Music

James Davis is most often found performing on the corner of 9th and Main downtown, many times with his nephew.  When I met with him, he spoke openly about the challenges that face street musicians in Cincinnati and around the country.

James also sells StreetVibes, a locally-produced newspaper that advocates for the homeless.

Bonita Price was a music major at The Cincinnati School for Creative and Performing Arts (SCPA) and Central State University but took some time off to raise her family.  She is now a practicing street musician to hone her voice and to provide income since she was laid off from the Jim Beam distillery when it closed its Cincinnati plant in 2011.

I caught up with Bonita at Cincinnati’s Findlay Market - Ohio's oldest continuously-operated public market.

Grammy nominated singer/songwriter Zak Morgan is a Cincinnati kid who writes smart, funny songs for kids that every parent can also enjoy. The Barber of the Beasts is his newest CD and it features 12 original story-songs, Zak’s take on the classic Swingin’ on a Star, and illustrations by the great C.F. Payne. He joins Brian O’Donnell to talk about his music, his live shows, and this new collection of songs.

A tribute to jazz legend Dave Brubeck on the Blues with Lee Hay, Saturday night, December 8th, at 11pm.  There’s music from his quartet’s 25th Anniversary Reunion as well as his later quartets.  The vocal work of Carmen McRae, Louis Armstrong, and Tony Bennett are also featured with him on piano.

There are solo piano selections by Mr. Brubeck, and the show ends with a version of his famous hit, “Take Five,” recorded at the Washington National Cathedral in D.C. in 1995.

A celebration of Christmas songs by local pianists. This one-hour special will feature Christmas selections recorded for this limited edition cd. Some of the musicians include Steve Schmidt, Kim Taylor, Michael Chertock, Pat Kelly and Ricky Nye.

Tom Steele, local singer/songwriter, jingle singer/songwriter, and Emmy Award winning composer, will perform a retrospective on his career called Young Forever at the Redmoor on Saturday, November 24. He spends a few minutes with our Anne Arenstein to talk about his long and varied career, and the impetus behind his upcoming concert.

Three teen-aged girls from Dearborn County, Indiana have become a talked about singing group called Jetset Getset. One of the members, Avery Eliason, along with manager Kelli Jette, join Brian O’Donnell to talk about how this group came about, and the serendipity that led Nashville music producer Jack Gale to come out of retirement to produce the group’s first album.

Bluegrass legend Dr. Ralph Stanley and his Clinch Mountain Boys will appear Saturday, September 29 at the Emery Theatre as part of this year’s MidPoint Music Festival. Local musician Ed Cunningham from the Comet Bluegrass All-Stars talks about the impact and legacy of Ralph Stanley with Lee Hay.

Acclaimed jazz performer Bobby Broom and his trio will be in town performing at the Thompson House on September 21, and he speaks by phone with Frank Johnson to discuss his music and his recent CD Bobby Broom Plays for Monk.

Robin Carey-Allgeyer learns more about Melodic Connections, a non-profit music therapy organization, and the upcoming Fall Fundraiser Bash, from Executive Director Betsy Zenk Nuseibah.

The 2012 version of the Midpoint Music Festival is coming at the end of the month, so organizers Dan McCabe and Venomous Valdez stopped by the studio to talk with Mark Perzel about this year’s music AND film festival.