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Posts tagged as “John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts”

MUSIC MONDAY: “Speak No Evil: The Best of Wayne Shorter” Playlist (LISTEN)

by Marlon West (FB: marlon.west1 Twitter: @marlonw IG: stlmarlonwest Spotify: marlonwest)

Happy Music Monday, you all. This collection celebrates another recently departed great, Wayne Shorter. He was a giant of jazz for six decades. He was a well-regarded improviser, bandleader, composer, and thinker.

[spotifyplaybutton play=”https://open.spotify.com/playlist/76tvVHnlNP252TmRHgXlDp?si=f990ba9037854921″]

From his teen years with Art Blakey and Miles Davis to his work as a founder of Weather Report, to leading his own landmark quintet Shorter was among the greatest.

A well-known figure on the jazz circuit since the late 1950s, Shorter would go on to take a strong hand in shaping much of 20th Century jazz music.

The 12-time Grammy award winner played alongside several greats, including Carlos Santana, Steely Dan, Joni Mitchell, and Herbie Hancock.

In 1964 he was swooped away after several attempts by jazz legend Miles Davis to become part of Davis’ “Second Great Quintet.”

Wayne Shorter would also release solo albums by 1959, including the acclaimed Speak No Evil, Night Dreamer, and JuJu.

Among the dozen Grammy awards he won, Shorter received a Lifetime Achievement award in 2015

In 2018, Shorter received the Kennedy Center Honors Award from the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts for his lifetime of contributions to the arts.

Hope you enjoy the collection. As usual, stay safe, sane, and kind. See ya next month!

Marlon West (photo courtesy Marlon West)

National Museum of African History and Culture All-Star Tribute to Air on ABC Tonight

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National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington D.C. (photo via notey.com)

article by Lori Lakin Hutcherson (follow @lakinhutcherson)
The National Museum of African American History and Culture takes center stage on ABC Television tonight. The network will air “Taking the Stage: African American Music and Stories that Changed America” on ABC stations nationwide at 9 pm EST/8 pm CST.
Filmed live at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts as part of the Grand Opening celebration of the Museum, the program features an all-star tribute of music, dance, and spoken word on the African American experience. Oprah Winfrey, Stevie Wonder, Mary J. Blige, and Tom Hanks are among the many artists who participated in the program, which includes a special salute to the Tuskegee Airmen.
The special will feature new film footage of iconic items from the museum’s collections – items ranging from a plane used to train the famed Tuskegee airmen for World War II combat duty to a bible owned by Nat Turner. The film is accompanied by music, dance and dramatic readings by a wide range of stage and screen actors.
#TakingtheStage