It's funny the things that you find that you never even knew existed...
This was shot when we were holding dances in the bumper car pavilion while the ballroom was being renovated.
Tuesday, April 24, 2007
Monday, April 16, 2007
Buy Frankie's Book day
I think by now most everyone knows that Frankie Manning's autobiography, titled Frankie Manning: Ambassador of Lindy Hop, is being published this spring. The folks over at Yehoodi are coordinating a viral web campaign to promote the book, and are asking people to buy the book on amazon.com on May 26.
Rikomatic, over on Yehoodi, writes:
You can purchase the book for about $18 on amazon.com.
Rikomatic, over on Yehoodi, writes:
Dear FoF (Friend of Frankie),
As you may have heard, Frankie Manning's long-awaited autobiography is finally hitting the shelves sometime in April/May. Entitled Frankie Manning: Ambassador of Lindy Hop, the book chronicles the life and times of this legendary lindy hopper and innovator of the airstep. ...
The team at Yehoodi.com have been discussing with Frankie and his co-author Cynthia Millman cool ways to promote the book, from holding a big New York book launch, to helping coordinate book signings around the country, to a viral web campaign.
One idea that Frankie likes a lot is getting the entire swing community -- and the thousands more who have been touched by Frankie -- to all go to Amazon.com and purchase the book on May 26, which happens to be Frankie's birthday. What better gift to Frankie than seeing his autobiography pop to the top of the best-seller's list on Amazon on his birthday?
So if you've been planning on buying the book, we are asking that you hold off until May 26. If you have already pre-ordered the book, consider ordering another copy as a gift for a friend. If you know of others who might be thinking of getting the book, send them this message.
We'll be posting more information about the Ambassador of Lindy Hop book launch activities shortly. Thanks for your help in promoting this important document of lindy hop history.
Sincerely,
Your Friends at Yehoodi.com
You can purchase the book for about $18 on amazon.com.
Thursday, April 12, 2007
Front row seats
I'm so glad someone got this one on video. During this song Laurie (the hall manager) and I went up on the stage to adjust the lights and then waited for the end of the song before coming back down. I was glued to the spot--it was the best view in the house!
Wednesday, April 11, 2007
A little bit of heaven
Someone at the WSDC band jam referred to the double vibes as a little bit of heaven. Here's what that sounds like --
Support Live Music
I love going out to non-dance venues to hear my favorite musicians. I get to hear the variety of music they're able to play. In addition, because we ask our bands to keep the song length down to about 4 minutes for dances, we don't often get to hear them really get that jam going strong -- where songs can last a good 15-20 minutes -- it is amazing.
So, please do get out and about to hear these musicians play eveything from latin jazz to country swing, and everything in between!
Band Members
Drums -- Barry Hart and Big Joe Maher
Bass -- John Previti and Steve Wolf
Piano -- John Cocuzzi
Vibraphones -- John Cocuzzi and Chuck Redd
Guitar: Dave Chappell and Jim Stephanson
Trombone -- John Jensen
Trumpet -- Vince McCool
Sax – Bruce Swaim
Vocals -- Billy Hancock and Marianna Previti
Their Bands
Big Joe and the Dynaflows
Big Four Combo
Big Three Trio
Swing Speak
J Street Jumpers
Mingus/Monk Tribute Band
Brooks Tegler’s bands
Hillbilly Jazz
Jimmy and the Blue Dogs
Blue Rhythm Boys
Smokin’ Polecats
The Young Professors
Chaise Lounge
Wright Touch Big Band
Smithsonian Jazz Masterworks Orchestra
Billy Hancock Band
Rhodes Tavern Troubadors
The Lisa Moscatiello Band
Willbilly
Places to See Them
Gordon Biersch, downtown
Tarara Winery, Leesburg
Whitlows on Wilson, Arlington
JVs, Falls Church
Blues Alley, Georgetown
Kennedy Center’s Millennium Stage
Chick Hall’s Surf Club, Hyattsville
Jazz Café at the Smithsonian, downtown
49 West, Annapolis
219’s Basin Street Lounge, Alexandria
Crystal City Jazz Celebration, Arlington
So, please do get out and about to hear these musicians play eveything from latin jazz to country swing, and everything in between!
