Grammy Winner GREGORY PORTER Presents NAT KING COLE & ME at the KEITH ALBEE PERFORMING ARTS CENTER

Marshall Artist Series Press Release:

Two time Grammy winner Gregory Porter presents Nat King Cole & Me with 60-piece Orchestra

HUNTINGTON, WV - Cabell Huntington Hospital presents, soulful jazz singer-songwriter, Gregory Porter with his tribute to Nat King Cole at the Keith-Albee Performing Arts Center stage on Dec. 4 at 7:30 pm alongside a 60-piece orchestra.

Porter kicks off the holiday season by paying tribute to one of the all-time greats, Nat King Cole. Through his most recent album Nat King Cole & Me, Porter revisits some of Cole's most cherished classics such as "Smile," "L-O-V-E," "Nature Boy," and "The Christmas Song." Porter will also perform some holiday favorites as well.

Porter's love for Nat King Cole started in his childhood. As a child Porter was inspired by the words of Nat King Cole's music and viewed him as a father figure the young boy never had. Raised in California where his mother was a minister, Porter was influenced at a young age by gospel music and Nat King Cole.

"My mother said I wrote this little song when I was 5 and put it on a tape and played it for her when she came home from work," recalls Porter. Upon hearing it his mother, Ruth Porter, exclaimed "Boy, you sound like Nat King Cole," a compliment that sent the curious young Gregory delving into her record collection.

"I put the vinyl on the player and out of those speakers came that voice, that nurturing sound. It filled a void in me. My father wasn't in my life; he wasn't raising me; he wasn't showing any interest in me. So Nat's words, 'pick yourself up, dust yourself off, start all over again' - all of these life lessons and words of wisdom were like fatherly advice," Porter said.

Porter was a part of the original cast of the Tony-nominated musical It Ain't Nothin' But the Blues in 1999 and Porter's albums Liquid Spirit and Take Me to the Alley both won Grammys for Best Jazz Vocal Album, cementing Porter as his generation's most soulful jazz singer-songwriter.

"Porter has one of the most easy-on-the-ear voices in popular music, a creamy baritone that flows thick and smooth across a rich gateaux of juicy melody. It's a voice that makes you want to lick your lips and dive right in," said writer for The Daily Telegraph, Neil McCormick.

Tickets for Gregory Porter are $76.49/57.84/38.10. Contact the Marshall Artists Series Box Office at 304-696-6656 or order tickets online at Ticketmaster.com. You may also visit our box office located in the Joan C. Edwards Playhouse on the Marshall University campus. Box office hours are Monday through Friday 12 p.m.-4 p.m.

Gregory Porter is sponsored by Cabell Huntington Hospital, The Earleen Heiner Agee and Robert W. Agee Fund of the Foundation for the Tri-State Community, Inc., Wesbanco, Dinsmore, Spriggs Distributing Company, Anonymous, Reger Funeral Home, Dr. Chris and Mrs. Tammy Hugh, KEE 100, B97, WSAZ, The Herald-Dispatch, Marshall University, and the Marshall Artists Series.

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