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Eldee Young / Marshall Vente
Eldee Young past away on February 12, 2007. He was warm, generous and always had a smile. He will be greatly missed.
Click here for information on the
Home Going Celebration for Eldee Young.
Click the above buttons for more information about the various groups, ensembles and projects that Marshall Vente is involved with.
Windy City Biz Bash, May 22, 2003
Step Up to the Mic stands out in the crowd of jazz releases as a concept album of merit. The CD begins with a comedy rap and concludes with a original poetry recitiation to the accompaniment of Young's probing bass. Much care has also been put into the art design of the CD, to insure that the visual aspects of the recording reflect the vibrancy of the music. These are elements too often absent from even the best in regionally produced jazz recordings.
Listening to the music created by these two skillful musicians and their cohorts reminds me of something Dizzy Gillespie often said but is too often forgotten in jazz, "I don't see why I can't make good music and have a good time doing it."
Neville York Gala
CLICK HERE FOR MORE PHOTOS OF THE NEVILLE YORK GALA
Step Up to the Mic
Eldee Young & Marshall Vente Trio
With guests:
Brasileiro Paulinho Garcia, Harmonica virtuoso Howard Levy Saxophonists Jeff Newell (NYC), Rich Corpolongo (Chicago) and Drummer Isidro Perez
Plus, Project 9 (nonet horn section)
Tropicale (Brazilian rhythm section)
Bassist and vocalist Eldee Young is best known for his hit recordings with the original Ramsey Lewis Trio and Young-Holt Unlimited. He currently divides his time between gigs at home in Chicago and the Far East (Singapore, Bangkok, Seoul and Hong Kong).
Pianist/arranger/composer Marshall Vente is one of the busiest musicians in Chicago with several different recordings released in the ‘80’s and ‘90’s. He was a National Endowment of the Arts “jazz apprentice” with Gil Evans and David Matthews from 1982-87. Since then he has performed throughout the States, the Caribbean and in Europe. Apart from creating music, Marshall hosts a weekly radio show, Jazz Tropicale, heard every Sunday at 10 pm CST in Chicago on WDCB 90.9 FM and streamed on www.wdcb.org He is also the current president of the Association of Professional Orchestra Leaders (APOL).
Together, Eldee and Marshall have been collaborating for 15 years in Chicago. Their previous Middle Coast releases have included The Long and Short of Jazz (‘00) and Marshall Law (’01). Their goal is to present music with content that is also fun and entertaining. Step Up to the Mic is a festival, both eclectic and fun, swinging jazz - with broad appeal to all listeners:
Blues with a story: CC Rider and Centerpiece
Mainstream & modern: Birks Works, D & E, Just Time In, Trance Dance & Work Song
Brazilian: Voce E Eu, Wave and If You Never Come To Me
Ballad: As Time Goes By
World influences: Song for My Father
Comedy and Poetry: Eldee and Marshall rap and The Soul of
Jazz Release date: June 7, 2002 Radio Promotion: Al Julian/Improvisational Promotions, (941) 255-9881,
fax (941) 255-1350 or [email protected]
Middle Coast Records and tour inquiries:
Marshall Vente (630) 968-3339, fax (630) 968-4950
or [email protected]
As published by the Jazz Institute of Chicago,
July 2002 Jazzgram, Chicago on CD
Eldee Young & Marshall Vente
"Step Up to the Mic"
Middle Coast 004
Reviewed by Peter Coppock
Lasting partnerships are as hard to come by in jazz as they are to explain. The clash of egos and economic considerations tend to prohibit them, and even as one scans the sweep of jazz history, few come to mind: Brubeck and Desmond; Bird and Diz; Stephane and Django; Thad and Mel; et al. One such partnership has flourished in Chicago jazz for over 15 years in Y & V, and a new CD is their best display to date.
As a follow up to their first CD of two years ago, The Long and Short of Jazz, Step Up to the Mic serves a sumptuous diet of Young's warm, sincere vocals and Vente's arranging chops and swinging piano. Unlike the previous CD which focused on vocals and arrangements, the new recording gives us a more complete picture of Vente's piano artistry - his rhythmic diversity, sparkling right hand lines, and adept comping that underscores each ensemble. Young's on-the-money bass and attractive voice blend easily into Vente's many and varied settings - everything from big band to trio to Tropicale. Included in Vente's full arsenal of talent are Brazilian masters Paulinho Garcia and Luis Ewerling; NYC alto Jeff Newell and Grammy-winner Howard Levy. (Quincy Jones wished he could call upon such talent!) Thanks to the impeccable sound engineering of tenorist Jim Massoth and Crystal Studios, journeyman Isi Perez is heard in all his nuanced glory -- as Vente drummer since 1975!
Vente's radical recasting of the standard "Just in Time" is worth the price of admission, with Young's surprise entrance with the lyrics coming six minutes into the chart (a clever device, it is both startling and welcomed). Veteran alto player Rich Corpolongo dazzles us again with a solo that skates the boundary between "outside" and "in" with all the florid thrust of a bebop master. His piccolo lead playing is also an essential element of the Vente orchestral palette. There is even an arrangement of "Work Song" that manages to make the tune sound fresh - not an easy feat in itself. Horace Silver fans will have their ears pricked by the metamorphosis "Song for My Father" undergoes, from major key to minor. Here, as in most instances, Vente's resourceful use of percussion makes the musical event all the more satisfying. To satisfy the fans of Vente's Latin side there are lovely and stirring versions of "If you Never Come to Me", "Wave" and an exhilarating "Voce E Eu".
