JEFF LOFTON QUARTET JAZZ TO THE PEOPLE

 

JEFF LOFTON QUARTET JAZZ TO THE PEOPLE AUSTIN, TX - 12/16/10 Jazz trumpeter Jeff Lofton's "Jazz to the People" show featuring his new album travels to New York for the Iridium Jazz Club's New Faces series on Saturday, November 20, at 12 midnight. The Iridium is located at 1650 Broadway, and tickets are $20. The club recently hosted the New York debut of Jeff Lofton's 1950s Miles Davis Tribute. Reviews for "Jazz to the People" include "... tightly woven post-bop, disciplined but spirited... from the heart, not the head..." and a delightfully swingin' affair" by the Austin Chronicle, and "...terrific..." from the Austin American-Statesman. Immediately after it's release in November 2009, the self-produced album, "Jazz to the People" was named one of the Top 9 Austin Album's of 2009 by the Austin Chronicle and chosen for the Top Ten Albums 2009: DJ Picks at Austin' NPR affiliate, KUT 90.5 FM. A jazz album included on these lists among the competitive main stream music in Austin is another example of Lofton's mission of "Jazz to the People." The Austin American-Statesman recently featured Lofton as a rising music star in the 2010 Out and About 500: Music list, noting his "jump start" to the local jazz scene with "ubiquitous presence and articulate advocacy." "I wanted to invoke various types of music through jazz - such as blues, Latin, soul, country, New Orleans second line, straight-ahead bebop, avant garde and modern jazz - to show their connection," Lofton says of "Jazz to the People." "Jazz is the music of today, the music of yesterday and the music of the future," Lofton says. "Jazz is what we're listening to on the radio in other forms. It all comes from Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington, Fletcher Henderson, Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday... Jazz is the source material for practically everything." "Jazz to the People" includes nine original compositions and interpretations of "Georgia on My Mind" and "Crazy." On the recording the quartet includes Red Young on piano, Chris Jones on bass and Masumi Jones on drums, with special guest Alex Coke on sax. The CD also features renowned South Carolina singer/songwriter Danielle Howle on vocals on "Crazy." The New York Times calls her "... an extraordinary mind, a southern storyteller with a gorgeous sense of melody ..." # # # Recent media coverage: - Austin American-Statesman's 2010 Out and About 500: Music - KUT 90.5 Live from Studio 1A - May 6, 2010, Music with Jay Trachtenberg, (Music Director Jeff McCord hosting) - Austin American-Statesman feature story, March 7, 2010 Trumpeter's Lofty Goal: Bringing History to Life - Austin Chronicle cover story, February 12, 2010 Hannibal Lokumbe and Jeff Lofton: Jazz Parrallels - Austin-Artists.com video interview Jeff Lofton Biography: "Listen up Miles Davis fans..." from the Austin American-Statesman and "... channels Miles Davis..." from The Daily Texan were early reviews when Lofton arrived from South Carolina in 2007 as a mostly unknown to Austin's music scene. Word-of-mouth about his unique sound drew jazz fans to Jeff Lofton's 1950s Miles Davis Tribute at the historic Victory Grill in September 2007. Soon his shows were being described as "...crazy good and crazy crowded..." (Austin American-Statesman). In 2010 Jeff Lofton's 1950s Miles Davis Tribute traveled to the Iridium Jazz Club in New York, after drawing an impressive crowd at One World Theatre in Austin though competing with the first night of SXSW. The show launched a jazz series in collaboration with the University of Texas Blanton Museum's hosting of the "Birth of the Cool" exhibit in 2008, and was booked at Scat Jazz Lounge in Fort Worth. In November 2009 Lofton released his second jazz album, "Jazz to the People," with nine originals and interpretations of "Georgia on My Mind" and "Crazy." The Austin Chronicle placed "Jazz to People" in the Top 9 Austin Albums of 2009, and chose the Jeff Lofton Quartet as the critic's pick for best jazz band for their annual poll. Austin's NPR-affiliate KUT 90.5 placed "Jazz to the People" in the Top 10 Albums of 2009: DJ Picks. Called "... a delightfully swingin' affair..." by the Austin Chronicle, the self-produced album is receiving airplay from San Diego to New Orleans to Harlem and abroad. "Jazz to the People" features Alex Coke on sax, Red Young on piano, Chris Jones on bass and Masumi Jones on drums. Danielle Howle performs vocals on "Crazy." With his new project, The Jeff Lofton Electric Thang, Lofton takes jazz to the iconic Cactus Cafe to recorded his third jazz album "Chasing the Voodoo Down live at the Cactus Cafe, ATX," in October 2010. Lofton launched the new group in January, which he describes as "... trumpet meets electric guitar in a jazz-funk fusion Miles-ian extravaganza - a collaboration of musicians creating a free-form, funk-fusion ensemble whose purpose is to recreate and expand on the Miles Davis fusion of the 1970s and 1980s." Recent shows include Antone's, Speakeasy and Momo's, and a "Bitches Brew" tribute at Lambert's. To