Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current, July 07, 1993, Page 11, Image 11

Below is the OCR text representation for this newspapers page. It is also available as plain text as well as XML.

    w t v > « **»
r^4l - .
* < *’> , t I i t u r m r e M V •
* r * v
P age B3
„
/> Z i
N orman
f
f a
S
t &
T M K I A IS M Y N l
y l v e s t e r
&
t r t r o
f a
G
n
ENSON
EORGE
Ä
• »*
? 4
• > *
■
»•
I
,
*ïS /5 j
jV 'r
Z4 . ’ 1
'i- L
><:
“ V e rs a tility has alw ays been w h a t
I ’ m about and on th is a lbu m I had the
BY DA N BELL
B o rn in B o n ita , L o u isia n a , lo n g
chance to re a lly stretch out and try a
t im e
lo t o f d iffe re n t approaches ”
So says G eorge Benson on the
P o r tla n d
r e s id e n t
N o rm a n
Sy Ivcster b rin g s to the stage an e x c it­
B lu e s.” S ylvester and com p an y have
sub je ct o f h is e x tr a o r d in a r y new
W arner B ros Records release. Love
Rem em bers G e o rg e ’ s g u ita r, voca l
been p la y in g p ro fe s s io n a lly in the
and s o n g w ritin g style has, o ve r the
in g and so u lfu l presence. P la yin g w hat
has been te rm e d “ o r ig in a l N .W .
between pop, jazz, and soul. N o w , on
the dozen d a z z lin g tracks o f Lo ve
h im an $11.50 acoustic g u ita r, they
gether fo r a sum ptuous s ty lis tic feast.
they w o u ld buy h im an e le c tric g u ita r.
w o rk, pop and R & B fans kn o w o th ­
h ig h school tau ght h im the three songs
ers,” he e x p la in s " I w anted to b rin g
and m o re T h a t sch o o l m ate w as
Isaac S cott now a w e ll k n o w n Blues
them a ll tog ether.”
“ Jazz fans kno w one pa rt o f m y
m u sicia n in his o w n rig h t liv in g in
w o rk , pop and R & B fans kn o w o th ­
Seattle.
S ylvester ga in fu rth e r experience
p la y in g fo r th e F a ith T a b e rn a c le
ers,” he e xp la ins. " I w a nted to b rin g
C h u rc h o f G od in C h ris t band, p la y in g
them a ll tog ether.”
Recorded in N e w Y o rk , the Lo ve
w ith D a n n y O sborne and h is frie n d
Rem em bers sessions lik e w is e ca lle d
together a diverse lis t o f su p p o rtin g
ta le n t A sid e fro m G eorge h im s e lf,
and m e n to r Isaac Scott.
W h e n S ylverster graduated fro m
Ja m e s,
e le c tric g u ita r they had p ro m ised h im
S te w a r t
L e v in e ,
D a v id
G am son, m ix m a s te r Gary’ Henry and
tw o years ea rlie r.
A f te r h ig h s c h o o l he lo o k e d
others. S u p p o rtin g m usicians read lik e
a W h o ’ s W h o o f m od ern m usic: bass­
fo r perm anent e m p lo ym e n t, g e ttin g
»
I.
producers in clu d e d the renow ned Bob
H ig h school his parents b o u g h t th a t
h
• .•*
4 •?>
"Ja zz fans kno w one p a rt o f my
s c h o o l m a te a t J e ffe r s o n
dated a ll th e ir assets.
Betw een 1985 and 1990 Sylvester
created a p ro d u c tio n com p an y ca lle d
S ylvester is s till in dem and and
ists Abe L a b o rie l and N a th a n East,
has w o rke d in W a sh in g to n , and C a li­
saxo ph on ist K ir k W h a lu m , fla u tis t
fo rn ia , as w e ll as th ro u g h out O rego n
Hubert Laws, key boardist R ichard Tee,
B oo gie C at P ro d u ctio n s, and recorded
H is style is un iq u e , h e ’s d e fin ite ly
stage and w h ile ta lk in g to h im he w as
at cassette a lb u m on h is o w n label. A n
surp rised w h en B u d d y ask h im to play
in d ic a to r o f h is business savvy is that
n o t an im ita to r , he does h is ow n
th in g . H e is b a c k c d b y a seasoned band
a couple o f songs before he cam e on.
