 Kim Nalley
In what may be Jazz at Pearl's final month (their lease has only been extended trhough May), Kim Nalley will present her tribute to Nina Simone starting on April 29th and continuing every Tuesday in May. Nalley's musical tribute is interspersed with historical commentary and unabashed delivery of the more controversial songs of Nina Simone's repertoire. In addition to Kim Nalley on vocals the band will feature Tammy Hall on piano, Josh Workman on guitar, Michael Zisman on bass, Kent Bryson on drums. Pianist Tammy Hall, another musician heavily influenced heavily by Nina Simone, worked closely with Nalley to help develop the sound, spirit and repertoire for this glorious Simone tribute. Kim Nalley's Tribute to Nina Simone has enjoyed four sold out runs in various venues since Dr. Simone's death and all the reviews have been exuberant. Kim Nalley, recently nominated as one the 10 most influential African Americans in the Bay Area, is a must see in this rare tribute. Advance tickets are highly recommended as the show is expected to sell out.
Kim Nalley has a 3 1/2 octave range that can go from operatic to gritty blues on a dime, projection that can whisper a ballad yet is capable of filling a room with no microphone and the ability to scat blistering solos without ever losing the crowd's interest or the intense swing. Her singing is most reminiscent of the former Basie Singers Helen Humes & Joe Williams with a dash of Dinah Washington and occasional nods to Ella, Sarah and Nina Simone.
A born singer, as child Nalley was taught piano by her great-grandmother and later attended the Educational Center of the Arts studying Opera and Theater. Relocating to San Francisco in the footsteps of the Greatful Dead, she sang every night in small dives to pay her way through UC Berkeley and learned to sing jazz the old fashioned way, at the jam session. Music critic Phil Elwood and San Francisco Symphony director Michael Tilson Thomas first bought Kim Nalley to national attention. Since then her collaborations and performances include Rhoda Scott, David Fathead Newman, James Williams & Michael Tilson Thomas and the San Francisco Symphony, She has performed at most of the major jazz festivals in United States Europe Japan and Canada including Monterey, Umbria Jazz and Lincoln Center.
She is the producer of several successful biographical concerts in various venues including her award-winning "Ladies Sing the Blues," "She Put a Spell on Me: Tribute to Nina Simone," and the multimedia presentation Black History Month Concert Series. As an actress she recently starred as Billie Holiday in the dramatic play "Lady Day in Love," Blues Speak woman in Zora Neal Hurston's "Spunk" and has starred in Teatro Zinzanni as Madame Zinzanni a role subsequently filled by Joan Baez and Sandra Reeves-Phillipes. A trip to San Francisco is often said not be complete without hearing Kim Nalley perform. Jazz at Pearl's is located in the heart of San Francisco's Entertainment District and Historic Little Italy/North Beach & Chinatown:
256 Columbus Ave (Pacific)
San Francisco, CA 94133
415-291 8255 www.jazzatpearls.com |
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Saturday, 05 July 2008
