LYDIA SALETT DUDLEY & JAZZ XPRESSIONS
‘RISE UP’
The powerful jazz and soulful r&b singer-keyboardist Lydia Salett Dudley has released Rise Up, a set of memorable music that is highlighted by her passionate originals.
Lydia Salett Dudley is a major musical force. She leads Jazz Xpressions, a versatile group based in Raleigh, North Carolina that frequently blurs the lines between creative jazz, grooving r&b and gospel music. Her latest recording, Rise Up, is the result of a grant for female jazz bandleaders from Chamber Music America that included a mentorship with the masterful singer Carmen Lundy.
Blessed with a beautiful voice, a creative spirit, and a purposeful style, Lydia Salett Dudley is in prime form throughout Rise Up. With strong contributions made by guitarist Lou Padro, bassist Aaron Gross (who co-wrote some of the new music), drummer Donovan Cheatham, altoist Sam King, tenor-saxophonist Devin Rauson and (on four of the program’s eight selections) percussionist Beverly Botsford, the singer performs a diverse yet consistently stirring set of music. Three of the originals (“Let’s Do The Work,” a bluesy “Shalom,” and the assertive “Rise Up”) discuss the racial tensions of recent times. “Beautiful Sister Lady” is a soulful strut while “I Saw Your Smile” is about finding hope in an unlikely setting. Of the other pieces, “God Bless The Child” (which has altoist Dexter Moses as a featured guest) is modernized and given an electric background, Wayne Shorter’s “Deluge” is primarily a vehicle to give the talented band an opportunity to stretch out, and guitarist Padro’s grooving “New Feeling” has Ms. Dudley forming her own choir.
Lydia Salett Dudley has long been active in the North Carolina music scene. An advocate for jazz education, she graduated from NCCU’s jazz program, sat on the board of the Heart Of Carolina Jazz, has a nonprofit (the Salett Art Center, Inc.) that hosts jazz competitions, and founded a songwriting and recording program for a local psychiatric facility for teens. Her group Lydia Salett Dudley & Jazz Xpressions not only plays classic jazz standards but helps to introduce the music to younger audiences by also performing creative versions of soul jazz and r&b songs from the 1970s along with a wide-ranging program of uplifting originals.
The release of Rise Up, a powerful, optimistic and thought-provoking set of enjoyable music, is the latest accomplishment for Lydia Salett Dudley and will certainly increase her fame beyond North Carolina.
More information about Lydia Salett Dudley and Rise Up can be found at www.lydiasalettdudley.com {{Lydia Dudley}} and by sending an E-mail to mrpublishing7@gmail.com
Carolinajazzgirl | Mercy Records
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