T h is was his fir s t taste o f p e rfo rm in g
he m arkets h is cassettes v ia cata log to
w h o re a lly get do w n : T hey are; F rankie
E urope w h ere it is w e ll received. Y o u
R e d d in g ; keyb oa rd, P a tric k La m b,
fo r a B lues audience. S ylvester says
fro m th a t m om ent on he was a B lues
can also p ic k h is cassette up at Lo cals
o n ly . M u s ic M ille n n iu m , and at the
ree d a n d b ra ss N ic k C h ris tm a s ,
d ru m s; L e na nn e S ylvester, featured
Ju n kie
In 1968 S y lve ste ro b ta in e d steady
bandstand w h e n he p e rfo rm s
v o c a lis t; and R ob Shoem aker, bass.
G uy c o n c e rt at Reed c o lle g e . H e
got a chance to ta lk to B ud dy back
f •
t
Rem em bers, he b rin g s th e m a ll to ­
to ld h im w h en he learned three songs
sam e y e a r he a tte n d e d a B u d d y
» -;v
career, e ffo rtle ssly b rid g e d the gap
gan in 1957 w h e n h is parents bought
m a rrie d in 1965. In the fa ll o f the
V/'Â * •
course o f a p io n e e rin g three-decade
P o rtla n d area since 1985.
S ylve ste r’ s m u sica l odyssey be­
A
< Ci •
I >/;
¿5
H is rise on the lo c a l m usic scene
1985 he
George
a c c la im e d c o lla b o r a tio n b e tw e e n
m u sic ”
11 w as a c reati ve st rategy th a t bore
■37.;
S:^-’
in g tog ether fo r years, but th is is the
G eorge and the C ount Basie O rches­
firs t lim e w e ’ve ever actually put some­
th in g dow n. I hope we can do a lo t
tra , released in late 1990 and fo llo w e d
f r u it on Love Rem em bers, a p ro je c t
tha t has taken up m ost o f h is a tte n tio n
-
v"'“ -
m ore tog ether.”
T h e re su lt o f th is very special m ix
sum m er o f 1991 “ It was one o f the
cession o f leverage buy-outs.
D u r in g th is tim e m usic became
p o rtio n o f W h a t's G ood F or T h e Hood
repertoire.
A m a jo r break com e when he
w h e n the th ir d and fin a l o w ne r liq u i­
dem and fo r h is w o rk becam e greater
Boss B and project W o rk in g w ith them
è
“ W e ’ve actually been w o rk ­
o w n o r ig in a l m u sic in to the bands
sequent review he w as th ru s t in to a
h ig h e r degree o f exposure and the
Foster, w h o was a key p a rt o f the B ig
beam s
Rose F e stiva l he had in co rp o ra te d his
k n e w - m usic.
P .l.E . fin a lly collap sed in 1990
o p p o rtu n ity to b rin g a ll those diffe re nts
V
a lb u m ,” e xp la in s G eorge, “ and F ra n k
tra ck “ Com e In to M y W o rld .
years u n til they collap sed fro m a suc­
back on the o n ly o th e r th in g he re a lly
ju s t how my m usic had branched out
ove r the years I w a nted to have the
v a rie ty and s ty lis tic spread o f m y
firm . He was to stay w ith th e m 22
1987.
