Faye Carol with the Marcus Shelby Quartet


Vocalist Faye Carol remains true to her Mississippi roots, infusing the blues into everything from Cole Porter to Michelle Legrand songs. She began singing while still a young girl in Meridian. After relocating to Pittsburg, CA she became immersed in gospel music, touring nationally with her church group. In the 1960s her professional career began, and she was a large part of the innovative funk scene in Oakland, CA.

The Dynamic Miss Faye Carol & Her Trio was formed in the 1970s. Heavily influenced by contemporaries Betty Carter & Aretha Franklin, Miss Carol began to cultivate an audience that remains as diverse as her uplifting music. She’s also maintained a high level of musicianship in her group, grooming young aspiring musicians like pianists Benny Green and her daughter, Kito Gamble.

Miss Carol continues to lead her group, as well as collaborate with other artists. She has shared the stage with Charles Brown, David Murray, Gene Ammons, Ray Charles, Billy Higgins, Steve Turre, Albert King, Bobby Hutcherson, Pharaoh Sanders, Philly Jo Jones, Eddie ‘Cleanhead’ Vinson, Tootie Heath and Ben Vereen. Now, she can be heard with The Marcus Shelby Jazz Orchestra, Howard Wiley & The Angola Project, Sista Kee & IOP, and Mal Sharpe’s Big Money in Jazz Band.

http://fayecarol.com/


Born in February 1966, Marcus Shelby has been playing the acoustic bass for 23 years. In this time, he has built a diverse and accomplished biography. Shelby was bandleader of Columbia Records and GRP Impulse! Recording Artists "Black/Note" and is currently the artistic director and leader of The Marcus Shelby Jazz Orchestra, The Marcus Shelby Septet and the Marcus Shelby Trio.

In addition, Shelby holds an instructor position at the Berkeley Young Musician Program, San Francisco State University and the Stanford Jazz Workshop, and is the 2006 Fellow in the Resident Dialogues Program of the Committee for Black Performing Arts at Stanford University.

As the 1991 winner of the Charles Mingus Scholarship, Shelby’s studies include work under the tutelage of composer James Newton and legendary bassist Charlie Haden. Recent honors include the City Flight Magazine 2005 award as one of the “Top Ten Most Influential African Americans in the Bay Area”.

Marcus appeared here previously with Julian Pollack.

http://www.marcusshelby.com


Pianist Adam Shulman has been a staple of the San Francisco Jazz scene since he moved to the city in 2002.

Before the move, Adam was a student at UC Santa Cruz where he studied with the great Smith Dobson and trumpeter/arranger Ray Brown. He received his degree in classical performance under the tutelage of the Russian pianist Maria Ezerova.

Currently, Adam plays regularly with Marcus Shelby in large and small group contexts and with Anton Schwartz mostly in a trio setting. He can also be seen as a sideman with countless Bay Area musicians and vocalists such as John Wiitala, Vince Lateano, Kitty Margolis, Andrew Speight, Dayna Stephens, Ian Cary, and Mike Zilber.

Adam has played as a sideman with internationally renowned artists Stefon Harris, Willie Jones III, Miguel Zenon, Luciana Souza, Paula West, Bobby Hutcherson and the Glen Miller Orchestra.

http://adamshulman.com/


Jeff Marrs has become one of the first call drummers in the San Francisco Bay Area. Since moving back in 2001, Marrs works regularly with the Marcus Shelby Jazz Orchestra, the Eaton-Barics Quintet, the Mel Martin Quartet, the Mitch Marcus Quintet, Sista Kee and IOP, Natasha Miller, and The Collective West Jazz Orchestra.

He has also worked with Dr. Lonnie Smith, Don Friedman, Donnie McCaslin, Dayna Stephens, Ambrose Akinmuseri, Rodger Kellaway, Jackie Ryan, Steffon Harris, Marc Cary, Ledisi, Kim Nally, Bob Brookmeyer, George Russell, George Garzone and Danilo Perez.

Jeff received his Bachelor's and Master's Degrees, in jazz performance, from The New England Conservatory of Music.

http://www.myspace.com/jeffmarrs


Saxophonist Howard Wiley has recorded and performed with the likes of Clarence “Gatemouth” Brown, Dayna Stephens, Lavay Smith, and Norman Brown as well as receiving numerous awards and accolades from the Thelonious Monk Institute, including MVP honors for the Grammy All-American Jazz Band and the Berklee College of Music Scholarship Award.

At the age of 15, Wiley released his first CD as a leader, signaling the arrival of the San Francisco Bay Area’s newest diamond in the rough. Wiley has since released his second CD, titled “Twenty First Century Negro”, and his third, "Angola Project", inspired by gospel music and slave chants recorded at Louisiana's Angola Prison in the 1950s.

http://www.howardwiley.com/


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