Marcus Goldhaber Celebrates Sinatra in FREE & EASY: LIVIN' ON SWING STREET in Milford Tonight

Direct from "Broadway's supper club," 54 Below, acclaimed NYC jazz vocalist-songwriter and two-time 2015 Best Male Vocalist nominee Marcus Goldhaber hosts a Sinatra Centennial Celebration in the Connecticut debut of his new show, "FREE & EASY: LIVIN' ON SWING STREET," at Milford Arts Council Center for the Arts in Milford, CT tonight, March 5 at 8:00 p.m.

Goldhaber is currently nominated for Best Male Vocalist in the Broadway World Awards, and also was nominated in the fall as Best Male Vocalist (alongside Tony Bennett!) in the Hot House Jazz Awards. He'll be joined in Connecticut by Joe Alterman on piano, Paul Gill on bass, and Joe Strasser on drums.

Hangin' his hat on the imaginary Swing Street at the MAC Center for the Arts, Goldhaber takes a stroll through the musical fantasy neighborhood in his mind, where his neighbors are legendary interpreters of the Great American Songbook. With a nod to Sinatra's 100th birthday, Marcus will pay an extended visit to Ol' Blue Eyes' address, with additional stops at the "homes" of Sarah Vaughan, Harry Connick Jr., Chet Baker, and other renowned influences. With his "throwaway charm" and "impeccable" phrasing (Broadway World), Marcus delivers a captivating collection of re-imagined jazz standards and new originals for "a lovely way to spend an evening," which People Magazine says "will have you giddy one moment, melancholy the next, and loving every note."

"The giants who helped create, shape and further The Great American Songbook are as much my 'neighbors"' now as they were when I was a child," says Marcus. "This show let's me pay homage to them and connect with the audience in a very personal way."

Goldhaber takes the audience on a personal walking tour, where we hear about the grandfather with whom he always sang a duet before saying "hello," and a mother whose piano playing was a siren song during homework, as well.

Reviewing Goldhaber's "SWING STREET" world premiere at 54 Below, New York Lifestyles Magazine said: "His easy voice and connection to the audience is reminiscent of an early Frank Sinatra. Sinatra lost his golden voice early on but kept his fans because he was the consummate entertainer. Goldhaber still has an excellent voice and has learned how to double up by entertaining as well. He intersperses his medley with quips and jokes as he goes along."

Noting Goldhaber's "throwaway charm," BroadwayWorld added: "The vocalist is unhurried, mindful of lyrics, and elegantly restrained. He seems comfortable on stage and refreshingly sincere."

MARCUS GOLDHABER Salutes Ol' Blue Eyes in "FREE & EASY: LIVIN' ON SWING STREET," A SINATRA CENTENNIAL CELEBRATION at the Milford Arts Council Center for the Arts (40 Railroad Ave., Milford, CT) on Saturday, March 5 @ 8:00 p.m. Tickets ($25) and more information are available at www.milfordarts.org. For more information, call 203-878-6647.

New York-based vocalist and songwriter MARCUS GOLDHABER "rivals the jazz instincts of Chet Baker and John Pizzarelli," according to JazzTimes, garnering more critical raves for his "wonderfully imaginative" interpretations of straight-ahead jazz standards while earning a reputation among critics and fans for his accessible songwriting. You'll see Goldhaber performing in New York's famed clubs like 54 Below, The Blue Note, Iridium, Birdland, Kitano, The Metropolitan Room, Cutting Room, and at prestigious clubs and concert halls from Las Vegas to Miami, having shared stages along the way with the likes of the legendary Les Paul, Billy Stritch, Vince Giordano, and Bono.

Goldhaber's first three solo albums have established him firmly in the jazz/Cabaret scene, and serve as the core of his latest album, A Lovely Way to Spend an Evening (Fallen Apple/The Orchard): a 12-track collection reintroducing some of Goldhaber's favorite standards alongside new originals, produced in part by Billy Jay Stein (Linda Eder, "Spider-Man," "Beautiful" Broadway cast album). Featured by Jonathan Schwartz on WNYC (NPR) and Sirius XM saying "Goldhaber is excellent ... [he's] filled with ideas," the new album spotlights Goldhaber's artistic breadth in a career fast evolving from jazz interpreter to wistfully undeniable composer and lyricist of modern standards with an intuition for telling the story, including recordings achieved at NYC's famed Avatar Studios and featuring band mates Jon Davis (piano and musical director), Martin Wind (bass) and Marcello Pellitteri (drums).

A Buffalo native, Goldhaber credits his mother with introducing him to the Great American Songbook, and in 2000 he made his way to New York City via musical theater, developing a vast repertoire that includes selections from his recent co-starring role in the off-Broadway hit "The Wonderful Wizard of Song," celebrating the music of the great Harold Arlen (a fellow Buffalo native).

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