Multi-Grammy award winning soul-funk superstars Earth Wind & Fire, iconic Grammy award-winning blues singer/songwriter Keb Mo and jazz legend Patti Austin play one New Zealand concert as part of the 50th birthday celebrations of the National Jazz Festival in Tauranga.
Earth Wind & Fire and Keb Mo headline a triple bill of international superstars to play at the special five-hour long Birthday Bash, as a major highlight of the five-day National Jazz Festival held over Easter.
A third major international superstar will be announced soon for the 50th Birthday Bash concert. Earth Wind & Fire took the world of music by storm with their infectious blend of rhythm and blues, funk, and soul and rose to be the seventh top selling US band of all time with 50 Gold and Platinum albums, 90 million albums sold and seven Top 10 US singles.
Celebrating more than 40 years of global success, EWF features the sublime Philip Bailey on lead vocals alongside original members Verdine White (bass) and Ralph Johnson, and the concert will feature hits ‘September’, ‘Shining Star’, ‘Let’s Groove Tonight’, ‘Sing A Song’, ‘Boogie Wonderland’ and ‘After The Love Has Gone’.
Keb Mo has garnered acclaim throughout his career as a blues singer, songwriter and guitarist. He has won the Grammy for Best Contemporary Blues Album three times; his songs have been recorded by legendary artists including BB King and Natalie Cole; and he has appeared on recordings with Willie Nelson, Ray Charles and Jackson Browne.
Patti Austin first stepped onto the stage of the world-famous Apollo Theater in Harlem, New York as a four-year-old. A year later and she had turned professional. The god-daughter of Quincy Jones and Dinah Washington, she has been performing for five decades, recorded hit duets with Michael Jackson, George Benson and Luther Vandross and has been nominated nine times for a Grammy Award.
The Birthday Bash is one of the highlights of the 2012 National Jazz Festival to mark its 50th anniversary. As well as the Birthday Bash, the 50th anniversary will also be celebrated with a special exhibition and a new concert series featuring more leading international acts.
The 2012 Festival also features the popular Downtown Tauranga Carnival, the Sebel Trinity Wharf Jazz Riverboat, Jazz Village, the National Youth Jazz Competition and the Hurricane Party.
