Dave Koz, Mindi Abair, Gerald Albright & Richard Elliot to Play Smith Center, 8/2

The Smith Center will welcome acclaimed saxophonist Dave Koz along with friends MindiAbair, Gerald Albright and Richard Elliot, Saturday, Aug. 2 in Reynolds Hall at 7:30 p.m.

When Koz, Abair, Albright and Elliot hit the road together last summer in support of their album "Dave Koz and Friends Summer Horns," they looked at it as a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. But the four artists had such a blast that they are happily obliging fans' requests for a return of the Summer Horns tour. The foursome, which received a 2014 GRAMMY Awards nomination for Best Pop Instrumental Album, will be touring North America together this summer.

"Dave Koz and Friends Summer Horns" (Concord Records) was produced by Paul Brown (Al Jarreau, George Benson, June Tabor). The album, released in June 2013, spent five weeks at No. 1 on Billboard's Current Contemporary Jazz Albums chart and hit the Top 5. The collection includes fresh takes on classic songs by Sly & the Family Stone, Tower of Power, Earth Wind & Fire, Chicago, Blood Sweat & Tears and other brassy juggernauts of the '60s and '70s.

"This was our chance to honor that era of great horn sections with a big tip of our hat and say 'thank you' to those who were responsible for it," said Dave Koz, who now has nine Grammy nominations to his credit. "I hope people feel the reverence that we all have for this music and the great bands that made it."

The first single off "Summer Horns" - a rendition of Lennon and McCartney's "Got To Get You Into My Life" - spent seven weeks at No. 1 on Billboard's Smooth Jazz chart and was nominated for a Soul Train award. "I Got You (I Feel Good)," the follow-up single, was hailed by the San Jose Mercury News as a "funk-filled fun fest" and hit No. 1 on the Mediabase Smooth A/C chart.

Tickets start at $29 and will go on sale to the public on Friday, May 9 at 10 a.m.at The Smith Center Box Office, located at 361 Symphony Park Avenue, by phone at 702-749-2000 or 808-326-6868 (TTY) and online at www.TheSmithCenter.com. For Preferred seating and special rates for groups of 10 or more, contact 702-749-2348.