"When I was 9 years old and first heard Elvis Presley, that was a defining moment for me," ‘Professor' Doug Bell says, reminiscing about his four-decade long career of singing and songwriting.
Bell, founder of the 20 year-old retro-swing band Bellevue Cadillac (www.bellevuecadillac.com ) and nominated for 9 Grammys since 2007, just returned from Italy where he recorded a CD with another legendary ‘Professor': Professor Louie of the Crowmatix, who co-produced, engineered and performed on Bob Dylan and The Band's last recordings in 1974.
On June 30, 2011, Bell and Bellevue Cadillac rose to Second Place in the Singer / Songwriter Category on ReverbNation (
www.reverbnation.com/dougbellandbellevuecadillac), breaking the 14,000 fan mark, evidence of growing interest in their unique style.
Audiences of all ages are mesmerized by Bell's
Signature Sound that, unlike anyone else on the music stage today -- combines jazz, gospel, blues, soul, swing and rock & roll. Thirteen sold-out shows in Athens, Greece, in 2010 resulted in a new CD. Yet -- after performing for 20 years, with 9 Grammy nominations, 20 CDs, sound tracks for 30 TV shows and 3 motion pictures, covers of Rolling Stone, Jazziz and Swing Time magazines, JFK Jr's Secret Wedding Band --still, no one can tell you exactly what kind of music Doug Bell and Bellevue Cadillac plays.
While he's still guiding and performing with his band, Bell has taken on more solo gigs ("It's easier to travel without my 8-piece band," he jokes), performing with other well-known names in the music world. And Bell certainly hasn't taken the summer off. Upon his return from Italy this week, current projects include:
• Two songs and a video in the Grammy process
• Fine-tuning his first ukulele solo CD
• Preparing for September 7 studio work with J. Geils,
Harry Allen, Gerry Beaudoin
• Studio work with Bud Snider, Allman Brothers' producer, at Spirit Ranch Studio in Sarasota, FL
Bell is rehearsing for:
• Doug Bell & Jay Geils All-Star Jazz & Blues Review, at the new Shalin Liu Performance Center, Rockport, MA, on October 28th
• Private event to benefit the Cancer Society (Bell is a survivor), with Celebrity Chef Johnny Ciao - November 12 in Palm Beach
• The full band is doing a private wedding in Mystic, CT on Sept. 17, and will be a headliner at the Tupelo Music Hall in Londonderry, NH on Dec. 17.
For a taste of Doug Bell's solo sound, visit
www.bellevuecadillac.com and click on ‘Doug Bell and Friends' soon to be released CD featuring ‘Muddy River' and ‘Whiskey and Water,' or go to Vimeo / ‘Doug Bell Unplugged.' Also go to
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O1nnUFbNt0U to watch and hear Cape Cod blues guitarist Gil Correia and Doug Bell performing "On Stage with Mantis" on July 28. For other Doug Bell music, type the name at YouTube and Songza (Bellevue Cadillac Radio), and
www.reverbnation.com/dougbellandbellevuecadillac .
"It all came together - or apart -- about a year ago when I was being interviewed in the same studio where Elvis recorded," says Bell. "What happened was amazing. I became emotional and was choked up. Just being in that room felt otherworldly."
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