Q&A with Camille Thurman – Part 1

Part One of Night is Alive’s exclusive interview with Camille Thurman

This week we had the privilege of speaking with Camille Thurman, the accomplished and multi-talented jazz musician whose powerhouse vocals and distinctive saxophone are showcased in the hot new album Radiance. Thurman may be the youngest musician on the album, but with five full-length studio albums and numerous prestigious awards under her belt, she is quickly becoming a name to remember. From touring and performing as a bandleader in Paraguay and Nicaragua, to founding a mentorship series and serving as cultural ambassador in Cameroon, Mozambique, Nigeria, Senegal, and Mauritania, Thurman has done it all!

Night is Alive: You are a saxophonist, singer and composer; and I’ve read that you practiced vocals, piano and flute as a child. What is your earliest musical memory? Which of your many musical pursuits were you originally drawn to most as a child?

Camille Thurman: Probably playing violin at age five. I remember my mother introduced me to Noel Pointer in Brooklyn and he had this blue violin and I was very intrigued by the blue. It had this lacquer on it that just shined.

NiA: Oh wow, I can imagine the blue being very intriguing at age 5! Did you get your own blue violin?

CT: I got a regular violin, it was great. I got to do it for a year, there was a great teacher at my school, Miss Young. And both of my parents appreciated music–my mom sang and played the piano. She would practice at night when I would sleep and I could hear her, then in the morning I would try to pluck the song she was singing on the piano. I learned a lot of songs this way and then they had a talent show at school and I signed up and told my mom and she was like, “wait what?” I just told her, “Oh, I’m going to play the piano, I hear you practice at night.” At that time I think she was playing Bette Midler’s “From a Distance” and I played the melody and she was floored, and I played it from beginning to end at the talent show in the 3rd or 4th grade.

NiA: That’s amazing! I bet she was so impressed by that. You’ve also played with musicians such as Tia Fuller and Mimi Jones.

CT: Tia Fuller and Mimi Jones were my mentors. Tia took me under her wing when she got out of college and she introduced me to Mimi Jones and I got to work with her. Tia was like my big sister–I learned so much from her about being a musician, being a woman in the industry, she got me through a lot and we had some amazing times together.

I didn’t play all the gigs with her; it was more like an apprenticeship, then after that I started playing with other people too–a mixture of playing with her and other musicians, getting on the scene, playing as much as you can. I played with Mimi and Terri Lyne Carrington, Wynton Marsalis and the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra, and got to do a few things with other people, like Nicholas Payton, and so many others.

NiA: Do you have a favorite musical performance?

CT: No, you’re just doing it–every time you get to play it’s an accomplishment. Musicians are a dime a dozen. Everyone is trying to make a name for themselves, and I just wanted to play with my heroes. So just to get a call from them to play, that in and of itself was an accomplishment. Getting a call from one of your heroes saying, “Hey I want you in my band” is such an accomplishment. I’m getting to play with this person with all this history, like Louis Hayes, that was another wow. Every opportunity was special, getting to play with Terri Lyne Carrington. There wasn’t necessarily one particular moment.

Look for the second part of this compelling interview, coming soon! In the meantime, check out Night is Alive’s albums page for the very best in jazz.

Learn more about Camille Thurman at https://www.camillethurmanmusic.com/

written by Jacqueline Knirnschild

Q&A with Lonnie Plaxico – Part 2

Part Two of Night is Alive’s exclusive interview with Lonnie Plaxico

We’re back with part 2 of our chat with Lonnie Plaxico, whose album Radiance is receiving critical acclaim!

Night is Alive: When did you first become involved with Night is Alive?

Lonnie Plaxico: I got called to play in the session with Christie Dashiell, on the Christmas album. It’s fun, the sessions with Kathy Salem’s label always go well.

NiA: You’ve been a part of many Night is Alive albums. Which one has been your favorite?

LP: All of them. I mean because to me it’s all connected, it’s just another opportunity to make music. I don’t have a favorite, they’re all special.

NiA: Could you tell us more about your album Radiance, which came out last summer?

