Dear Friends and Jazz Lovers -
Call the fire department! This week my old friend Louis Van Taylor comes to The Merc with his merry band of heavy weight players. Virtuosos all. Don't miss this!
Don't forget your masks! The State of California (and the Theater) have a mask mandate for entry into The Merc until February 15th.
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Thursday, January 20, 2022 7:30 pm
JAZZ AT THE MERC
presents the
Louis van Taylor Quintet
featuring
Mikal Majeed, Jeff Littleton, Roy McCurdy and Steve Cotter
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Having been a supporting musician for legendary artists such as Ray Charles, Bobby Womack and Sheila E., Louis’s Van Taylor's playing has been referred to as magical. In addition, he is extremely well known as an accomplished studio musician. His saxophone and flute can be heard on numerous television and movie productions. Lewis has toured with the likes of Kool and the Gang, Maxine Weldon, Ray Charles and many other very well-known groups. His ability to move from R&B inspired jazz through straight material and into Acid Jazz is quite unique. As an arranger and composer, he is fluent in all woodwinds. His discography spans a wide range of sounds as do his studio, film and television work.
His credits include performances with a long list of famous acts including Kool & The Gang, The Gap Band, Jimmy Smith, The Four Tops, The Temptations, Gerald Wilson, Kenny Burrell, Mariah Carey, and many others, as well as a 20-year association with jazz and blues legend Ray Charles.
Taylor continues to tour and perform with Kool & The Gang as well as the Gerald Wilson Orchestra. This year he toured the South of France as a featured soloist with Kool & The Gang, and in July performed with the Gerald Wilson Orchestra for the Central Avenue Jazz Festival in Los Angeles.
Taylor, a native of Salt Lake City, Utah, began his foray into the world of music when his family moved to Los Angeles where he began learning the clarinet in junior high school. He later became interested in the tenor saxophone and over time, developed a high level of skill with all types of saxophones and other woodwind instruments. His musical style melds traditional jazz with a variety of genre including Brazilian, Afro-Caribbean, funk and blues.
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Steve Cotter is an active guitarist, jazz performer and educator based in Los Angeles. He received Bachelor’s and Master’s Degrees in Music/Jazz Studies from the University of North Texas. Cotter excelled at the esteemed college playing in the One O’clock band and obtained a graduate teaching fellowship during his Master’s Degree.. He currently teaches at Citrus College, Pasadena City College, and the Pasadena Conservatory of Music.
In 1997 he had made his home in Los Angeles. He has recorded and toured internationally with Steve Tyrell, Bobby Caldwell, and Joey DeFrancesco. Most recently Steve recorded the album “One For Rudy” at Rudy Van Gelder’s studio as part of the Joey DeFrancesco Trio. Other artists he has performed and recorded with include Jimmy Smith, Jimmy Cobb, Bette Midler, Lew Soloff, Bennie Maupin, John Pisano, Bill Perkins, Dale Fielder, Jane Getz, Bob Maize, Ernie Watts, and Ramon Banda. He performs frequently around the Los Angeles area with his own trio, the Brian Swartz Quartet, and the Charles Owens Quartet as well as On the Beat Music Agency.
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Roy McCurdy will probably always be best-known for his important contributions to Cannonball Adderley's Quintet (1965-1975), but he has been a tasteful and stimulating participant in many other sessions through the years. Early on, he worked with Chuck and Gap Mangione in the Jazz Brothers (1960-1961). McCurdy gained recognition for his playing with the Jazztet (1961-1962), Bobby Timmons, Betty Carter (who was fairly obscure during his stint with her in 1962-1963), and Sonny Rollins (1963-1964) before joining Adderley. The supportive drummer was flexible enough to evolve with Cannonball's popular group during the decade of change. After Adderley's death, McCurdy relocated to the Los Angeles area, where he has played and recorded with the top local musicians ever since.
McCurdy has also played and/or recorded with Count Basie, Wes Montgomery, Ella Fitzgerald, Sarah Vaughan, Carmen McRae, Joe Williams, Herbie Hancock, Oscar Peterson, Bud Powell, Art Pepper, and the jazz rock group Blood, Sweat and Tears.
He appears on the classic 1983 recording Jackson, Johnson, Brown & Company featuring Milt Jackson on vibes, J. J. Johnson on trombone, Ray Brown on bass, Tom Ranier on piano, and John Collins on guitar.
McCurdy is an Adjunct Professor in the Jazz Studies Department of the Thornton School of Music at USC.
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Bassist and band leader Jeffrey Littleton is one of the most versatile and in demand bassists on the West Coast. He has worked as a professional musician since he was a teenager. Jeff has toured and performed with a virtual "who's who" of top jazz artists including Herbie Hancock, Nancy Wilson, Freddie Hubbard, Billy Higgins, Pharaoh Sanders, Charles Lloyd, and Bobby Hutcherson, to name a few. He also worked, and recorded with Stanley Turrentine, Dianne Reeves, Harold Land, Eddie Harris, Willie Bobo and Hank Crawford. He continues to tour the world, as well as lead his own quintet in performances throughout Southern California.
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HAPPY NEW YEAR!
January 27 -
Wayne Wilkinson Trio with Larry Holloway and Tim Pleasant
February 3 -
Matt Gordy Sextet CD Release featuring, Sam Hirsh, Chris Colangelo, Ron Stout, Jeff Elwood and Ido Meshulam
February 10 -
Lori Bell, Joshua White, Rob Thorsen and Tyler Kreutel
February 17 -
Benn Clatworthy Sextet
February 24 -
Wagner Trindade, Markus Burger and Giulio Figueroa
February 25 - Special Friday Concert!
Nick Mancini Trio featuring Karl McComas-Reichl and Shawn Baltazor
March 3 -
Jon Mayer Trio featuring Mike Gurrola and Roy McCurdy
March 17 -
Curtis Taylor Quartet
March 24 -
Keith Droste Trio
March 31 -
Great Oak High School Jazz Combos, "Soul Tree" and "Decent People"
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Sherry Williams
Curator
Jazz at The Merc
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Old Town Temecula Community Theater
42051 Main Street
Temecula, CA 92590
1-866-OLD-TOWN (866-653-8696)
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