Band Members
Drums -- Barry Hart and Big Joe Maher
Bass -- John Previti and Steve Wolf
Piano -- John Cocuzzi
Vibraphones -- John Cocuzzi and Chuck Redd
Guitar: Dave Chappell and Jim Stephanson
Trombone -- John Jensen
Trumpet -- Vince McCool
Sax – Bruce Swaim
Vocals -- Billy Hancock and Marianna Previti
Their Bands
Big Joe and the Dynaflows
Big Four Combo
Big Three Trio
Swing Speak
J Street Jumpers
Mingus/Monk Tribute Band
Brooks Tegler’s bands
Hillbilly Jazz
Jimmy and the Blue Dogs
Blue Rhythm Boys
Smokin’ Polecats
The Young Professors
Chaise Lounge
Wright Touch Big Band
Smithsonian Jazz Masterworks Orchestra
Billy Hancock Band
Rhodes Tavern Troubadors
The Lisa Moscatiello Band
Willbilly
Places to See Them
Gordon Biersch, downtown
Tarara Winery, Leesburg
Whitlows on Wilson, Arlington
JVs, Falls Church
Blues Alley, Georgetown
Kennedy Center’s Millennium Stage
Chick Hall’s Surf Club, Hyattsville
Jazz Café at the Smithsonian, downtown
49 West, Annapolis
219’s Basin Street Lounge, Alexandria
Crystal City Jazz Celebration, Arlington
Tuesday, April 10, 2007
Haven't talked to the rest of you yet...
...but wasn't Saturday night fun? Especially those vibraphones. ;-)
Wednesday, April 4, 2007
Dedicated to Joe Stanley
Saxophonist Joe Stanley was on our original list of band jam musicians. Within days of giving the musician list to Big Joe Maher, we found out that Joe was very ill. Within weeks he was gone.
Saturday night's WSDC band jam dance will be dedicated to Joe Stanley. We will be accepting tax-deductible donations to Soul-Fixin' Foundation, an organization that provides support to musicians and their families.
My son was killed in an auto accident almost two years ago. I can tell you first-hand that the financial burden was overwhelming. I can only imagine how much a major medical expense adds to that burden.
I hope that you'll help the Stanley family. Details:
Donations can be made through the Soul Fixin' website (or bring them to Saturday night's dance).
www.soul-fixin.com/donate.html either by recurring donation or an one-time amount. You may also donate by check or money order. Checks should be made out to The Soul-Fixin' Foundation and mailed to:
Soul-Fixin' Foundation
P.O. Box 415
Rogers, TX 76569
Include the following information:
Name
Address
City, State Zip Code
email address (optional)
phone number (optional)
If designing a donation to the fund for Joe Stanley, please note it so they can make sure the donation goes to his family.
If you have any questions call or email:
Soul Fixin' Foundation
P.O. Box 415
Rogers, Texas 76569
254.642.3898 x104 (office)
866.284.0123 (fax)
de@soul-fixin.com
www.soul-fixin.com
Saturday night's WSDC band jam dance will be dedicated to Joe Stanley. We will be accepting tax-deductible donations to Soul-Fixin' Foundation, an organization that provides support to musicians and their families.
My son was killed in an auto accident almost two years ago. I can tell you first-hand that the financial burden was overwhelming. I can only imagine how much a major medical expense adds to that burden.
I hope that you'll help the Stanley family. Details:
Donations can be made through the Soul Fixin' website (or bring them to Saturday night's dance).
www.soul-fixin.com/donate.html either by recurring donation or an one-time amount. You may also donate by check or money order. Checks should be made out to The Soul-Fixin' Foundation and mailed to:
Soul-Fixin' Foundation
P.O. Box 415
Rogers, TX 76569
Include the following information:
Name
Address
City, State Zip Code
email address (optional)
phone number (optional)
If designing a donation to the fund for Joe Stanley, please note it so they can make sure the donation goes to his family.
