The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust Presents R&B saxman MACEO PARKER 1/16

The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust presents R&B funk legend Maceo Parker and his band on Sunday, January 16, 2011, 7:00 p.m., at the Byham Theater. This performance is part of the 2010-2011 Cohen & Grigsby Trust Presents series. Tickets ($20.75, $32.75, $37.75) may be purchased in-person at the Box Office at Theater Square, 655 Penn Avenue, online at pgharts.org, or by calling (412) 456-6666. To purchase 10 or more group tickets, call (412) 471-6930.

Revered for his impeccable pedigree and leading the world's tightest funk orchestra, the saxophone titan has played with Funk legends James Brown, George Clinton and Bootsy Collins, among others. Collaborations with Ray Charles, Ani Difranco, James Taylor, De La Soul, Dave Matthews and Red Hot Chili Peppers have introduced him to an exuberant, younger fan base.

"Everything's coming up Maceo," concluded DownBeat Magazine in a 1991 article at the beginning of Maceo Parker's solo career. At the time Maceo was a remembered by aficionados of funk music as sideman; appreciated mainly by those in the know. For the past two decades, Maceo has been building a new funk empire, fresh and stylistically diverse, navigating deftly between James Brown's 1960's soul and George Clinton's 1970's freaky funk while exploring mellower jazz and the grooves of hip-hop.

His solo career recording highlights include 10 weeks at the top of Billboard's Jazz Charts for his recording Roots Revisited (1990) and "funk fan favorite" Live on Planet Groove, recorded live in 1992. Parker's recordings Funk Overload, Dial M-A-C-E-O and Made by Maceo all reached the top 40 charts in Europe. "Maceo Parker is a funk titan. ...Parker must be regarded as simply one of the all-time great saxophonists. He stretched the boundaries of music, fashioned a new style of playing and, most importantly, made some truly great music" (Mercury San Francisco).

Mr. Parker is the recipient of the Pioneer Award from the Rhythm and Blues Foundation for his leadership contributions to the genre of rhythm and blues. "Quite simply, there is no better showman than Maceo Parker. Catching one of the alto sax maestro's marathon three-hour shows is a truly transcendental experience for any fan of funk, jazz, hip-hop, R&B and soul: His performances are....a funky, funky good time (Westworld)."

 

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