A fte r th is pe rfo rm a n ce and co n ­
w ith "M y son Steven Benson Hue.
played some o f the keyboards, d id
range F rank Foster. “ I d recorded w ith
Q uin cy fo r his B a ck O n T h e b lo c k
course. B ig Boss Band, the c r itic a lly
ahead blues
S ylvester w i ll produce the m usic
liv e lih o o d was in je o p a rd y So he fe ll
G eorge was esp ecially pro u d to play
ja z z roots helped me to see m ore cle arly
some p ro g ra m m in g and co -w ro te the
has m eteoric. S ta rtin g in
opened fo r B B. K in g and received
F ind le y., .the lis t, as they say, goes on
B u t there was one guest a rtis t
In a w o r d y o u c a ll N o rm a n
S ylve ste r’ s m u sic s o u lfu l and s tra ig h t
opened fo r James C o tto n By the 1986’s
ever in 1985 he becam e acu tely aw are
a fte r the firs , sale o f P .l.E . th a t his
John Robertson, trum pe t play c r C h uck
facets in to one a lb u m .”
T h e Benson-Basie p ro je ct was. o f
em p lo ym e n t at P I E. a lo ca l tru c k in g
m ore o f a hobby fo r Sylvester. H o w ­
g u ita ris t W ah W a h W atson.
d ru m m e rs H a rve y M a so n and
favo ra ble press fro m the O re g o n ia n in
M u lti C u ltu ra l F e stiva l at the H o ly
Redeem er A re a School cam pus, to be
by a h e a d lin in g to u r o f Japan in the
bo th also helped me to un de rsta nd the
■
ove r the course o f the past tw o years
F ro m the sheer beauty o f such
o f talent, song and m usical sty les stands
great t h r ills o f my life ,” G eorge en­
thuses. “ T o share the stage w ith a
ballads as’ L o v in ’ O n B o rro w e d T im e ”
I t
event w i ll be held on F rid a y July 9
as one o f the most acco m plishe d and
band o f that ca lib e r was lik e n o th in g
and “ L o v e O f M y L ife , ”
*C -’.
fro m 5-9 p.m . and Saturday July 10
accessible album s o f G eorge Benson s
standout tra cks as “ I ' l l Be G ood T o
fro m 12-9 p .m
F o r fu rth e r in fo rm a tio n c a ll 283-
re m a rka b le career.
“ T he idea fo r th is a lb u m cam e to
inc after 1 fin is h e d w o rk in g w ith the
I 'd ever been a p a rt o f before It was
perfect.” Perfect, too. was the m usic
Y o u .” “ Com e In to M y W o rld ” and a
created by G eorge and his o w n back­
rem ake o f the Jackson classic “ G o t T o
in g ensem ble on a subsequent tour,
th a t in clu d e d an appearance at the
Be T h e re .” L o ve Rem em bers is a w o rk
he ld ou tside H o ly Redeem er is lo ­
cated at 127 N . P o rtla n d B lv d . T h is
5197.
C o un t B asic O rchestra ,” e xp la in s the
M u s ic
to such
i
th a t reveals the m any sides o f G eorge
m u lti G ra m m y -w in n in g m u sicia n and
M o n tre u x Jazz F e stiva l w ith the le g­
Benson, crea ting , in the process, one
com poser. “ G e ttin g in touch w ith m y
endary Q uincy Jones and fam ed a r­
u n fo rg e tta b le w hole.
KMHD Radio
On
ies
$
’1
a
1
Fans o f the Square’ s M o n d a y -
Refined
Hair Design"
n ig h t ja z z scries, “ Starbucks by S ta r­
lig h t , " can get a sneak p re v ie w o f each
co n ce rt by lis te n in g to K M H D F m
3$
89.1
A t 3pm on the F riday before each
Veronica Tyler - Soprano
Yin Cheng Zong - Pianist
concert, K M H D m usical d ire c to r G reg
Sunday
1 he T h irte e n th A n n u a l Y achats
a fte rn o o n ,
e n t it le d
Z o n g w i ll p la y C h o p in ’ s A nd an te
G om ez w i ll conduct a liv e in te rv ie w
M u s ic F estival w i ll take place July 8 -
“ A m e rica n a et. a l.” w i ll feature A m e ri­
S pianato and G ra n d Polonaise
w ith tha t w e e k’ s featured m u s ic ia n
11 al Y achats, O regon. T h e F e s tiv a l’ s
can and E n g lis h -la n g u a g e M u s ic w ith
and w i ll play selected re c o rd in g s by
fo u n d c r/d ire c to r. D r.
