Chet Comes to Reverie March 4
Movie Born to Be Blue Will Be Released March 25
“Chet - The Beautiful Music and Tragic Life of Singing Trumpeter Chet Baker”
Friday, March 4, 9:00-11:00 p.m.
Reverie (formerly The Nicollet)
1931 Nicollet Ave.
Minneapolis, MN 55403
http://www.the-nicollet.com
Larry McDonough Quintet
Larry McDonough, Piano and Vocals
Steve Kenny, Trumpet
Richard Terrill, Saxes and Poetry
Greg Stinson, Bass
Dean White, Drums
Families and students are welcome.
Sound Clips:...
read more
Chet Comes to Reverie March 4
Movie Born to Be Blue Will Be Released March 25
“Chet - The Beautiful Music and Tragic Life of Singing Trumpeter Chet Baker”
Friday, March 4, 9:00-11:00 p.m.
Reverie (formerly The Nicollet)
1931 Nicollet Ave.
Minneapolis, MN 55403
http://www.the-nicollet.com
Larry McDonough Quintet
Larry McDonough, Piano and Vocals
Steve Kenny, Trumpet
Richard Terrill, Saxes and Poetry
Greg Stinson, Bass
Dean White, Drums
Families and students are welcome.
Sound Clips:
http://larrymcdonoughjazz.homestead.com/chetmix.html
Photo Gallery:
http://larrymcdonoughjazz.homestead.com/ChetDakotaGallery.html
Singer and trumpeter Cher Baker died in 1988 at age 58, and never played the Reverie. This month, Born to Be Blue, a Canadian drama film directed by Robert Budreau about Chet Baker will be released. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Born_to_Be_Blue_(film) The trailer is available at http://www.slashfilm.com/born-to-be-blue-trailer/.
“Chet - The Beautiful Music and Tragic Life of Singing Trumpeter Chet Baker” played in April 2015 at the Dakota and January 2015 at Jazz Central, both to a full house. Come to this show to see and hear why.
Pianist, singer, and composer Larry McDonough’s trademarks are unique harmonies and rhythms in both arrangements and compositions, often in the uncommon meters of 3, 5, 7, 9, 11, and 13. He usually features the other musicians, with only a handful of vocals in his recordings and performances. For years, his quiet singing style has been compared to legendary singer and trumpeter Chet Baker.
Larry turns the tables on himself, putting his vocals in the spotlight in “Chet - The Beautiful Music and Tragic Life of Singing Trumpeter Chet Baker.” Joining Larry to complete the Chet Baker sound is Steve Kinney on trumpet, saxman and poet Richard Terrill, bassist Greg Stinson, and drummer Dean White.
In the first set, “Chet” will cover the range of the Chet Baker catalog, performing pieces from the 1950s, including My Funny Valentine, The Thrill Is Gone, When I Fall in Love, You Don’t Know What Love Is, and There Will Never Be Another You, as well as songs from the end of Chet’s life, such as All Blues (the rare vocal version), Softly as in a Morning Sunrise, and Moon and Sand.
In the second set, Larry will add pieces from his catalog sung in Chet’s style, including My Romance, How Insensitive; Night and Day and Some Other Time (both from his “Solitude, poetry in jazz” CD); and the originals Tuscarora, My Favorite Things in 5/4, and They Can’t Take That Away from Me (all from his "Simple Gifts" CD).
Larry and Steve also will discuss Chet’s life and music and their impact on jazz as well as themselves, and Minnesota Book Award winner Richard Terrill will read poetry about Chet and pianist Bill Evans.
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Recommended by Andrea Canter, JazzInk and Jazz Police; Pamela Espeland, Minn Post; Chris Bates and David Cazares, Minnesota Public Radio; Larry Englund, Rhythm and Grooves, KFAI Radio; Dan Emerson, St. Paul Pioneer Press; Maryann Sullivan, Corner Jazz; Kevin O’Connor, KBEM Jazz88 Radio; Jackie Renzetti, Minnesota Daily
Reviews:
http://larrymcdonoughjazz.homestead.com/ChetBakerReviews.html
“What a show!” - Maryann Sullivan, Corner Jazz
“Pianist/composer Larry McDonough can sing like Chet, quiet and cool, and he’s asked Steve Kenny to play the trumpet for an evening of exploring Baker’s catalog, something that hardly ever happens.” - Pamela Espeland, Minn Post
“It’s rare that anyone tackles Baker’s catalog, especially his singing, so if you’re a fan of jazz singing, you will want to make your way [there].” - Larry Englund, Rhythm and Grooves, KFAI Radio
* * *
Chesney Henry “Chet” Baker, Jr., was born on December 23, 1929, and by the mid-1950s he was a popular singer and trumpeter. His hip, cool style of singing and playing jazz standards made him a peaceful alternative to the hectic quality of bebop. Even a movie career awaited, based in part on his leading-man good looks and bad-boy persona. But there was a detour ahead when his drug addiction dominated the 1960s, leading to incarcerations, deportations, and ultimately a drug deal beating that broke his teeth and scarred his movie star looks. With dentures and a new embouchure for playing trumpet—but without the face and voice that had made him a star—he resurfaced in the 1970s and 1980s, again producing recordings at the pace he did in the 1950s. At approximately 3:00 a.m. on May 13, 1988, he was found dead in Amsterdam on the street below his second-story room with serious wounds to his head. The death was ruled an accident, but speculation continues.
* * *
Contact information:
Larry McDonough
651-398-8053
[email protected]
http://www.larrymcdonoughjazz.homestead.com
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