Message to funk received from the Mothership: hit-maker
Brian Culbertson is in the studio conspiring with his cosmic group of musical
soul brothers on his second funk collection, “Funk!,” which will be released
September 16 on his BCM Entertainment label. Less than a week after his
seventeenth album streets, the award-winning multi-instrumentalist will launch
a coast-to-coast concert tour on a scale unlike any trek ever mounted by the
vivacious showman who will be flanked by the same band showcased on the album.
To help set the stage for the 11-song set plus three playful interlude
sketches, all produced by Culbertson, radio stations will be serviced “Been
Around The World” in early July.
Those who
have caught a Culbertson show over the last year might have had a premonition
that the R&B-jazzman was about to again morph into an emissary of funk, a
mission that began with his 2008 recording “Bringing Back The Funk,” which he
co-produced with the late Maurice White of Earth, Wind & Fire and featured
legendary funksters Bootsy Collins and Larry Graham. His set list at recent
gigs included a pair of funk classics, “Got To Give It Up” and “Play That Funky
Music,” which made it onto the new album. The Chicago-bred musician who plays
piano, Fender Rhodes, Wurlitzer, clavinet, Hammond B3 organ, synths, trombone,
bass, drums, percussion and sings on the entire record wrote or co-wrote nine
new songs for “Funk!” that showcases his live band – Marqueal Jordan (vocals
& sax), Tyrone Chase (guitars), Eddie Miller (keyboards, organ &
vocals), Rodney Jones, Jr. (bass, guitar & vocals), Chris Miskel (drums)
and Michael Stever (trumpeter & horn arrangements) - along with Chance
Howard, a nasty R&B keyboardist, bassist and vocalist who has toured and
recorded with fellow Minnesota native Prince. Noted trumpeter Patches Stewart
will replace Stever for the Funk! Tour.
Next month,
Howard will join Culbertson on stage to premiere a few choice cuts from
“Funk!,” including the first single, at Culbertson’s fifth anniversary Napa
Valley Jazz Getaway, a wine and jazz lifestyle experience in the heart of
California Wine Country taking place June 8-12.
“The concept
for ‘Funk!’ was to make an old-school, throwback funkadelic record in the style
of P-Funk meets Prince and to tour with the same band that appears on the album
- my band plus Chance (Howard). We finished tracking and are mixing this week.
The show we will be taking out on the road is unlike anything anyone has ever
seen from me before. It’s on an entirely different level. Yes, we’re taking it
there! I’m also very excited about capturing the magic by shooting a Blu-ray to
be taped on tour this fall,” said Culbertson, who as an imaginative and
trend-setting artist, producer and songwriter has architected 28 Billboard No.
1 singles along with a library of chart-topping albums.
Once again,
Culbertson has opened the doors to the recording studio by posting a series of
video blogs from the “Funk!” sessions on his website (http://www.brianculbertson.com/funk)
as well as engaging his followers through Facebook Live. And like his most
recent studio release, he’s offering fans the opportunity to get involved with
the process by launching an Indiegogo campaign (https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/brian-culbertson-s-funk--2#/)
that provides a menu of unique options, including VIP concert tickets, tickets
for the Blu-ray filming, autographed CD, limited edition vinyl album, a private
personalized video message, sheet music and a bobble head Funk! doll.
The songs
that comprise “Funk!” are:
“Get Ready”
“The Call”
“Been Around
The World”
“Take It Up”
“Let’s Take
A Ride”
“We Got What
You Want”
“Sunshine”
(interlude)
“Hey Girl”
“Damn, I’m
Hungry” (interlude)
“Got To Give
It Up”
“Mile Sauce”
“Play That
Funky Music”
“Spend A
Little Time”
“To Be
Continued…” (interlude)
The Funk!
Tour itinerary is listed below (additional dates will be added):
September
22-25 - Seattle, WA @ Jazz
Alley
September
26 - Portland, OR @ The
Aladdin
September
27 - Bend, OR @ Tower Theater
October
5 - Fresno,
CA @ Tower Theater
October
6 - Santa
Barbara, CA @ Lobero Theater
October
7 - Newport Beach,
CA @ Hyatt Newporter
October
8 - Temecula, CA @ Thornton
Winery
October
9 - Scottsdale,
AZ @ Livewire
October
11-12 - Denver, CO @ Soiled
Dove
October
13 - Salt Lake
City, UT @ The
State Room
October
14-15 - Las Vegas,
NV @ Aliante Casino
October
16 - Catalina Island,
CA @ Catalina
Island JazzTrax Festival
October
20 - Indianapolis,
IN @ Murat Theater
October
21 - Cincinnati,
OH @ Ludlow Garage
October
23 - New Albany,
OH @ Schottenstein Theatre
October
25 - Pittsburgh, PA @ MCG Jazz
October
26-27 - New York, NY @ B.B. King’s
October
28 - Cranston,
RI @ Park Theatre
October
29 - New Haven,
CT @ John
Lyman Center
October
30 - Boston,
MA @ Scullers Jazz Club
November
4 - Collingswood, NJ @ Scottish Rite
Auditorium
November
5 - Mount Pocono,
PA @ Mt. Airy
Casino Resort
November
11 - Minneapolis,
MN @ Dakota
November
13 - Detroit, MI @ Royal
Oak Music Theatre
Nov. 28-Dec.
2 - London, England @ Pizza Express
No comments:
Post a Comment