Young's fans from five decades will not be let down, as the new CD features his authentic brand of grit, guile and good humor on the bluesy selections "CC Rider" and "Centerpiece". Like all of the best blues singers, Young is a master storyteller, and his distinct persona transforms the ancient "CC Rider" into a modern fable - and the best monkey tune since Nat Cole's "Straighten Up and Fly Right".
Eldee Young & Marshall Vente ,” The Long and the Short of Jazz “ :-) , whatever way around it is mentioned, when those Two ” Step up to the Mic “ , then you are listening and enjoying a “Tall walking Team” with great variety and craftsmenship in Jazz, no wonder that also the joyfull steeljazz of Neville York with the Spirit of the Carribean, fits in perfectly and makes their companionship really a “Jazz Flamboyant”!!
Joost van Steen, Host / Producer Jazz & Blues Tour
Chicago Artist's Coalition member Betty Ann Mocek designed the
furniture displayed with Marshall and Eldee.
Marshall and Eldee outside the Fairmont Hotel, Chicago.
"The Long and Short of Jazz'
Eldee Young / Marshall Vente
Trio, Quartet and with the nonet, Project 99
Presenting fun swinging jazz on their new CD, "The Long and Short of Jazz.'
Eldee plays bass in the Ray Brown tradition and sings like Joe Williams. Marshall plays solid straight-ahead piano with the trio, sometimes a little funky, and has arranged and conducted the great "little big band," the nonet Project 9. The trio is also augmented by Chicago brasileiro Paulinho Garcia on guitar and vocals for a stunning rendition of Jobim's "So Danco Samba" which also includes Marshall's cuica.
Eldee Young was an original member of the Ramsey Lewis Trio, co-founder of Young-Holt Unlimited and has performed with Nancy Wilson, Oscar Brown Jr., Joe Williams, T-Bone Walker, Joe Turner, Dizzy Gillespie, James Moody, Sonny Stitt, Dinah Washington and many others. He has received Gold records for "The In Crowd", "Hang on Sloopy" and "The Soulful Strut." Leonard Feather lists Eldee in the Encyclopedia of Jazz.
Marshall Vente is a respected Chicago based pianist, arranger, composer, bandleader and producer. He studied arranging in the '80's with Gil Evans and David Matthews in NYC under two Jazz Apprentice grants from the National Endowment for the Arts. Since then Marshall has appeared at many regional festivals, on NPR's "Jazz Alive" and the "American Jazz Festival" nationwide New Year's Eve broadcast. He has an eight CD discoverery that showcases his composing and arranging with Project 9; Brasilian and Latin side with Tropicale; solo piano; with vocalist Joanie Pallatto; Caribbean influence with Neville York of St. Maarten N.A.; and, with bassist / vocalist Eldee Young. Marshall also hosts a weekly radio show in Chicago "Jazz Tropicale" on WDCB 90.9 FM ("it's a jazz show with a few palm trees") and produces an annual jazz festival every January at the Jazz Showcase in Chicago.
Here is Eldee and Marshall recorded live at the Metropole:
Real Audio Version
Chicago's world renowned bassist, gold recording artist, and original member of the Ramsey Lewis Trio.
Eldees Hits!
Music that was played on AM radio!
Grammy with Ramsey Lewis for the In Crowd; and, Gold Records with Young-Holt Unlimited for the Soulful Strut and Wack Wack
Click here for Eldees Hits
ELDEE YOUNG
Musician / Vocalist
INSTRUMENTS - Acoustic Bass, Cello and Electric Bass
STUDIED - The American Conservatory of Music - Chicago Illinois
FORMERLY WITH - The Ramsey Lewis Trio and Young-Holt Unlimited as co-leader.
PERFORMANCES - Appeared and performed on network and local television, major movie productions and radio. Television appearances include Fred Astaire's last television special.
CONCERT PERFORMANCES - include Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, Apollo Theatre - New York, Newport Jazz Festival, Montreux Jazz Festival - Montreux, Switzerland; Longhorn Jazz Festival and others.
NIGHTCLUB APPEARANCES - theatres and colleges all over the U.S. and Canada - round out the personal appearance gamut.
PERFORMANCES WITH NOTABLES - Include; Nancy Wilson, Oscar Brown Jr.. Joe Williams, T-Bone Walker, Joe Turner, Dizzy Gillespie, Dinah Washington and many others.
AWARDS - Recognition awards include those received from -Downbeat, Record World and Playboy Magazines also honorary citizenship to the City of New Orleans, La.
RECORDINGS - All recordings by The Ramsey Lewis Trio up to 1965, on Argo and Cadet record labels.
All recordings by Young-Holt Unlimited on Brunswick, Atlantic-Cotillion and Jewel Paula record labels.
Various recordings with such artists as James Moody, Sonny Stitt and others.
GOLD RECORDS - Gold records were received for "The in Crowd" and "Hang on Sloopy" with the Ramsey Lewis Trio. "The Soulful Strut" with Young-Holt Unlimited. Totalling one gold album and three gold 45's.
LISTINGS - The Encyclopedia of Jazz by Leonard Feather
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You may contact Marshall Vente
by phone at: (630) 541-3381
Cell phone: (630) 430-5113
or by e-mail at
Marshall Vente
P.O. Box 1135
Westmont, IL 60559
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