honor Lofton's contribution to the local jazz scene, Austin's mayor proclaimed January 15, 2009, as "Jeff Lofton Day" in the live music capital of the world. The Austin Convention and Visitors Bureau selected Lofton's original, "Shana's Song," for the Austin Music Vol. 8 compilation CD, released in February 2009. The Austin American-Statesman included Lofton in the 2009 Fortunate 500: Music list. Lofton is a board member for the non-profit Crime Victims First and performs at their monthly jazz happy hour. His trio performs for patients confined to health care centers on behalf of the non-profit Symphony of Soul. His original, "Herbie's Time," is included on the non-profit's compilation CD "Sugar and Spice." Lofton contributes performances and CDs for many benefits and private events such as Turk Pipkin's Nobelity Project fundraiser, the Paramount Theatre's Gala, the Derrick Johnson Foundation Gala Benefit and the Breast Cancer Research annual brunch. Lofton frequently performs at regional festivals such as the fourteenth annual Jazz at St. James Festival in Austin, which featured jazz legends Curtis Fuller and David "Fathead" Newman. In 2009 the Jeff Lofton Quartet, featuring legendary jazz vocalist Donna Hightower, opened for Javon Jackson featuring Louis Hayes at the Jazz at St. James Festival. In 2010 the Jeff Lofton Quartet headlined at the San Antonio Arts and Jazz Festival and is performing at the Fredericksberg Food and Wine Festival. Lofton debuted his first jazz CD,"Jazz Therapy," in 2005, with the Jeff Lofton Quartet. The self-produced CD mixes old style be-bop with modern forms of jazz in the tradition of Miles Davis, Dizzy Gillespie and John Coltrane. Jazz Therapy includes Roland Haynes on piano, Reggie Sullivan on bass and Kenneth Salters on drums. Born in Germany to American parents, Lofton grew up in Columbia, South Carolina, where he studied music at the University of South Carolina. Playing trumpet for over thirty years, Lofton has spent time on the road sitting in at Chicago clubs and playing gigs in New York City. In Texas he has performed with Dr. James Polk, Butch Miles, Rene Sandoval, Alex Coke, the late Tony Campise, and many others. Lofton has produced hip-hop and R&B artists such as Legend and the Gutsman, and recorded with hip-hop/rock ensemble Deja Voodoo. Jeff Lofton's comments on Jazz to the People: 1. Headless Blues "In the past, I would often call a blues to play, and sometimes I'd have a member of the band ask, 'What head?' Sometimes my answer was 'headless blues.' I wanted to get a Basie type feel on this one, and I think the melody does that pretty well." 2. Shana's Song "I wrote this song before my daughter Shana was born, but it just fit her so much I felt compelled to name it after her. 'Shana's Song' is a happy New Orleans style second line beat falling into a straight-ahead Ellingtonian swing. Nothing could be more like her." (An earlier version of "Shana's Song" was on JLQ's 2005 Jazz Therapy and selected for Austin Music Vol. 8 the Austin CVB's 2009 compilation CD.) 3. A.I.M. "I wanted to work with the changes to 'Cherokee' in the tradition of Bird and Diz, Clifford Brown and Sonny Rollins, as well as let a little technique shine." 4. & 5. Crazy "I love recreating a tune. This is a beautiful song, and by doing it as a jazz ballad I hope to bring fans of 'Crazy' to jazz music." 6. Herbie's Time "Although this one started out as a old fashioned blues stomp, it came to me the day before the recording to do it as a hard bop tune in the style of Herbie Hancock. I have long admired Herbie Hancock's timing and melodic ideas, so I kept the melody simple and the rhythm section really made it work out well." 7. Georgia on My Mind "Ray Charles was one of my father's favorite singers, and I think that's what got me hooked on this song. That and Hoagy Carmichael's great writing. Nothing quite like moonlight though the pines." (The Jeff Lofton Quartet also recorded "Georgia on My Mind" for the 2005 CD Jazz Therapy. Another recording from KUT 90.5 FM, Music with Jay Trachtenberg, on January 15, 2009, was featured as Song of the Day for Texas Music Matters on KUT.) 8. Free Jazz Therapy "This avant garde tune tells of melodic melancholy created and satisfied. The sense of longing felt through a continuous everlasting cycle - based on one chord." 9. Bucket 'O Blues "This one's a blues stomp that highlights the shuffle boogie-woogie feeling that's played in the drums." 10. Mouth of Gabriel "I was divinely inspired with this melody. I truly feel like it was born in the mouth of Gabriel." 11. One for Clark "Clark Terry is one of my all time favorite jazz musicians and trumpet players. This song is a dedication and when I came up with the melody it just had Clark written all over it." 12. Rose "This is a melody I had been working on for years. I wanted to show the connection of jazz to Latin music." For More Information: Dean Lofton, 512.636.1346, dean@deanlofton.com Email request for CD/link for "Jazz to the People" for review or airplay. www.JeffLofton.com Find us on Facebook Follow us on Twitter