If you have any questions call or email:
Soul Fixin' Foundation
P.O. Box 415
Rogers, Texas 76569
254.642.3898 x104 (office)
866.284.0123 (fax)
de@soul-fixin.com
www.soul-fixin.com
Monday, April 2, 2007
The Three J's
Names that begin with the letter J have a special place in my family. My Dad was James. My sisters are Joyce, Jody, Jackie, and Jeri. My niece is Jennifer. My nephew is Jeremy. I stopped the practice when I named my children.
Because of this, I often think of the Big Three -- Big Joe Maher, John Cocuzzi, and John Previti as the Three J's. I've never told them this. I have told them that they're three of my (and my WSDC cohorts) favorite local musicians. And that's why they're participating in the WSDC Band Jam.
Big Joe Maher is a favorite band leader for one of the Nation's best, West-Coast-based dance instructors, Sylvia Sykes.
He was a W.C. Handy Award nominee for Best Blues Drummer in 2005. And won the WAMMIE award for Best Male Blues Vocalist in 2005.
He's been known to write songs on his way to dance gigs, based on his commuting experience. Listen to the lyrics when Joe is on stage. You'll often hear references to what's happening on the dancefloor.
He is one of the DC's areas most sought out drummers for touring musicians, including Jimmy Witherspoon, Bullmoose Jackson, James "Thunderbird" Davis, Nappy Brown, Otis Rush, Earl King, and more.
He's just finished playing to rave reviews at Soflex 2007
He's a fabulous producer.
And, he'll be "producing" the WSDC Band Jam on April 7.
Now a bit about John Previti --
He started in the 4th grade on classical oboe. The lure of rock and roll during high school drew him to electric bass, getting paying gigs within a year of starting the bass.
John switched to upright bass in college, holding down the contrabass first chair in both the concert band and the jazz ensemble. But electric bass gigs were still paying the rent.
In 1976, jamming on electric bass at a guitar shop in his hometown of Clinton, he met guitar great Danny Gatton. Danny liked his playing so much he invited John to join the band he was just starting. That group went on to make guitar history and, with one hiatus, John played with Danny for the next eighteen years.
With the steady growth of the Danny Gatton Trio’s fame and its jazz evolution, John was becoming increasingly sought after as the guitarist’s bass player. Through the eighties, he started getting calls from the cream of the area’s jazz guitarists. His old teen idol, the pioneer of acoustic jazz guitar, Charlie Byrd called. He had a chance to gig and record with Herb Ellis and eventually even accompanied Les Paul , a great Danny Gatton admirer. Previti performed with the great trumpeter, Doc Cheatham.
In 1995 John got heavily involved in the music for Paul Simon’s play, Capeman, eventually recording the music with Paul.
That same year, John went on a blues tour with Big Joe Maher and his East-West Allstars (with Junior Watson on guitar), starting an active collaboration that continues to this day.
Today, as a labor of love, he leads the Mingus-Monk Tribute band . A larger horn group, the Tribute performs highly original arrangements of Mingus and Monk classics in monthly appearances at Whitlows on Wilson. Swinging Lullabies For My Rosetta is John’s first album as a leader -- and it's fantastic.
John Cocuzzi -- Many know John as the pianist for the various Big Joe groups. He's also a regular member of Swing Speak. Did you also know that --
In addition to a pianist, he's a fantastic vibraphonist and drummer.
He's the musical director for 219 Restaurant's Basin Street Lounge.
He's the organizer for the Crystal City Jazz Celebration, a not-to-be-missed event that's featured such notables as Barbara Morrison, Eddie Locke, Houston Person, Bria Skonberg, and The Capital Focus Jazz Band (the Youth Learning Program of the Potomac River Jazz Club).
He's the leader of the Swinging Professors, with his dad on drums.
He was featured on the NPR program Riverwalk-Live at the Landing, recorded with Skitch Henderson and Bucky Pizzarelli, and performed with Ed Polcer at Lincoln Center
He'll just have returned from playing Dixieland Monterey jazz festival. After the WSDC Band Jam, he's headed for the Sacramento Jazz Jubilee, the Atlanta Jazz Party, the Sweet & Hot Music Festival in Los Angeles, the San Diego Thanksgiving Jazz Festival, and the JazzAscona festival in Switzerland. The man is in demand!
