Stanley Jordan Photo by Keith Major |
Guitarist Stanley Jordan has been nominated for a 2012 NAACP Image Award in the category of “Outstanding Jazz Album” for his latest Mack Avenue Records release Friends.
The NAACP Image Awards, celebrating its 43rd anniversary this year, are presented each year to honor outstanding people of color in film, television, music and literature. In conjunction, the ceremony offers awards to individuals or groups who help promote social injustice through creative efforts. Members of the NAACP vote on the awards, and the process is similar to that of the Grammy Awards and Oscars.
The complete awards ceremony will be presented live at 8 p.m. EST/7 p.m. CST on Friday, Feb. 17 on NBC.
In Friends, Jordan shares the platform with the following musical guests: guitarists Bucky Pizzarelli, Mike Stern, Russell Malone and Charlie Hunter; violinist Regina Carter; saxophonists Kenny Garrett and Ronnie Laws; trumpeter Nicholas Payton; bassists Christian McBride and Charnett Moffett; and drummer Kenwood Dennard.
Reflecting on the wealth of music inspired by collaborating with chosen peers on Friends, Stanley Jordan says in a news release, “I am so humbled and grateful to all of the wonderful musicians who graced this project. This collection truly speaks to my belief in the integrationist spirit of music. I’d like to move beyond ‘fusion’ and explore the concept of ‘integration.’ When you integrate styles, you combine them into something new while still remaining true to the original sources. The same principal holds for our friendships, which require mutual respect. Our friends are a mirror revealing the diversity within us, and at the same time they give us the courage to share our true selves with the world.”
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According to a recent news release, vocalist Shirley Murdock recently sat down for an interview and talked about her journey through life and music with media personality Tavis Smiley on Public Radio International’s “The Tavis Smiley Show.” The interview airs on Public Radio International (PRI) from Friday, Oct. 28 through Friday, Nov. 4. Local stations can be found at www.tavissmileyradio.com/
The Dayton, Ohio-based singer is best known for her top 10 ’80s era R&B hits “As We Lay,” “Go on Without You,” “Husband” and “In Your Eyes.” However, in recent years, she’s become equally known for her gospel and inspirational tunes such as 2007’s “I Love Me Better than That.”
Murdock talked with Smiley about her transition from R&B to gospel and all the twists and turns in between. She also discussed her new, first live CD “Live: The Journey” and its companion music DVD.
The 17-track collection was produced by Grammy Award winner Cedric Thompson (who’s produced Yolanda Adams and Marvin Sapp) and recorded live at The Broadcast Group Complex in Charlotte, NC. R&B singers Kelly Price and Regina Belle as well as gospel singer Beverly Crawford each performed a song with Murdock and did one song as a foursome. The “Live: The Journey” (Tyscot Records) CD has debuted at #24 on Billboard’s top Gospel Albums chart while the “Live: The Journey” (Tyscot Records) music DVD debuted at #40 on Billboard’s top Music Videos chart where it shares rank alongside projects such as Taylor Swift’s “Journey to Fearless” and the band Journey’s “Live in Manila.”
Meanwhile, Murdock’s current inspirational/gospel radio single “Dream” is moving up the gospel radio playlists around the country. It’s receiving heavy substantive rotation on Sirius XM satellite’s Praise Channel 64 and Murdock was also recently a guest in the VIP Lounge with DJ Cayman Kelly on Sirius’s XM’s Heart & Soul Channel 48. Murdock also recently sang the song on The National Mall during the recent Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Unveiling ceremony where President Barack Obama spoke about Dr. King’s legacy.
“The song is anointed because it’s full of the word,” Murdock says of the inspiring ballad of hope and perseverance. “It’s like the voice of God speaking directly to your spirit, reminding you, that He’s not a man that He should lie … if He spoke it, will He not do it? This song will stir up and rekindle that word, that’s been spoken into your spirit and remind you that your dream can not…will not die.” For more information on Shirley Murdock, go to www.tyscot.com or http://twitter.com/#!/