KNEW YOU WERE WAITING: THE BEST OF ARETHA FRANKLIN 1980-1998

The 70th birthday of Queen Of Soul Aretha Franklin, winner of 15 Grammy Awards® and the first female ever to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame, will be celebrated on March 25, 2012. In honor of this momentous occasion, and also in advance of Black History Month in February, Knew You Were Waiting: The Best Of Aretha Franklin 1980-1998 will be available on January 31, 2012. Knew You Were Waiting puts the spotlight on Aretha's hitmaking years as an Arista Records artist, working closely with Arista founder and president Clive Davis. Davis served as executive producer of Knew You Were Waiting, which was compiled and produced by Leo Sacks, known for his work on last year's definitive box set, Take A Look: Aretha Franklin Complete on Columbia, as well as scores of historic Soul and R&B projects for Legacy Recordings over the past two decades.

The new chronologically-sequenced, 16-song collection is the first major U.S. release to focus on the nearly two-decades string of hits that marked Aretha's tenure at Arista. These range from her label debut, 1980's #3 comeback R&B smash "United Together" (her first Top 5 hit in over three and a half years), to 1998's iconic #5 R&B entry, "A Rose Is Still A Rose," written, produced and arranged by Lauryn Hill of the Fugees.

"When Aretha Franklin signed to Arista Records in 1980," writes Ernest Hardy in his liner notes to Knew You Were Waiting, "she had nothing left to prove… She had redefined the terms and reset the boundaries of both R&B and pop. She had sung jazz, gospel and blues, and erased the lines between them. She embodied the beauty that was Blackness while providing a soundtrack to the Civil Rights movement of the 1960s. She had worked with the very best songwriters, musicians, producers, arrangers and visionaries, and proved herself to be one of the best singers, songwriters, musicians and visionaries the music industry had ever seen." Hardy is an award-winning cultural critic and essayist based in Los Angeles.

Underscoring Hardy's point, Aretha's Arista years were indeed marked by a steady flow of successful collaborations with contemporary music's "very best songwriters, musicians, producers, arrangers and visionaries." Virtually every track on Knew You Were Waiting supports this, starting with "United Together," which was written and produced by Chuck Jackson (known for his career-making hits with Natalie Cole), and features Aretha's beloved Sweet Inspirations on backing vocals (the 'original' lineup of Cissy Houston, Myrna Smith, Sylvia Shenwell and Estelle Brown). Likewise, "Love All The Hurt Away," a duet with George Benson, was written by Sam Dees, and produced by the late Arif Mardin, the legendary producer who worked on so many of Aretha's early breakthrough '60s and '70s Atlantic LPs.

Lauryn Hill, Arif Mardin and Chuck Jackson are just three of the important producers with whom Aretha worked at Arista. In addition to tracks produced by Luther Vandross (with arrangements by Marcus Miller), Narada Michael Walden, and Kenneth 'Babyface' Edmonds, Knew You Were Waiting also includes tracks produced by Keith Richards of the Rolling Stones and Dave Stewart of the Eurythmics.

In addition to the collaborations above, Knew You Were Waiting contains many more A-list collaborations that have become cornerstones in the Aretha canon:

•"Freeway Of Love" (1985), featuring the late Clarence Clemons of the E Street Band on tenor saxophone, Randy Jackson on bass, and percussion by the Santana rhythm section, was a #1 R&B hit for 5 weeks, and went on to win the Grammy Award® for Best R&B Female Vocal;

•"Sisters Are Doin' It For Themselves" (1985), a Top 20 pop hit with the Eurythmics' Annie Lennox and Dave Stewart (who produced), also features [Tom Petty] Heartbreakers band members Benmont Tench (organ), Stan Lynch (drums), and Mike Campbell (lead guitar);

•"Jumpin' Jack Flash" (1986), a Top 20 R&B and pop crossover smash duet with Keith Richards (who produced and played lead guitar, along with fellow Rolling Stones guitarist Ron Wood), was the title song from the movie Jumpin' Jack Flash starring Whoopi Goldberg;

•"I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me)" (1986), a duet with George Michael, was another mega-hit, #1 pop for a fortnight and #5 R&B, and winner of the Grammy Award® for Best R&B Vocal Duo;

•"Through The Storm" (1989), a Top 20 R&B and pop crossover hit vocal duet with Elton John, is one of two Albert Hammond/Diane Warren compositions (among many!) that were brought to Aretha by Clive Davis;

•"It Isn't, It Wasn't, It Ain't Never Gonna Be" (1989), a #5 R&B hit duet with Whitney Houston, is the other Hammond/Warren composition here, from the same album (Through The Storm); and

•"Ever Changing Times" (1991), a Top 20 R&B hit vocal duet with Michael McDonald, written and produced by the hitmaking duo of Burt Bacharach and Carol Bayer Sager, in a mix previously unreleased on CD.

