lauracoylemusic

Laura & Dan Baraszu: Castleberry Hill Art Stroll Fri 8/22

This Friday, August 22nd, jazz vocal/guitar duo Laura Coyle and Dan Baraszu will be appearing at the Auto Shop Lofts in downtown Atlanta from 7-10pm as part of the Castleberry Hill Art Stroll. Every 4th Friday the neighborhood comes alive with galleries and shops opening their doors to welcome art lovers to this bustling Atlanta neighborhood for an evening stroll, shopping and dining.

The Auto Shop Lofts are located next to Tilt Coffee Shop at 282 Walker St. SW Atlanta, GA 30313. And they are right around the corner from Studio 281 - just check out this pdf map of the neighborhood with all the shops and restaurants listed.

Towanna Stone and Keelee Butler are the co-producers and hosts of the evening at the Auto Shop Lofts.

So be sure to join us for this quintessential Atlanta arts event. Laura Coyle and Dan Baraszu will be performing jazz in the courtyard and there will be an exhibition of paintings by Atlanta's own Kermin Middleton. Both Laura and Dan will have their CD's available for sale.

Photos by Auto Shop Lofts

debut CD has arrived!

I'm proud to announce the release of my first CD! If you know me, you know jazz singing is a more recent development in my life, but I've loved this music for a long time. Fortunately I met drummer Bernard Linnette at a jam session a few years back when I was slowly working up the nerve to sing in public. I didn't realize it at the time, but Bernard was something of a singer's mentor, after having spent many years of his career in the bands of great singers like Freddy Cole and Dakota Staton. To make a long story short, Bernard guided, encouraged and eventually hired me - a jazz-fanatic in her late 30's finally ready to bust out of her shell. 

I played every week for over a year in Bernard's band, where I came to know and love some great musicians and the CD unfolded from there. Louis Heriveaux, (pianist, producer) is responsible for the arrangements and setting the stage for the music to happen on this recording - and when you listen you'll recognize his brilliance right away. The rest of the credit goes to Craig Shaw on bass, Melvin Jones on trumpet, Eric Fontaine on tenor sax and of course Bernard Linnette on drums. 

There are 10 tracks of jazz standards ranging from bossa to swing. Some tunes are off the beaten path like "Con Alma," a Dizzy Gillespie classic destined to become a jazz vocal standard with uplifting lyrics penned by Judy Rafat. With more familiar tunes, I looked for a slightly different spin: on "The Girl From Ipanema," I sing in Portuguese, and "Besame Mucho" becomes a jazz waltz inspired by one of my favorite Wes Montgomery recordings. 

We've put a lot of love in this project. And as Freddy Cole said, "that girl can sing!" so take his word for it, buy a copy, tell your friends, and enjoy. cdbaby.com/lauracoyle You'll be among the early adopters!!

Saturday at Ray's on the River

with L.A. Tuten and Laura Coyle

Micah Cadwell

and Matthew Kaminski on Piano

our friend Tempe sang "La Vie En Rose," Bill Willson on piano

visit my website for my upcoming dates, so you can enjoy an evening of jazz and cocktails (and wonderful food) with us at Ray's

photos by Clayton Daspit

and be sure to check out Matthew Kaminski, pianist and Micah Cadwell, guitarist, and click to find out more about L.A. Tuten (as if bass weren't enough, he plays tuba too.)

Mary Jo's Jazz Soiree 12/2/07

an evening of music with Obie Jessie, vocals; Bernard Linnette, drums; Louis Heriveaux, piano; and Craig Shaw, bass.

Louis Heriveaux before the show

Obie Jessie takes the stage

Posey Miller and Takana Miyamoto listen from the kitchen

Craig Shaw takes a solo

everybody digs Obie Jessie

the second set

ends with a stirring 'Round Midnight

Thanks to Mary Jo for hosting this beautiful evening of music in her home. And to Phil and Rhae Clore for bringing these events together every month. I'll remember this night for a long time. I was fortunate to get to sing a couple of tunes as an opener to Obie's sets and meet a lot of fellow jazz lovers. If you'd like to attend in the future, keep an eye on SOJA's website.

photos by Laura Coyle

Ray's on the River

Last Saturday night I played at the beautiful Ray's on the River with Louis Heriveaux and Craig Shaw. We had a lot of fun, as is evidenced by all the smiling going on in this picture.

My New Website!

Come visit my new site! I may phase out the blog eventually, but this new site will be the place to go to for the most current info on my upcoming gigs. Also, it's able to hold a lot more photos, so I can show you many of my shots of the Atlanta Jazz Chorus and of my recent recording session with Bernard Linnette and company. Pretty soon, I'll have music samples too. Stop on by! lauracoylejazz.com

jazz alert

appearing tonight and saturday at Churchill Grounds, Atlanta with Bernard Linnette is the great Johhny O'Neal with Kemba Cofield vocals (August 24th-25th, 2007 9pm, first set)