Delaware

Herb Alpert: A Visual Road Trip

Sarah

H&L sitting by Gerry WershHerb Alpert and his wife Lani Hall are certainly living life to the fullest. He has a collection in the ACA Galleries in NYC (2/19-4/14); she’s written her own book, Emotional Memoirs and Short Stories. She’s participated in the latest James Bond film; he’s worked as the producer for Angels in America.

But they definitely met in music; as the co-founder of A&M Records, he signed her group Brasil ’66, where she was the lead singer. And to say they’re still in music would be a massive understatement.

They have both won multiple Grammy Awards, and Herb Alpert, with whom we spoke tonight, has more recently been awarded the National Medal of Arts (2013).

As early as 1962 with The Lonely Bull, his jazz music has been described as visual, taking his listeners on a journey to exotic places. And in his most recent album, In the Mood, his version of “America the Beautiful” incorporates percussion music from all the continents.

We also talked about his brief acting stint with Leonard Nimoy, his new version of the classic “Chatanooga Choo Choo,” the grants offered by the Herb Alpert Foundation, his approach to music throughout his life, and the many roles he’s had in the music business (Did you know he was one of the  co-writers of  Sam Cooke’s “Wonderful World”?).

He and Lani are currently on tour, in a small group with whom they’ve been working for the past 9 years…and they are coming to Delaware.

This Friday, 3/27/15, they will be at the Grand Opera House, in Wilmington. Do. Not. Miss.

The Interview

Herb Alpert
(Recorded 03/23/15, broadcast 3/24/15; host: Mandorichard), 22:27, 21.6 MB.

The Music

The following music is heard in this episode of The Music Room:
The following playlist reflects the radio broadcast. For the podcast, for copyright reasons, all the following songs are excerpts.

  • Artist / Song / Album (or note) / Date / Notes
  • Herb Alpert / Chatanooga Choo Choo / In the Mood / 2014
  • Herb Alpert and Lani Hall / Under my Skin / Anything Goes / 2009
  • Sam Cooke / Wonderful World (Excerpt) / Single / 1959
  • Herb Alpert / When Sunny Gets Blue / In the Mood / 2014

Photo by Gerry Wersh, provided to WVUD by G4 Global Communications

kRush rocks the Delaware Valley

Richard Gordon

kRushOn January 31, 2014, Steve Kramarck welcomed the members of kRush into the WVUD studio for an interview that was at times humorous, touching, and very interesting. They even performed a song live in the WVUD stdio.

kRush is a Rush tribute band from New Castle County, DE, that includes

  • Ken Gildea: Lead vocals, bass, keyboards, bass pedals
  • Andy Logue: Guitars, vocals, bass pedals
  • Bill Murphy: Drums and percussion.

They describe themselves, and their music, as follows:

We are three seasoned musicians who pay homage to Rush in this tribute. A bass player/ singer/ keyboard player with pedals. A guitar player who also plays pedals. A percussionist who plays acoustic and electric drums, bells, blocks, wind chimes, you name it! We play a healthy dose of “popular” Rush tunes as well as some obscure gems that true Rush fans love. Whether you’re die hard or a passing fan you will enjoy a kRUSH show!”

For more information, see their Web site or their Facebook page.

The Interview

kRush, live at WVUD (Recorded 1/31/14; original broadcast date: 2/11/14; host: Steve Kramarck). 28:21, 27.2 MB.

The Music

The following music is heard in this episode of The Music Room:

  • Artist / Song / Album (or note) / Label (or source) / Date / Notes
  • kRush / Analog Kid / Unpublished Live Recording / J.B. McGinnes, New Castle, DE / 2013
  • kRush / Closer to the Heart / The Music Room / WVUD / 2014