Knew You Were Waiting as Hardy concludes, "makes clear that Aretha Franklin was a vibrant, soulful, stretching, creative, forceful artist at Arista Records. She kept her fingers on the pulse of the world around her while sating old fans and scoring new ones. Her music at the label was about a place that exists behind and beyond mere words... No one expresses joy the way she does. No one conveys grief or loss with anywhere near her force or heartbreaking precision. She burns right through the words she sings, taking you straight to the core. That is her unmatched genius."

Knew You Were Waiting: The Best Of Aretha Franklin 1980-1998
Tracklist
1. United Together (from Aretha, 1980)
2. Love All The Hurt Away - duet w/George Benson(from Love All The Hurt Away, 1981)
3. Jump To It (from Jump To It, 1982)
4. Get It Right (from Get It Right, 1983)
5. Freeway Of Love (from Who's Zoomin' Who?, 1985)
6. Who's Zoomin' Who (from Who's Zoomin' Who?, 1985)
7. Sisters Are Doin' It For Themselves - duet w/The Eurythmics (from Who's Zoomin' Who?, 1985)

8. Another Night (Who's Zoomin' Who?, 1985) 

9. Jumpin' Jack Flash (from Aretha, 1986)
10. Jimmy Lee (from Aretha, 1986) 

11. I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me) - duet w/George Michael (from Aretha, 1986) 

12. Through The Storm  - duet w/Elton John (from Through The Storm, 1989) 

13. It Isn't, It Wasn't, It Ain't Never Gonna Be - duet w/Whitney Houston (from Through The Storm, 1989) 

14. Ever Changing Times - duet w/Michael McDonald (from What You See Is What You Sweat, 1991) 

15. Willing To Forgive (from Greatest Hits (1980-1994), 1994)

16. A Rose Is Still A Rose (from A Rose Is Still A Rose, 1998)

CESARIA EVORA: 1941-2011

Cesaria Evora's death was announced by her managers. She had a stroke in 2008 and a heart attack in 2010. After another stroke this year, she announced her retirement.

Évora’s music was in a style called morna, which is sung in taverns on the Cape Verde islands: slow, pensive ballads with an underlying lilt, suffused with sodade, the Cape Verdean creole term for a nostalgic longing that pervades music across Portugal (where the word is saudade) and its former empire.

Évora was born on 27 August 1941 in Mindelo, Sao Vicente, Cape Verde. When she was seven years old her father died, and at age ten she was placed in an orphanage, as her mother could not raise all six children. In the 1960s, she started singing on Portuguese cruise ships stopping at Mindelo as well as on the local radio. It was only in 1985 when at the invitation of Cape Verdean singer Bana she went to perform in Portugal. In 1988 a Cape Verdean producer based in France, José da Silva, brought Ms. Évora to Paris to make an album. She sang about love, sorrow and history, including slavery, in a husky, dignified, unhurried contralto that brought warmth and gravity to songs by Cape Verde’s leading poets. She also sang in her country’s more upbeat styles, coladeira and funaná, but her serenely sorrowful mornas were her legacy. She always performed barefoot, a gesture of solidarity with poor women. A concert review in The New York Times described her as “a Yoda of melancholy” onstage.

Évora's international success came only in 1988 with the release of her first studio album La Dive Aux Pieds Nus recorded in France, which fused morna and coladeira with Caribbean, Brazilian and European pop.  Évora drew a following among Cape Verdean expatriates in Europe, but it was not until she returned to unembellished morna with her third album, Mar Azúl — a 1991 collection recorded with acoustic instruments — that her music began to reach a broader audience. Her 1992 album Miss Perfumado sold over 300,000 copies worldwide. Her 1995 album Cesaria brought her broader international success and the first Grammy Award nomination. In 1997, she won the KORA All African Music Awards in three categories: Best Artist of West Africa, Best Album and Merit of the Jury. In 2004, her album Voz d’Amour was awarded a Grammy in the world music category.

Évora toured the world through the 1990s and 2000s, expanding her repertory with Cuban and Brazilian songs on Café Atlántico in 1999, and collaborating with Bonnie Raitt, Caetano Veloso and the Cuban musicians Chucho Valdés and the Orquesta Aragón on her 2001 album São Vicente di Longe. Her final studio album, Nha Sentimento in 2009, introduced tinges of Arabic pop to her music from the Egyptian composer and arranger Fathy Salama.

