'STRAIGHTEN UP & FLY RIGHT' Nat King Cole Tribute Set for Brooklyn Center This May

Brooklyn Center for the Performing Arts at Brooklyn College concludes its 2015-16 Jazz Series on Sunday, May 1, 2016 at 3pm with three-time Grammy Award-winning pianist Ramsey Lewis and singer/guitarist John Pizzarelli, joining forces in a tribute to the titan of fifties vocal pop, Nat King Cole. Tickets are $40 and can be purchased at BrooklynCenter.org or by calling the box office at 718-951-4500 (Tue-Sat, 1pm-6pm).

Nat King Cole broke the pop barrier with his smoky, smooth vocals, stringing along a huge number of solid hits right after his first, "Straighten Up And Fly Right," soared up the charts in 1943. As a singer he was called "the best friend a song ever had," but he was essentially a jazz performer at heart. Even those later tracks crafted for the pop charts belie a piano technique, vocal phrasing, and on-the-mark orchestration that are indebted to his early roots in jazz. Ramsey Lewis and John Pizzarelli have tailored a tribute to Cole, from his hits along with those singular tracks of sophisticated cool jazz that have influenced their own. The concert features 16 of Cole's most beloved tunes, from "Sentimental Reasons" and " Body and Soul" to "Route 66," "Unforgettable," and, of course, "Straighten Up And Fly Right."

Ramsey Lewis has been an iconic leader in the contemporary jazz movement for over 50 years with an unforgettable sound and outgoing personality that has allowed him to cross over to the pop and R&B charts.

His trio (with bassist Eldee Young and percussionist Redd Holt) became a fixture on the Chicago jazz scene, releasing their debut album, Ramsey Lewis & His Gentlemen of Jazz, back in 1956. Lewis earned his first gold record, as well as a GRAMMY Award for Best Jazz Performance, for their swinging version of Dobie Gray's hit "The In Crowd." He returned to the pop charts in 1966 with versions of "Hang On Sloopy" and "Wade In The Water." Throughout the years, Lewis' trio has undergone membership changes, all the while staying true to Lewis' high musical standards.

Throughout his illustrious career, Lewis, who is a NEA Jazz Master, has also joined forces with countless other artists to create new and innovative music. In 1984, he collaborated with Nancy Wilson on The Two of Us; in 1988, he recorded with London's Philharmonic Orchestra for the album A Classic Encounter; and in 1989, Lewis and Dr. Billy Taylor cut a set of piano duets in We Meet Again. In 1995, Lewis launched the side project Urban Knights, in which he collaborated with a handful of successful crossover jazz stars, including Grover Washington, Jr., Earl Klugh, and Dave Koz. In 1997, Lewis added disc jockey to his resume, hosting a popular show on Chicago's WNUA-FM that ran until 2009. A new show was syndicated in 2006 under the name Legends of Jazz with Ramsey Lewis and was broadcast on jazz radio stations across the country. In 2006, a well-received 13-episode Legends of Jazz television series hosted by Lewis was broadcast by PBS on public TV nationwide and featured live performances by a variety of jazz artists including Larry Gray, Lonnie Smith, Joey Defrancesco, Dave Brubeck, Chick Corea, Kurt Elling, Benny Golson, Pat Metheny, and Tony Bennett. He has been touring with Philip Bailey (Earth, Wind & Fire), John Pizzarelli, and Dee Dee Bridgewater as well as doing dates in celebration of the 50th anniversary of "The 'In' Crowd".

The three time GRAMMY winner released his new CD Taking Another Look - Deluxe Edition on July 24, 2015, featuring Henry Johnson (guitar), Michael Logan (keyboard), Joshua Ramos (bass), and Charles Heath (drums). On the CD, Lewis rekindles his 1974 career-defining album Sun Goddess through a collection of re-recorded tracks from the original disc perfectly balanced with five new tunes. "Jungle Strut" has all the attitude of its 1974 original, and Lewis makes magic on the Fender Rhodes in "Tambura." And rather than re-recording the title track "Sun Goddess", Lewis has beautifully re-edited the original studio recording featuring Earth, Wind and Fire. About Taking Another Look, Lewis says, "I've recorded maybe 70-80 albums, and this album is definitely among the top five."

Established as one of the prime contemporary interpreters of the Great American Songbook, Pizzarelli has expanded that repertoire by including the music of Joni Mitchell, Neil Young, Tom Waits, Antônio Carlos Jobim and Lennon-McCartney. His themed shows, often performed with his wife Jessica Molaskey, suggest there is no limit to Pizzarelli's imagination or talent.