Check out the Swinging Vibes performance at the Millennium Stage -- with Bruce Swaim, Frank Cocuzzi, John Cocuzzi, Chuck Redd, and Steve Wolf
Because of this, I often think of the Big Three -- Big Joe Maher, John Cocuzzi, and John Previti as the Three J's. I've never told them this. I have told them that they're three of my (and my WSDC cohorts) favorite local musicians. And that's why they're participating in the WSDC Band Jam.
Big Joe Maher is a favorite band leader for one of the Nation's best, West-Coast-based dance instructors, Sylvia Sykes.
He was a W.C. Handy Award nominee for Best Blues Drummer in 2005. And won the WAMMIE award for Best Male Blues Vocalist in 2005.
He's been known to write songs on his way to dance gigs, based on his commuting experience. Listen to the lyrics when Joe is on stage. You'll often hear references to what's happening on the dancefloor.
He is one of the DC's areas most sought out drummers for touring musicians, including Jimmy Witherspoon, Bullmoose Jackson, James "Thunderbird" Davis, Nappy Brown, Otis Rush, Earl King, and more.
He's just finished playing to rave reviews at Soflex 2007
He's a fabulous producer.
And, he'll be "producing" the WSDC Band Jam on April 7.
Now a bit about John Previti --
He started in the 4th grade on classical oboe. The lure of rock and roll during high school drew him to electric bass, getting paying gigs within a year of starting the bass.
John switched to upright bass in college, holding down the contrabass first chair in both the concert band and the jazz ensemble. But electric bass gigs were still paying the rent.
In 1976, jamming on electric bass at a guitar shop in his hometown of Clinton, he met guitar great Danny Gatton. Danny liked his playing so much he invited John to join the band he was just starting. That group went on to make guitar history and, with one hiatus, John played with Danny for the next eighteen years.
With the steady growth of the Danny Gatton Trio’s fame and its jazz evolution, John was becoming increasingly sought after as the guitarist’s bass player. Through the eighties, he started getting calls from the cream of the area’s jazz guitarists. His old teen idol, the pioneer of acoustic jazz guitar, Charlie Byrd called. He had a chance to gig and record with Herb Ellis and eventually even accompanied Les Paul , a great Danny Gatton admirer. Previti performed with the great trumpeter, Doc Cheatham.
In 1995 John got heavily involved in the music for Paul Simon’s play, Capeman, eventually recording the music with Paul.
That same year, John went on a blues tour with Big Joe Maher and his East-West Allstars (with Junior Watson on guitar), starting an active collaboration that continues to this day.
Today, as a labor of love, he leads the Mingus-Monk Tribute band . A larger horn group, the Tribute performs highly original arrangements of Mingus and Monk classics in monthly appearances at Whitlows on Wilson. Swinging Lullabies For My Rosetta is John’s first album as a leader -- and it's fantastic.
John Cocuzzi -- Many know John as the pianist for the various Big Joe groups. He's also a regular member of Swing Speak. Did you also know that --
In addition to a pianist, he's a fantastic vibraphonist and drummer.
He's the musical director for 219 Restaurant's Basin Street Lounge.
He's the organizer for the Crystal City Jazz Celebration, a not-to-be-missed event that's featured such notables as Barbara Morrison, Eddie Locke, Houston Person, Bria Skonberg, and The Capital Focus Jazz Band (the Youth Learning Program of the Potomac River Jazz Club).
He's the leader of the Swinging Professors, with his dad on drums.
He was featured on the NPR program Riverwalk-Live at the Landing, recorded with Skitch Henderson and Bucky Pizzarelli, and performed with Ed Polcer at Lincoln Center
He'll just have returned from playing Dixieland Monterey jazz festival. After the WSDC Band Jam, he's headed for the Sacramento Jazz Jubilee, the Atlanta Jazz Party, the Sweet & Hot Music Festival in Los Angeles, the San Diego Thanksgiving Jazz Festival, and the JazzAscona festival in Switzerland. The man is in demand!
Check out the Swinging Vibes performance at the Millennium Stage -- with Bruce Swaim, Frank Cocuzzi, John Cocuzzi, Chuck Redd, and Steve Wolf
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