Highline Ballroom Presents 'A TRIBUTE TO DELANEY & BONNIE' to Benefit TheatreWithin, 6/8

On June 8th at The HighLine Ballroom in New York City, Hudson Thames Partners and High Fidelity Music will present A Tribune to Delaney & Bonnie and Their Famous Friends. The one-of-a-kind event will benefit TheatreWithin.org, and will feature the music of Delaney & Bonnie, Leon Russell, Joe Cocker, Derek & The Dominos, George Harrison, Ray Charles, Eric Clapton, Billy Preston, Little Richard, and more, performed by an all-star band of NYC musicians, including:

Denny Laine (Wings, Moody Blues)
John Leventhal (Rosanne Cash, Shawn Colvin)
Jim Boggia
James Maddock
Clifford Carter (James Taylor, Paul Simon)
Amy Helm (Ollabelle, Levon Helm)
Jeff Kazee (Southside Johnny, Early Elton)
Lou Marini (SNL)
Shawn Pelton (SNL, Sheryl Crow)
Tabitha Fair (Beyonce, Carole King)
Rich Pagano (Fab Faux, sugarCane cups, Levon Helm)
Elaine Caswell (Cindi Lauper, Mick Jagger)
Zev Katz (Hall & Oates, Roxy Music)
Tawatha Agee (Aretha Franklin, Steely Dan)
Marc Copely (Ryan Shaw, James Cotton)
Craig Dreyer (Leo Nocentelli)
Jim Keller (Jim Keller Band, Tommy Tutone)
Brian Mitchell (Levon Helm, Rosanne Cash)
Christine Ohlman (SNL)
Fred Walcott (Shemekia Copeland, David Johansen)
Jeff Young (Jackson Browne)

More special guests announced soon.

For June 8th ticket info, click here.

Delaney and Bonnie Bramlett are best remembered as a dynamic roots rock and rhythm songwriting duo that, in the end, may have been overshadowed by their own band, which was comprised of an incredible list of iconic and influential artists. The pair's Delaney & Bonnie & Friends incarnation was particularly influential, drawing in, and in many cases helping shape the direction of, such musical luminaries as Eric Clapton, Bobby Whitlock, Duane Allman, Gregg Allman, George Harrison, Leon Russell, Dave Mason, Rita Coolidge, and King Curtis. After the early 1970 breakup of Delaney & Bonnie & Friends, Leon Russell recruited many of its ex-members to join Joe Cocker's band, participating in Cocker's recording sessions for Mad Dogs and Englishmen (1970) and embarking on his North American tour (March – May 1970; Rita Coolidge's version of "Groupie (Superstar)" was recorded with this band while on tour). Following this stint, some of these same musicians, joined by Eric Clapton, Billy Preston, and Dave Mason, also formed the core backing band on George Harrison's vocal debut album All Things Must Pass (1970). Clapton subsequently recorded his landmark album Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs (1970) with the band's bassist Carl Radle, singer and keyboardist Bobby Whitlock, and drummer Jim Gordon as Derek & The Dominos (with assistance on many tracks from lead slide guitarist Duane Allman).

The June 8th performance is a tribute to the influence of Delaney and Bonnie – and the band that got away. All net proceeds from this show will benefit Theatre Within. Theatre Within is a not-for-profit Performing Arts Presenter dedicated to producing shows, which benefit outstanding charities and important social causes. Through its Annual John Lennon Tribute, now in its 32nd year, Theatre Within has raised funds to feed the hungry, support education programs for homeless children, and build music schools in the Third World. Proceeds from its new album, The 30th Annual John Lennon Tribute Live from the Beacon Theatre, will help support earthquake relief through the Japanese Red Cross. For additional information visit Theatrewithin.org and LennonTribute.org.

How the show came together, via Rich Pagano and Zev Katz:

When New York session great Zev Katz (Roxy Music, Hall & Oates, Rosanne Cash) came to renowned singing drummer Rich Pagano (The Fab Faux, Rosanne Cash, Levon Helm) suggesting they put something together that could include a bunch of local friends, play a great body of music and do something good (make it a benefit), the inspiration he had in mind was Joe Cocker & Leon Russell's Mad Dogs and Englishmen. Pagano realized that many of the musicians and singers in that group had also played with George Harrison (the Concert for Bangladesh), Eric Clapton (Derek and the Dominoes), and Billy Preston (on his first two records for Apple) and that most of them had also earlier worked with Delaney and Bonnie, both in the studio and on their famous "Delaney & Bonnie and Friends Live with Eric Clapton" tour and record. The two then set out to hone a set list that would showcase all the branches of this legacy.