W . H a z a ia h
the w o rk s o f W illia m G ra n t S till. Ives,
In a d d itio n to the above concerts.
F estival Patrons w ill enjoy a private
W illia m s , began the Y ach ats M u s ic
M a c D o w e ll. G o tts c h a lk . E llig n lo n ,
A rtis ts ’ P re-F estiva l C o nccrt/R ccep -
F estival in 1981 He is also the fo u n d e r
and some con tem po rary com posers.
A ls o featured w i ll be n m -o f-th e -c c n -
tio n on T hursday e ve n in g , and day­
le cture-dem onstrations, open rehears­
in te rn a tio n a l c o n c e rt o rg a n iz a tio n
tury re lig io u s songs.
Sunday cveni ng w il 1 fcatu re w o rks
based in San F rancisco and B erkeley,
by M o z a rt, in c lu d in g sonic Serenades
R e m a in in g in d iv id u a l tickets are
C a lifo rn ia
M u s ic F e stiva l concerts
by T h e R ussian O rchestra , an a ria by
now av a ila b le fo r a ll ev e n in g concerts
are scheduled at the Y ach ats C o m m u ­
A bra ha m L in d -O q u c n d o a n d a Rondao
n ity Presbyterian C h u rc h at 8:0 0 P M
played by v io lin is t E lw y n A dam s.
and fo r Sunday a fte rn o o n ’ s concert.
T ic k e ts can be purchased at the Adobe
F rid a v, July 9; Saturday . July 10; and
M ezzo S oprano E lv ir a G reen w i ll be
Resort M o te l (5 0 3 ) 54 7-3 141 , at the
Sunday, July 11; and at 3:00 P M on
jo in e d by v io lis t K e n n e th E dw ard s
Sunday.
Each e ve n in g features a v a rie d
and p ia n is t D e n n is H e lm iric h in pa rt
F ireside M o te l (5 0 3 ) 54 7-3 636 , o r at
the N ew M o r n in g C offeehouse (50 3)
o f B ra h m s ’ O p. 91 P ia n ist Y in C h cn g -
527-3622.
and cu rre n t d ire c to r o f the F e s tiv a l’ s
sponsor. T o d a v ’ s A rtis ts C oncerts, the
$5°° Off on Mondays
ings.
expand the p u b lic 's aw areness b o th o f
ja z z in a ll its v a ria tio n s and the very
3 6 0 9 NE M a r tin L u th e r K in g , Jr. B lv d • P o rtla n d , O re g o n 9721 1
ce rt roster
Inters iew s scheduled in July are:
July 3, A ly ssa S chw ary. July 9, G re g
SCHOOLS OUT
Russian orchestra and v io lin soloists
E lw y n A dam s, V io lin is t
“ G reen M a c h in e ” B id B an d. Ju ly 16,
O bo Addy and Jancic S co rg g in s, and
Watch Out For
C H IL D R E N
W illia m D u n ca n A lle n , P ianist
D ’ A ich a in b e a u in V iv a ld i’s “ W in ­
James B a rb a g a llo , P ianist
te r” and “ S p rin g ” fro m T h e F our Sea­
sons T h e c v e n in g w ill h ig h lig h t w o rks
F ra n cis Bcbey,
A fric a n G u ita ris t/C o m p o s c r
Ilya M a rin e z , Soprano
B e n ja m in M a tth e w s. B ass-B aritone
re la tin g to the them e o f T h e Seasons
Sushecl B ibbs. Soprano
M a tth e w O w ens, C e llis t
w ith B e r lio z ’ L c N u it d ’ E tc (S u m m e r
W illia m B ro w n . T e n o r
N ig h ts ) and sections fro m
T ch a iko vsky ’ s p ia n o w o rk T he
K a m a la Cesar B u ckn e r. D ancer
D a v id S ig a l. P ia n ist
Jeanne S ta rk-Io ch m a n s. P ianist
Adam s
and
P ie r r e
by S ta rlig h t" is sponsored by W i l ­
la m ette W eek S tarb ucks C o ffe e and
KMHD
Jean-Louis S lcu crin a n . P ianist
Seasons T h e eve n in g w ill also feature
e x c e r p ts
K e n n e th E dw ards. V io lis t
V e ro n ica T y le r. Soprano
com p ose r’ s re p e rto ire such as Bach.