LP: When I started playing jazz, we had to learn the music of the elders, which was the pop music of their time. So, the music that I’m playing on this CD is for the young musicians. We’re the elders now. For a 16-year-old kid, playing music from the 70s, that’s grandparents’ music. For me, playing jazz was like playing my grandparents music, so for this album I wanted to do some music that my parents know. That made it special for me. Because sometimes we play original music and don’t nobody have a connection to it. So, I wanted to play some songs that the average person can listen to, and think “hey, I know that song,” and have a connection to it. And also, my brother–I got into music through him and he really don’t play jazz, so I was willing to do something that he’s comfortable with, that we grew up having the same musical experience with. The piano player, he grew up with this music too. The singer, Camille, she’s much younger, so it’s like we’re bringing her in to our culture, and what we grew up on, and that’s what all the musicians have always done with the younger musicians. We’re pulling them in, and that’s how we learn from the elders.

NiA: Was there a specific moment that inspired you to create the album?

LP: Well, I’ve always loved 70s music and early 80s music and sometimes I feel like I’m starving to play it, because a lot of young musicians play more original music and I don’t feel they connect to the audience. And I know that when you play something people know, it’s a whole different connection. I wanted to play some music that would connect with the people because when I grew up, musicians loved playing for people. But now, most musicians go to college and just want to play their own original music. And we don’t listen to the radio like we used to, so nobody has hit records, so the music, I feel like it doesn’t connect with the audience. And I grew up in a time when you didn’t write original music, you performed in clubs what you heard on the radio. People didn’t write original music until they got a record deal and it was very hard to get a record deal in the 70s. You had to get “discovered” and until then you played what was on the radio, played strictly for the audience, and I used to love doing that because people knew the music and we made them happy.

Check out Night is Alive’s albums page for the very best in jazz, including Lonnie Plaxico’s Radiance.

Learn more about Lonnie Plaxico at http://www.lonnieplaxico.com/

written by Jacqueline Knirnschild

photo from https://www.facebook.com/lonnie.plaxico1

Q&A with Lonnie Plaxico – Part 1

Part One of Night is Alive’s exclusive interview with Lonnie Plaxico

This week we were lucky enough to speak with the extremely talented double bassist, Lonnie Plaxico. You may recognize Lonnie from the five Night is Alive albums he’s featured on: Night is Alive’s First Christmas; Christmas Ain’t Like It Used to Be; Cryin’ in My Whiskey; Old, New, Borrowed and Blue; and most recently, Radiance, the last of which just came out this July! Lonnie also won the Louis Armstrong Jazz Award, and played with countless legendary musicians, including Chet Baker and Hank Jones. Now, let’s hear from Lonnie . . .

Night is Alive: You’ve been playing the double bass since you were twelve years old. What originally drew you to the instrument?

Lonnie Plaxico: I actually started with electric bass, then I got into acoustic bass. The music at that time, the 60s and the 70s was R&B. A friend of mine who played saxophone and knew about jazz started telling me about jazz and John Coltrane, Charlie Parker, acoustic bass. And I got interested around that time. By the time I was 14/16, they had acoustic bass at the high school and that was the first time I touched the acoustic bass.

NiA: Did you fall in love with the acoustic bass and stop with the electric bass?

LP: It was like learning history. Electric bass has a history that no one had told me about when I got one. I didn’t know I was supposed to learn the history of music, you know I was a kid and just heard the music on the radio, but then I realized there was a history. I was naturally curious, like hey where does this stuff come from? I was surprised that people were playing a different kind of music in the 50s. I was a kid and didn’t know, didn’t have a music education that holds you responsible for learning where the rules come from. As the R&B music started changing and going more towards disco and non-instruments, I could tell I really need to learn where this stuff comes from. Studio musicians had to be able to play anything. I was with my family band, and I realized I didn’t see no career in that. I wanted to be able to play with everyone, not just my brothers and sisters, and jazz was a whole ‘nother mystery for me. And I love playing electric bass too, but you just realize there is so much more out there.

NiA: You’ve played with many talented musicians throughout your career, like Chet Baker and Dexter Gordon. What is one of your favorite performance memories?

LP: All of them. I mean because these are people I listened to when I started listening to jazz, so to play with any one of them was like a dream. We recorded with Dizzy Gillespie, and I saw these people on TV when I was just getting into music and I never thought that I’d be performing with them.

