Ramsey Lewis
MP Summer Music Series – A Tribute to Ramsey Lewis
Millennium Park
201 E Randolph St
Chicago, IL 60602
Jun 22, 2023
7:30 PM CDT
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About this concert
Featuring performances by Orbert Davis, Thaddeus Tukes Trio, Donald Lawrence & The Co., The Urban Knights, The Ramsey Lewis Legacy Band and Monty Alexander Trio featuring Steve Jordan, Santita Jackson, and more. Orbert Davis presents a special string arrangement of Lewis’s iconic work, Les Fleurs. The concert is hosted by Mark Ruffin of Sirius XM's Real Jazz.
The FREE #MillenniumPark Summer Music Series features a wide variety of music from established and emerging artists at the iconic Jay Pritzker Pavilion. For a full series lineup, accessibility information and more, please visit www.millenniumpark.org.
Tribute to Ramsey Lewis: A Gentleman of Jazz, with special surprise guests.
Ramsey Lewis is one of the most iconic jazz pianists of all time. This program will review and highlight Ramsey Lewis's numerous creative innovations and contributions that have impacted the legacy of modern American music over his illustrious career. Additionally, the program will acknowledge the enduring impact of his influence on future generations of musicians. The program will include appearances by numerous surprise guests that have performed with him over the years, and have been inspired by his extraordinary gift and touched by his compassion and benevolence. The program also corresponds with the book launch of Ramsey Lewis' autobiography Gentleman of Jazz : A Life in Music by Blackstone Publishing, with a discussion at the Chicago Cultural Center preceding the show with the co-author and other special guests.
Ramsey Lewis (1935–2022) was one of the most prolific jazz pianists of all time, with more than eighty albums to his name. A National Endowment for the Arts Jazz Master, Top 10 hitmaker, and winner of three Grammys, Lewis also hosted popular television and radio shows that honored the history of jazz music. He was not only influential for many modern jazz artists but compositions he created decades ago have been sampled and can be heard across R&B and hip-hop. Through it all, Lewis remained grounded, never leaving behind his roots in Chicago.
In the words of former president Barack Obama, “Ramsey Lewis is a man who has touched all of our lives. Not everybody finds their calling in life as a four-year-old boy sitting at a piano in the living room, but ever since he did he’s filled our lives with music and with joy.”
Supported by 90.9fm WDCB and the South Side Jazz Coalition
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What fans are saying
Regi
July 25th 2020
As usual, AWESOMENESS!!! 'Trust all is well with You and yours. It's been a while, but 'Sooner than later. I talked to Kelly about a month ago and turned him on to some friends of mine in Vegas. Continued success in all of your endeavors. ✌🏽🖖🏽👍🏽
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Ramsey Lewis Biography
Ramsey Emmanuel Lewis, Jr. (born May 27, 1935 in Chicago, Illinois) is an American jazz and pop pianist and keyboardist.
He formed the Ramsey Lewis Trio in 1956 with Eldee Young and Isaac Holt. They started as primarily a jazz unit but after their hit, "The In Crowd", in 1965 (the single reached fifth place on the pop charts, and the album second place) the trio concentrated more and more on pop material. Young and Holt left in 1966 to form the Young-Holt Trio and were replaced by Cleveland Eaton and Maurice White. White was replaced by Maurice Jennings in 1970. In the late 1970s an additional keyboard player was frequently added to the lineup. A contemporary version of "The In Crowd" was recorded for Lewis' 2004 album, Time Flies.
Ramsey Lewis has received seven gold records and three Grammy Awards so far in his career.
His recent "With One Voice" release pays homage to his gospel roots all while maintaining his classic style. With the help of gospel favorites Smokie Norful, Darius Brooks, and Donald Lawrence, Lewis delivers an emotion-packed, soul-stirring, album. Lewis also enlisted the help of his church's choir, pastored by his older sister, to sing on several of the album's tracks. The J.W. James Memorial A.M.E. Church Combined Choir is breath-taking, adding so much life, freedom, and hope to "With One Voice". The CD's first single, "Pass Me Not" can be heard on Chicago's WGCI 107.5.
In addition to recording and performing, he is / has been a radio host on Chicago's Smooth Jazz station, WNUA (95.5 FM). His syndicated show Legends of Jazz, featuring classic jazz recordings from artists such as Charlie Parker and Miles Davis), can be heard in 60 cities in the United States and other countries as well. His most recent venture, the Legends of Jazz television series on PBS, was first aired in April 2006.
As of 2005 he has been hosting a radio show called Legends of Jazz for London's Smooth FM (previously Jazz FM).
On December 4, 2006, the Ramsey Lewis Morning Show will become a part of Broadcast Architecture's Smooth Jazz Network, simulcasting on other Smooth Jazz stations across the country for the first time. However, the show will still be based in Chicago, as it has always been.
Read MoreHe formed the Ramsey Lewis Trio in 1956 with Eldee Young and Isaac Holt. They started as primarily a jazz unit but after their hit, "The In Crowd", in 1965 (the single reached fifth place on the pop charts, and the album second place) the trio concentrated more and more on pop material. Young and Holt left in 1966 to form the Young-Holt Trio and were replaced by Cleveland Eaton and Maurice White. White was replaced by Maurice Jennings in 1970. In the late 1970s an additional keyboard player was frequently added to the lineup. A contemporary version of "The In Crowd" was recorded for Lewis' 2004 album, Time Flies.
Ramsey Lewis has received seven gold records and three Grammy Awards so far in his career.
His recent "With One Voice" release pays homage to his gospel roots all while maintaining his classic style. With the help of gospel favorites Smokie Norful, Darius Brooks, and Donald Lawrence, Lewis delivers an emotion-packed, soul-stirring, album. Lewis also enlisted the help of his church's choir, pastored by his older sister, to sing on several of the album's tracks. The J.W. James Memorial A.M.E. Church Combined Choir is breath-taking, adding so much life, freedom, and hope to "With One Voice". The CD's first single, "Pass Me Not" can be heard on Chicago's WGCI 107.5.
In addition to recording and performing, he is / has been a radio host on Chicago's Smooth Jazz station, WNUA (95.5 FM). His syndicated show Legends of Jazz, featuring classic jazz recordings from artists such as Charlie Parker and Miles Davis), can be heard in 60 cities in the United States and other countries as well. His most recent venture, the Legends of Jazz television series on PBS, was first aired in April 2006.
As of 2005 he has been hosting a radio show called Legends of Jazz for London's Smooth FM (previously Jazz FM).
On December 4, 2006, the Ramsey Lewis Morning Show will become a part of Broadcast Architecture's Smooth Jazz Network, simulcasting on other Smooth Jazz stations across the country for the first time. However, the show will still be based in Chicago, as it has always been.
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