The New York Pops celebrates the centenary of the birth of lyricist and composer Johnny Mercer at Carnegie Hall on Friday, November 20 at 8:00PM. Joining Music Director Steven Reineke and the orchestra are multi-platinum selling singer and songwriter Ann Hampton Callaway, known for starring in the hit Broadway musical "SWING!"; Broadway performer James T. Lane; and actress and opera singer N'Kenge. Together with the Camp Broadway Kids they will perform treasured compositions from the vast Johnny Mercer songbook; highlights include "Dream," "Come Rain or Come Shine," and "Moon River".
Music Director Steven Reineke says, "I am very excited to present our Johnny Mercer Centennial concert, 'Too Marvelous for Words', with The New York Pops. We will celebrate the great genius of Johnny Mercer with not only his brilliant lyrics, but also some of his original music that has touched the hearts of many generations. Come and celebrate Mercer's 100th birthday with "That Old Black Magic", "Blues in the Night", "Autumn Leaves". We will be joined onstage by some outstanding soloists in this vibrant tribute to a man who is truly one of America's greatest songwriters!"
ABOUT Johnny Mercer
Johnny Mercer was a multiple Grammy Award-winning songwriter and singer responsible for many of the most beloved American songs in the 20th century. Whether by his voice or his pen, Mercer's poetic genius continues to reflect the romantic yearnings, wit, energy, and personality that is the American dream. Highlights of his songbook include the light-hearted "You Must Have Been A Beautiful Baby" and "Jeepers Creepers", the romantic "Laura," "Dream" and "I Remember You", the big band hit "And The Angels Sing", the dramatic "Blues In The Night," "Come Rain Or Come Shine" and "One For My Baby", the sassy "Satin Doll" and "Tangerine," and the timeless standards "Black Magic," "Glow Worm," "Days Of Wine And Roses," and "Moon River". Mercer wrote the lyrics to more than a thousand songs, including compositions for ninety motion pictures and six Broadway shows, and received nineteen Academy Award nominations. Mercer was the founder of both Capitol Records and the Songwriters Hall of Fame, and he discovered and nurtured the talent of artists like Margaret Whiting, Jo Stafford, Peggy Lee, Frank Sinatra, and Nat King Cole. Mercer was also a co-founder of Capitol Records.
Ann Hampton Callaway makes her fourth appearance with The New York Pops on November 20. As a champion of the great American Songbook, she has made her mark as a singer, pianist, composer, lyricist, arranger, actress, educator, TV host and producer. Her unique singing style blends jazz and traditional pop, making her a mainstay in concert halls, theaters and jazz clubs as well as in the recording studio, on television, and in film. She is best known for Tony-nominated performance in the hit Broadway musical Swing! and for writing and singing the theme song to the hit TV series The Nanny. Her latest CD, At Last - released by Telarc International in February 2009 - was named one of the "Top 5 Jazz CDs of the Year" by NPR.
N'Kenge has been taking both the opera and pop concert stages by storm with her versatility and show-stopping stage presence. A native New Yorker and graduate of both the Juilliard School and Manhattan School of Music, she has performed around the world, and is excited about making her Carnegie Hall debut this year with The New York Pops. Other concert appearances this season include the Cincinnati Pops, Phoenix Symphony, Detroit Symphony, Edmonton and Baltimore Symphony. This past summer N'Kenge premiered her one-woman-show DivaLicious in New York City and starred in The Genius of Ray Charles at the Royal Haymarket Theater in London's West End. N'Kenge has performed as a soloist at the White House, Kennedy Center, and at the Library of Congress, which was broadcast worldwide on NPR. She will release a new album in 2010.