R ic h a rd Fields. P ianist
W illia m W a rfie ld , B ass-B aritone
Debussy. S chubert and L is z t
A lp h a F loyd . Soprano
Jue Y ao. V io lin is t
Saturday e ve n in g features a p o r­
tio n o f l-i.xzt s p ia n o tra n s c rip tio n o f
Eugene G ash, P ia nist
E lv ir a G reen, M e zzo Soprano
Y in C h c n g -Z o n g . P ia nist
T h e R ussian O rchestra
B e r lio z ’ H a rq ld in Inla y and the fa­
m ous “ B a rc a ro lle ” o fO ffc n b a c h A ls o
D e n n is H c lm ric h . P ia nist
A le x a n d e r V cre sh a n g in ,
s e v e ra l
m a jo r
K e n n H ic k s , T e n o r
H a ro ld Jones. F lu tis t
featured w ill be songs bv R avel, and
Vi
I
90.7 FM P O R T L A N D
1968
L o rc ic Stevens. Soprano
M u s ic D ire c to r and C o n d u cto r
Y elena L ip ilin a . O rchestra M anager
25 YEARS OF COMMUNITY RADIO
32nd & E. BURNSIDE
2 3 1 -8 9 2 6
23rd & NW JOHNSON
2 4 8 -0 1 6 3
Folk*Blues»Jazz»Bluegrass»Soul»Reggae»Latin»Pubfic Affairs»
Women s Progmmm,ng«Local Music «ClasscahWortd Music«AltemaUveRock«
Spintual«Alncan«Spoken Arts’ Live Even! Coverage’ Live Music«
New Music«ln1erviews«And much, much m oie-Tune In*
For a F R E E P ro g ram G uide o f lis tin g s and in fo r m a tio n
C a » . (5 0 3 ) 2 3 1 8 0 3 2
W I N N E R -Portland Music Association Crystal Award 1992-
O U T S T A N D IN G R A D IO S T A T IO N
w o rk s b ' H avdn and C h o p in
A A A A A A A A
•1
am
.............r
w
’ ; w
; î
« * *
1993
C H E C K O U T T H E M O S T E C L E C T IC PROG RAM S O N Y O U R D IA L :
M U S IC
M IL L E N N IU M
T hom a s B u ckn e r. B arito ne
P ierre C ’ A rch a m b ca u , V io lin s it
fro m
:•
on July 23, C h ris P a rke r "S ta rb u c k s
!
Rafael L c v ro n , B a rito n e
A b ra h a m L in d -O q u e n d o . B a rito n e
E lw y n
.s
g
M cK e lve y o f the W ils o n H ig h S chool
F rid a y eve n in g opens w ith T he
Joseph K ub be ra, P ianist
■it;
?<•
tale nted ja z z a rtis t on th is y e a r’ s c o n ­
als and m usic a p p re cia tio n sem inars
Artists per rming during the
four-day program are:
sam ple o f sonic o f the concert o ffe r­
the m usicians
T h e in te rv ie w s are designed to
tim e F estival a c tiv itie s w h ic h in clud e
p ro g ra m p re sen ting an array o f A r t-
ists-in -R csid en cc T h e fo llo w in g is a
s
A * A*
* ? * * ‘
}
„ ?
> •* ;.* :*
‘.U :
.
’