NiA: Yeah, it sounds like a dream-come-true! Do you remember which performance was the first one where you really felt like you had to pinch yourself, and couldn’t believe it?

LP: Sonny Stitt when I was 16, in a small club in Robbins, Illinois, a small suburb outside of Chicago. It was not like a regular jazz club. He needed a band and someone asked if we could play behind Sonny Stitt, and I thought it was a joke because you know they were asking us teenagers to back up Sonny Stitt. We said yeah, but we didn’t think Sonny Stitt would show up, but he did, and we played behind him. We were playing the first set and this old guy–probably in his 40s but to us he was this old guy–he came in with his horn, and it was Sonny Stitt. And my brother-in-law–he plays saxophone and was in the band–he took a picture. I didn’t even say hey let me take a picture with Sonny Stitt, so he’s the only one in the picture. It was just one gig but that was the first gig with a legend. Then in Chicago, where I’m from, I played with the elders, all of them basically. And then I got to New York to play with Wynton Marsalis, that was my way to New York, and that lasted me, and then Art Blakey.

Look for the second part of this compelling interview, coming soon! In the meantime, check out Night is Alive’s albums page for the very best in jazz.

Learn more about Lonnie Plaxico at http://www.lonnieplaxico.com/

written by Jacqueline Knirnschild

photo from https://www.facebook.com/lonnie.plaxico1

Songs & S’mores

Photo by Leon Contreras on Unsplash

Bonfire tunes your family and friends will love.

The weather is starting to cool down and the school year is winding back up again, which makes it an ideal time to host a bonfire! Just imagine how nice it would be to put on your favorite worn and cozy hoodie, gather round the fire with friends and family and watch the flames crackle. And of course, no bonfire is complete without some s’mores! So, grab some sticks, marshmallows, graham crackers and chocolate, and turn on this playlist.

Harry Allen Trio – Seems to Me I’ve Heard That Song Before

The repetition and cycle of the seasons each year carry a sense of routine and ritual, which reminds me of this song, from Night is Alive’s album It Takes 3. Seems to me I’ve heard that song before–the song of autumnal winds rustling the leaves and replacing the stagnancy of humidity and heat; the song of school buses replacing ice cream trucks; a peaceful and relieving darkness descending earlier and earlier each evening.

WJ3 All-Stars – Star Eyes

What is your s’mores style? Do you like to burn your marshmallow and peel back the smoky top layer to reveal mushy goodness inside? Do you like to patiently rotate your marshmallow over the coals until it’s golden and toasty? Or do you simply enjoy a raw, uncooked marshmallow straight from the bag? Well, no matter how you enjoy your marshmallow, I hope you can look at it with stars in your eyes while you listen to this song from Night is Alive’s album My Ship. Making and eating a s’more gives you a chance to be mindful and present and enjoy a simple pleasure in life!

Lonnie Plaxico, Camille Thurman & Douglas Plaxico – Mona Lisa

Everyone knows the famous enigmatic painting of Mona Lisa. What does the expression on her face mean? Is she smiling or hiding something? Allow this beautiful new rendition of the 1949 song from Ray Evans and Jay Livingston to transport you back in time to the Renaissance. From the brand new album Radiance, this song can also help to open up conversation around the bonfire–maybe you and your friends could discuss the nature of art and reality? Or maybe someone has a story to share about when they saw the famous painting in person?

Lorca Hart Trio – Ness and His Family

Sitting around the bonfire means storytime, right? While this instrumental song, from Night is Alive’s album Inspiration and Gratitude, is playing, why don’t you share a spooky story? Whether it came from your imagination or whether it’s a true story, it’s fun to entertain your friends! Maybe your story is about the Loch Ness monster? Or maybe y’all can do the round robin style of storytelling where each person builds off the previous person’s short piece.

Bill Cunliffe, Tim Horner & Martin Wind – Looking Back

Making, and munching on, s’mores is a great time to reflect on the past, look back at the summer and make goals for the future. Listen to this tune from Night is Alive’s haunting album Border Widow’s Lament while you share experiences from the past few months. My friends and I sometimes even enjoy sharing our “rose, bud, thorn,” which refers to a positive or successful

Check out this music and more on Night is Alive’s albums page!

written by Jacqueline Knirnschild

Photo by Leon Contreras on Unsplash