When Évora announced her retirement this year, she told the French newspaper Le Monde: “I have no strength, no energy. I’m sorry, but now I must rest.” She died on December 17th at the age of 70, and is survived by her children, Eduardo and Fernanda, and two grandchildren. The government in Cape Verde declared two days of national mourning in her honor.

WILLIAM JOHNSON - FLOR DE VIDA

William Johnson has returned with his new Latin jazz & world fusion project Flor de Vida, and explores the textures of jazz, world music, rock, and contemporary with percussion leading the charge. Flor de Vida is a spirit and rhythm filled album that combines the strength of Grammy award winning musicians along with several internationally accomplished musicians from all over the world.

Having spent nearly eight years in the Air Force, William Johnson traveled extensively across the globe and developed a love for diverse forms of music. Drawing upon his Latin heritage, and being inspired by such musicians as Sheila E., William began to study the congas and bongos. This passion for global cultures, people, and music led him to study African, Middle Eastern, and classical forms of Indian music. William has studied classical tabla (small kettle drums from India) under Nikhil Tikkekar from Mumbai, India. In 2009 William started a percussion instruction podcast that has grown to reach thousands across the globe. The Heartbeat for Worship was established in 2007 and since has grown to receive notable press and attention from all over the world including Grammy award winning artists.

In 2009 William released his first solo project Freedom... Joybeat, a meditation album centered around world percussion. The Heartbeat for Worship DVD was recorded & released in 2010. It is a two hour DVD recorded in high definition and stereo surround sound, featuring seven drummers, violin, guitar, vocals, keys, and intense worship. Currently William is working on a film documentary of the Heartbeat for Worship including interviews and performances by world class drummers Luis Conte, Lou Santiago Jr., Al Sergel (of Key of David/ Jason Upton, and more), and more.

107.3 THE WAVE RETURNS TO CLEVELAND

Cleveland is about to get a new radio station soon as a Rubber City Radio has begun the process of restoring “107.3 The Wave.” The station’s new website at 1073TheWave.net is up and teasing a “Smooth Jazz Christmas” and ‘Smooth AC Coming Soon,” The station has dropped the remnants of the Album Adult Alternative format and has begin stunting with Smooth Christmas music before actually launching its brand new format on Wednesday, January 4. It was back in October that WNWV owner Elyria-Lorain Broadcasting Co. announced plans to sell the station to the Akron, Ohio based Rubber City Radio Group, Inc.for $6.5 million. The deal was completed that December 16 at 5:00 p.m., with Rubber City Radio Group formally announcing a return to the station's prior "Wave" name[ but with an updated smooth adult contemporary format on January 4, 2012 (in a music style similar to San Diego outlet KIFM). The station serves the Cleveland radio market and much of surrounding Northeast Ohio.

For a bit of history…it was back in December 2009, that it was announced that "The Wave" would be changing formats after 22 years of bringing smooth jazz to Northeast Ohio. WNWV switched to an adult album alternative format featuring a mix of alternative and classic rock. The station at the time cited the nationwide downturn for the smooth jazz format as the reason for the change, despite "The Wave" being a perennially strong ratings performer in Cleveland. Now it appears that the station is comfortable in adopting the smooth jazz/smooth adult contemporary format, which features a hybrid of smooth jazz instrumentals (30%)with adult contemporary vocals (70%). In other words, a smooth jazz format with less smooth jazz thrown in.

MAXI PRIEST - FLY HIGH

Grammy Award nominated pop singer Maxi Priest released a new reggae single, titled Fly High. The song, a romantic R&B-flavored love serenade, is currently featured within the iTunes Top 200 Reggae Singles Chart, stemming from brisk digital sales of the song from Kemar 'Flava' McGregor's Cool and Deadly Riddim album, released November 1, on iTunes. Maxi Priest's Fly High is the second single released from the Cool and Deadly Riddim album, which currently is ranked among the top 100 reggae albums downloaded from iTunes.

Maxi Priest is one of the most successful reggae/fusion artists of all time. He was nominated for the "Best Reggae Album" category at the 1994 Grammy Awards for his sixth album, Fe Real (1992). His seventh album, The Man With The Fun (1996) was nominated for "Best Reggae Album" at the 1997 Grammy Awards. His fourth album, Bonafide (1990), was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America, from which the hit single, "Close To You," was ranked number one on the Billboard Hot 100 and number two on the Billboard R&B chart.

Other top-selling artistes featured on Cool and Deadly Riddim include: Grammy Award-winner Buju Banton; Jamaican reggae celebrities Marcia Griffiths and Ce'Cile as well as Canadian reggae phenom Tony Anthony. Also featured on the project are British Lovers Rock legends Janet Kay, Carroll Thompson and Peter Hunnigale. American reggae luminaries Sanchez, Sadiki, Jovi Rockwell, Kashief Lindo and Nikesha Lindo as well as rising British reggae sensations Adele Harley and Lady Lex also have tracks on the project.

