roxy Hotel has also been quite epic, with sold out shows, raucous 70's afterparties and tons of love and support from our fans and friends including Rose McGowan, Michael Stipe, Mick Rock, Zoe Kravitz and Salman Rushdie. The amount of love we've been getting is truly heartfelt and inspiring, and the band, which includes Paul Cantelon (Piano), Kiran Shahani (Bass, who's also a member of Bitter:Sweet and The Supreme Beings of Leisure), Jay Shepard (Guitar), Rachelle Garniez (Vocals, Multi-Instrumentalist) and John "Scrapper" Sneider (Trumpet) is kick ass and sublime to say the least. There are moments when you can here a pin drop between the musical vibrations. The performances literally make your heart skip a beat and bleed. The talent in this band reminds me of why I became a musician. Just pure, unadulterated fucking soul.
Catch the live radio performance and interview on KCRW here: http://www.kcrw.com/music/shows/todays-top-tune/angela-mccluskey-you-and-me
Catch the live radio performance and interview on Little Water Radio here: http://www.littlewaterradio.org/home/category/Interviews
Check out Angela here: http://angelamccluskey.com
Download her latest album "The Roxy Sessions" here: https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/the-roxy-sessions/id1139030979
Lastly, had an amazing red carpet show at the Bowery Hotel with OITNB's Jackie Cruz for Rémy Martin, in support of their "Circle of Centaurs" mentorship program. Jackie is such an amazingly talented and beautiful singer and human being. I always feel blessed to be in her company. Her warmth and generosity truly transcend, and she's always inspired to help others. The band features jackie Cruz (Vocals), Nils Svensson (Guitar), Jay Shepard (Guitar) and Markus Svensson (Bass). We are family and I love playing with such bad ass cats. Also performed an awesome show at The Mercury Lounge with the lovely singer Carleigh Jade, who's voice is raw power, smoke and fire. She dominates the stage and space around her, and the band is hard rocking' featuring Georgios Pesios (Guitar) and Jack Breslin (Bass). Topped it all off with an intimate acoustic performance with country singer Karen Mansfield, opening for The Smithereens at The Renaissance NY. Karen is also a joy to work with and I'm looking forward to hearing (and possibly playing on) her upcoming album being produced by Steve Greenwell. Fingers crossed...
Check out the Jackie's Circle of Centaurs Mentorship Program here: http://remymartin.com/jackie
Looking forward to a great upcoming month of NY shows with The DC9's at The Red Lion on September 10th at 10PM, Jamie Kilstein at The New Alternative Music Festival at the Asbury Park Convention Center on September 17th, Mark Hudson (yes, that Mark Hudson) at Iridium on September 19th at 8PM, and Angela McCluskey (in Los Angeles at "It's A School Night" at The Avalon/Bardot's for KCRW on September 26th and The Troubadour on September 30th with The Wild Colonials). Check the links or your local listings loves, and hope to rock with you soon! La Dolce Vita!
