Count Basie News

Legendary jazz vocalist Marlena Shaw will make her debut at Feinstein's at the Nikko for two performances only - Saturday, October 11 (7 p.m.) and Sunday, October 12 (7 p.m.) Backed by the Marlena Shaw Quartet, Shaw will feature an evening of her greatest hits from throughout her 40-plus year career. Tickets for Marlena Shaw range in price from $35 - $50 and are available now by calling 866.663.1063 or visiting www.ticketweb.com.

Joe Piscopo took the stage at The Ciccone Theatre recently, and BroadwayWorld was on hand to snap some photos! As Joe Piscopo tells it, NBC in a moment of insanity replaced the original cast of Saturday Night Live (Dan Aykroyn, John Belushi, Gilda Radner etc) with Joe Piscopo and a new cast which included Eddie Murphy. After seeing Joe's act at a great venue in Paramus New Jersey named The Ciccone Theatre, I witnessed first hand the brilliance of the network's decision to put Joe in SNL in 1980.

The Utah Symphony performs with Doc Severinsen, the trumpeter and bandleader for Johnny Carson's The Tonight Show, on September 26 and 27 in Abravanel Hall at 8 PM.

John Mellencamp has announced dates for his upcoming Plain Spoken tour beginning in January 2015 throughout the summer.

Music Director Jacques Lacombe and the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra open the NJSO's 2014-15 concert season October 10-12 with Orff's Carmina Burana in Newark, New Brunswick and Morristown. The concert opens with New Jersey composer George Antheil's McKonkey's Ferry as part of both the NJSO's New Jersey Roots Project and NJ350--a celebration of the Garden State's 350th anniversary in 2014. Debussy's Nocturnes rounds out the opening program.

Between the two legendary bastions of great jazz, the Blue Note on West 3rd street, and Birdland on 44th Street, is another music stage on 22nd street. The kind of music usually associated with those two clubs was heard at the Metropolitan Room last night. With swinging and elegant singing, Kathy Sledge brought the music of Billie Holiday to the standing room only crowd that packed operating partner Bernie Furshpan's Cabaret venue. With a band that seemed to stretch the entire length of the room, a group of musicians called "Somebody Tell Joe & The Chops" turned on an engine of sound which was akin to hearing Count Basie and crew at the Sands in Las Vegas. As the leader shouted out the tempo cue, 1-2-3-4, horns raised and John Coltrane's "Giant Steps" and Gillespie and Paparelli's "Night In Tunisia" lifted the musically elite audience out of their seats.

THE RRAZZ ROOM arrived in New Hope, PA, this year after a successful 10-year run in San Francisco, and during that run, RRAZZ Entertainment presented Joan Rivers in concert at the nearby Castro Theatre, as seen left in the live photo from 2011.

Chili Challis, nationally known comic and former writer for The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, will headline The Uncle Hippie Show, a night of standup at The Mix Studio Theater, 8 N. Washington Street in Ypsilanti, Michigan, with featured guest Thaddeus Nathaniel Challis and local comedienne Germaine Gebhard, one night only, September 20, 2014 at 8pm. Tickets are $15 General Admission, $10 Seniors and Students with ID, and are available on-line at www.emergentarts.com.

DHX Media, a key player internationally in the creation of content for families and children, announced today that Yo Gabba Gabba! will take the stage this Fall with Yo Gabba Gabba! LIVE! Music is Awesome!. The new live stage show marks the 5th anniversary of the live tour. Yo Gabba Gabba! LIVE! Music is Awesome! will be directed by Yo Gabba Gabba! creators Christian Jacobs (The Aquabats) and Scott Schultz (Majestic). DJ Lance Rock, (Lance Robertson, St. Louis native and founding member of psychedelic electronic pop band The Ray Makers), the colorful cast of Yo Gabba Gabba! characters, fan favorite Leslie Hall and beat boxing legend Biz Markie will return to the road together to perform for more than 200,000 enthusiastic fans on a 30-city tour that will begin on Tuesday, October 14 and will run through Sunday, December 7. The Yo Gabba Gabba! LIVE! Music is Awesome! tour is produced by S2BN Entertainment in association with DHX Media.

Recognizing the powerful role music can play in a person's life at any age, the Music Institute of Chicago is offering a wide range of opportunities for adults to enhance their lives through musical instruction and performance in a fun, relaxed setting. Registration for Adult Studies and Adult Enrichment Programs is open, with classes beginning September 10 in Evanston, Winnetka and Lake Forest. Private instruction is available at any of the Music Institute's six campuses: Chicago, Downers Grove, Evanston, Lake Forest, Lincolnshire and Winnetka. NEW Adult Enrichment Program

Hotel Nikko San Francisco and Michael Feinstein are proud to announce 'City Singers,' a new weekly concert series featuring a wide range of performers from throughout the San Francisco Bay Area held every Today at Feinstein's at the Nikko.

The New Jersey Performing Arts Center (NJPAC), Larry Rosen Productions (LRP), and Concord Music Group announce a landmark agreement to provide an exclusive recording contract offer to record and release an album on Concord Records to the winner of the 2014 Sarah Vaughan International jazz Vocal Competition, now known as the SASSY awards.

Birdland Jazz Club is pleased to announce their amazing line-up of talent for August 18 - August 24. Read more to see the full week of great programming!

Hotel Nikko San Francisco and Michael Feinstein are proud to announce "City Singers," a new weekly concert series featuring a wide range of performers from throughout the San Francisco Bay Area held every Wednesday at Feinstein's at the Nikko.

Kathy Sledge is the lead singer of famous sister group 'Sister Sledge' whom held numerous number one hits and Grammy nominations is performing her show BRIGHTER SIDE OF DAY live at the Metropolitan Room for one night only on September 9 and 9:30pm.

SummerStage continues their summer programming of free concerts. They recently released their lineup of free shows for the week of August 18-24th. See the full details below!

Blue Note Jazz Club, one of the world's most iconic jazz and blues venues based in Greenwich Village, is proud to announce an impressive schedule of artists for August 2014.

Birdland Jazz Club has announced their great line-up of amazing talent for the month of August 2014, featuring: The Jazz Masters Quartet, Dave Douglas Quintet, Django Reinhardt NY Festival, Eric Comstock & Barbara Fasano, Rotem Sivan Trio, Sean Harkness Duo, Jane Monheit, Jim Caruso's Cast Party, and more. Details below!

59E59 Theaters has announced the line-up of shows for Fall 2014.

America's oldest continuing summer Chamber Music Festival, Music Mountain, continues their 85th Anniversary Season with Swingtime Big Band tonight, July 26 (6:30PM) with the popular pre-concert dinner beforehand (5PM) followed on Sunday, July 27 (3PM) by the piano virtuoso Misha Dichter and the acclaimed Harlem String Quartet.