CHUCHO VALDES WINTER TOUR WITH AFRO CUBAN MESSENGERS

Chucho Valdés is one of Cuba's most famous pianists, bandleaders, composers and arrangers. Perhaps best known for founding the famous Latin jazz band Irakere in 1972, Chucho's illustrious career has also garnered him 6 Grammy wins and 16 nominations over the past three decades. His most recent win, a 2009 Latin Grammy for the record Juntos para Siempre, saw him collaborate with his father, Bebo Valdés, a major player on the Cuban jazz scene in his own right. Chucho Valdés has recorded over 80 CDs and performed with everybody who is anybody in the world of jazz; from Herbie Hancock and Dizzy Gillespie, to Wynton Marsalis and Chick Corea. His reputation as one of the greatest living Cuban jazz pianists has earned him appearances on the great stages in music, including Carnegie Hall, The Kennedy Center and The Hollywood Bowl.

Chucho Valdés will embark on a U.S. tour with the Afro-Cuban Messengers in January and February, featuring performances from his Grammy-winning album, Chucho’s Steps. Dates are below.

January 20 - McCarter Theatre Princeton, NJ
January 22 - Prudential Hall Newark, NJ
January 24 - American Theatre Hampton, VA
January 26 - Merriam Theater Philadelphia, PA
January 27-28 - Jorgensen Auditorium Storrs, CT
January 29 - Staller Center for The Arts Stony Brook, NY
January 31 - Eisenhower Auditorium University Park, PA
February 1 - Camp Concert Hall Richmond, VA
February 3 - Center for the Arts Concert Hall Fairfax, VA
February 4 - Fairfield University’s Quick Center Fairfield, CT
February 7 - Music Hall Center for Performing Arts Detroit, MI
February 8 - Gartner Auditorium Cleveland, OH
February 10 - The Englert Theatre Iowa City, IA
February 11 - Sheldon Concert Hall St. Louis, MO
February 12 - Missouri Theatre Columbia, MO
February 14 - Gates Concert Hall Denver, CO
February 16 - Walt Disney Concert Hall Los Angeles, CA
February 18 - Barbara K. and W. Turrentine Jackson Hall Davis, CA
February 19 - Dinkelspiel Auditorium Stanford, CA 
February 20 - Herbst Theatre San Francisco, CA

DON RAY - THE GARDEN OF LOVE

Raymond Donnez emerged in the late 1960s as an arranger and musical director for the likes of Françoise Hardy and Serge Gainsbourg, but he became the engineer of the unique French disco sound of the late 70s when he arranged the milestone disco record Love in C Minor by Cerrone and Alec R. Costandinos. Both producers would use the skills of Donnez - or Don Ray as his artist name was - on numerous records the following years. Having just conducted the French 1977 Eurovision Song Contest victory Marie Myriam's"L'oiseau et l'enfant", he also arranged French disco sensation Santa Esmeralda's million-selling debut album Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood.

Cerrone produced Don Ray's one and only solo album, The Garden Of Love. Although all the vocals were done by session singers, Don Ray co-wrote all the songs with Cerrone. One of the coolest club projects of the 70s – a set of tracks based around the keyboards of Don Ray, but handled with lots of electronic disco touches from Cerrone! The pair are great arrangers on their own, but together they really make some magic – kind of a leaner take on the extended Cerrone groove – honed to a "t" in the studio, and sometimes given a nice punch with chorus vocals too. The tracks are shorter than you'd normally get from Cerrone, but still filled with all those freewheeling clubby grooves – warmly soulful undercurrents that make a great platform for the more electronic keyboards – never too cold at all, and a fair bit more personal than the sorts of keys we're used to hearing from the European scene.

"Got To Have Loving" and "Standing In The Rain" went on to become huge club hits. The album was only followed by a 1980 release, the single "Simplify / Stop Your Runnin'", before Don Ray withdrew behind the scene again. He co-wrote and arranged more Cerrone albums 1980-83, and also arranged the 1982 musical "Abbacadabra" with Frida and Daniel Balavoine a.o. Mainly working with French chanson singers, he revisited his glory disco days as a co-writer and arranger of Cerrone's 2002 comeback album Hysteria which included a re-make of his 1978 disco hit, "Got To Have Loving", this time featuring Nile Rodgers on rhythm guitar. Song titles include "Garden Of Love", "My Desire", "Body & Soul", "Got To Have Loving", and "Standing In The Rain".