Pizzarelli started playing guitar at age six, following in the tradition of his father. He turned to jazz in his late teens after playing in rock bands, and he received an education playing with his father Bucky Pizzarelli and many jazz greats who would influence his work: Benny Goodman, Les Paul, Zoot Sims, Clark Terry and Slam Stewart, among others. His solo recording career started in 1990 with My Blue Heaven on Chesky Records. He played clubs and concert halls on the jazz circuit, opening for such greats as Dave Brubeck, Ramsey Lewis and Rosemary Clooney. In 1993, he was honored to open for Frank Sinatra's international tour and then joined in the celebration for his 80th birthday at Carnegie Hall, bringing down the house singing "I Don't Know Why I Love You Like I Do" with his father accompanying him.

Pizzarelli's hero and foundation over the last 25 years has been Nat "King" Cole, to whom he has devoted two albums, Dear Mr. Cole and P.S. Mr. Cole. "His sound was singular and inspired," Pizzarelli says. "I've always said we're an extension, a 21st-century version of what that group was."

After recording albums for RCA devoted to torch ballads (After Hours), classic swing and bold originals (Our Love Is Here to Stay), holiday songs (Let's Share Christmas) and the Fab Four (John Pizzarelli Meets the Beatles), Pizzarelli signed with the GRAMMY® Award-winning label Telarc International, a division of Concord Music Group. His string of successful albums started in 2000 with Kisses in the Rain, a diverse set of standards and original tunes that showcase the spontaneity of his live performances within a studio setting, followed by Let There Be Love.

To celebrate the 10th anniversary of the John Pizzarelli Trio along with pianist Ray Kennedy and bassist/brother Martin Pizzarelli, Live at Birdland was released in April 2003. This two-disc set seamlessly blends James Taylor folk with Gershwin and Van Heusen standards, in addition to original Pizzarelli compositions. In 2004, Pizzarelli introduced a new generation to the distinctive Latin rhythms of Bossa Nova. Produced by Russ Titelman, the acclaimed disc features several Brazilian musicians including drummer Paulo Braga, pianist César Camargo Mariano and vocalist Daniel Jobim. This was followed by Knowing You (2005), Dear Mr. Sinatra (2006), the GRAMMY® Award-nominated With a Song in My Heart (2008), Rockin' in Rhythm (2010), and Double Exposure (2012).

Pizzarelli's latest album, Midnight McCartney, has its origins in Paul McCartney's GRAMMY-winning 2012 album, Kisses on the Bottom. Pizzarelli played guitar on 10 of the album's 14 tracks and backed Sir Paul at an iTunes concert at Capitol Records Studios, the GRAMMY Awards, and the Recording Academy's annual MusiCares Person of the Year Gala.

In addition to being a bandleader and solo performer, John has been a special guest on recordings for major pop names such as James Taylor, Natalie Cole, Kristin Chenoweth, Tom Wopat, Rickie Lee Jones, and Dave Van Ronk, as well as leading jazz artists like Rosemary Clooney, Ruby Braff, Johnny Frigo, Buddy

DeFranco, Harry Allen and, of course, Bucky Pizzarelli. He was featured opposite Donna Summer, Jon Secada, and Roberta Flack on the GRAMMY Award-winning CD, Songs from the Neighborhood: The Music of Mr. Rogers, in 2005. John has performed on the country's most popular national television shows such as The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Late Night with Jimmy Fallon, Late Show with David Letterman, Conan, Live with Regis & Kelly, The Tony Danza Show, and the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.

A radio personality who got his start in the medium in 1984, Pizzarelli is co-host, alongside Jessica Molaskey, of Radio Deluxe with John Pizzarelli. Heard on more than 40 radio stations, the syndicated radio show brings warmth, humor and that long-lost "live" feel back to radio. The show takes place in their "deluxe living room high atop Lexington Avenue," and the conversations are relaxed, candid and off-the-cuff as is the music. The show is also available globally as a podcast at www.johnpizzarelli.com and via iTunes.

Pizzarelli performs annual engagements at the Café Carlyle with Jessica Molaskey and at Birdland with his jazz combo. He continues to tour throughout the United States, Europe, South America, and Japan, performing classic pop, jazz, and swing, while setting the standard for stylish modern jazz. Pizzarelli received the 2009 Ella Fitzgerald Award from the Montreal International Jazz Festival, joining a select group of past winners including Aretha Franklin, Tony Bennett, and Harry Connick, Jr.

Brooklyn Center for the Performing Arts' presentation of Straighten Up & Fly Right: The Nat King Cole Tribute is made possible, in part, by Con Edison. Ramsey Lewis plays the Steinway piano.

Founded in 1954, Brooklyn Center for the PerformingArts at Brooklyn College presents outstanding performing arts and arts education programs, reflective of Brooklyn's diverse communities, at affordable prices. Each season, Brooklyn Center welcomes over 65,000 people to the 2,400 seat Whitman Theatre, including up to 45,000 schoolchildren from over 300 schools who attend their SchoolTime series, one of the largest arts-in-education programs in the borough.

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